Educational Resources
The Texas Constitution
Resources
Readings
- Texas Constitutions with Links to Originals
- Table of contents: U.S. and Texas Constitutions
- How the U.S. Constitution Distributes Power
- U.S. and Texas Amendment Processes
- U.S. Constitution Civil War Amendments
- Biography of E. J. Davis
- Images of the Flags Flown Over Texas
- Bill of Rights from the U.S., Texas, and the United Nations
- Edgewood ISD v. Kirby
The Legislative Branch
Resources
Readings
Data
- Partisan Composition of the Texas House of Representatives
- Partisan Composition of the Texas Senate
- Texas Legislature Bill Filing Statistics: Bills Filed
- Texas Legislature Bill Filing Statistics: Bills Passed
- Texas Legislature Bill Filing Statistics: Bill Passage Rate
- Legislative salaries and staff
- Legislature age and occupation profiles
- One Person, Less Than One Vote
- Bills Passed: Signed or Vetoed
- Days from the Start of the Texas Legislative Session until House Committee Assignments
The Executive Branch
Resources
Data
- Making the Cut: Qualifications
- Compensation of Governors and President
- Who's Next?: Order of Succession
- Republican Elected Officials, 1974-2002
- Spreading the Power Around
- Powers of Number Two Executives
- Texas Attitudes about Gov. Greg Abbott
- Greg Abbott Job Approval Trend
- Texas Attitudes about Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick
- Dan Patrick Job Approval Trend
The Justice System
Resources
- Texas Judicial Branch
- Court of Criminal Appeals
- Texas Supreme Court
- Court Structure of Texas
- The Texas Judicial System (Office of Court Administration)
- Texas Judicial Directory
- Court Jurisdiction Maps
- State District Courts
- Courts of Appeals Districts
- Texas Department of Criminal Justice
- Texas Department of Public Safety
Readings
- Crimes and punishments
- Organization of Texas courts
- Comparing Texas and U.S. court caseloads
- Appellate judge terms compared
- Profiling Texas Judges
- Public opinion about confidence in police
- Sample Jury Summons
- Executions carried out in Texas and the US
- Geography and ethnicity of Texas death row
- Profiling Texas prison inmates
- Texas corrections facilities
- Texas prison budgets
- Cruel and unusual punishment: Ruiz
- Texas and U.S. incarceration rates
Bureaucracy
Resources
Readings
- Expenditures of the state of Texas by function
- A diagram of the policy making process
- The science of 'muddling through'
- Recommendations from the Sunset Commission
- Sunset review schedule through 2015
- Iron triangles, aka subgovernments
- Theories of economic regulation
- Special sessions of the legislature
- Taxonomy of bureaucratic leadership
- Federal employment across the states
Voters, Campaigns, and Elections
Resources
Readings
- The 2000 election: Bush/Gore by county
- Getting on the primary ballot
- The demographics of voting
- Rates of participation in Texas and the U.S.
- State voter residency requirements
- Reasons for not voting
- Smith vs. Allwright: white primaries
- Black elected officials in Texas, 1970-2000
- Latino elected officials in Texas, 1974-2003
- Cumulative Voting in Texas
- Voting rules and election outcomes
- Congressional and Texas legislative fundraising
- U.S./Texas campaign contribution limits
- Contributions to Texas candidates
Data
- Comparing turnout in constitutional elections
- Texas Election Results: Presidential Election Vote Totals
- Texas Election Results: Presidential Election Vote Shares
- Texas Election Results: Gubernatorial Vote Counts
- Texas Election Results: Gubernatorial Vote Share
- Texas Election Results: Lieutenant Governor Election Vote Counts
- Texas Election Results: Lieutenant Governor Election Vote Share
- Texas Election Results: Attorney General Election Vote Counts
- Texas Election Results: Attorney General Election Vote Share
Political Economy
Readings
- State government employment and payroll
- Government employment in Texas counties
- Reinventing Government
- Expenditures of the state of Texas by function
- A diagram of the policy making process
- The science of 'muddling through'
- Recommendations from the Sunset Commission
- Sunset review schedule through 2015
- Iron triangles, aka subgovernments
- Theories of economic regulation
- archive/html/pec/features/0400_01/slide1.html
- Taxonomy of bureaucratic leadership
- Bureaucracy responds to child support problem
- Government employment across the states
- Federal employment across the states
Public Policy
Data
- Texas Attitudes about Public Education
- Texas Attitudes about Health Care
- Texas Attitudes about Immigration and Border Security
- Texas Attitudes about Gun Rights/Violence
- Texas Attitudes about State Taxes
- Texas Attitudes about Abortion
- Texas Attitudes about Voting & Elections
- Poverty Rates for the 10 Poorest States
- Poverty Rates for the 10 Poorest US Counties
- Texas Poverty By Racial/Ethnic Group
- Poverty Rates for the US and Texas