Features which are similar in all the states.

The General Similarity of State Governments.—No two states, among the forty-eight, are governed alike. A description of state government in Massachusetts would not fit Illinois, much less Idaho or Nevada. On the other hand no two states are governed very differently; in all the essential features they conform to a single type. They all have constitutions; every state has an elective legislature of two chambers; each has an elective governor; and they all have state courts. In all the states there is universal suffrage (save for the exclusion of negroes in the South); the secret ballot is used throughout the country; the same political parties are in existence everywhere from the Atlantic to the Pacific; and the principal laws are essentially the same. The citizen who moves from one state to another finds the difference so slight that it is hardly noticeable. It is not worth while, therefore, to spend any time in studying the points of difference between the government of one state and that of another. State government everywhere has now been reduced to a type which is uniform for all practical purposes.

Organization of the state legislature.

The State Legislature.—Every state has a legislature which is the paramount branch of the state government. It makes the laws, levies the state taxes, appropriates money for the management of state administration, and decides all questions of public policy. This legislature is composed of two chambers, which have substantially concurrent lawmaking powers. The upper chamber, commonly called the Senate, is the smaller of the two; its members are elected by counties or senatorial districts, usually for a term of two or four years. The lower chamber, which is variously known as the Assembly, or House of Representatives, or House of Delegates, is much the larger body; its members are also elected from counties or parts of counties. Nominations are made either by conventions or by a primary; the latter is now the more common method except in the Southern states. Sessions of the legislature are held every alternate year except in a few states where they are held annually.

The legislature’s powers.

The powers of the state legislature are in actual operation very broad. They comprise the whole field of lawmaking except in so far as it has been restricted by the national constitution or by the constitution of the state itself. The state laws come closer to the life of the individual than do those of the nation.[[99]] They make provision for the registration of a child’s birth; they determine the age at which he must go to school; they establish the schools and fix the qualifications of the teachers. When the boy becomes a man he will find that the state laws regulate his profession or business. The state laws enable him to marry, to accumulate property, to vote, and to hold office. When he dies the state laws regulate the transmission of his property to his heirs. Thus from birth to death the citizen comes almost daily into contact with the lawmaking authority of the state. These laws determine most of the taxes that he pays; they safeguard his life, health, and property; they punish him when he does wrong; and they provide for his maintenance if he becomes poor or crippled or insane. Where the federal government touches the citizen once, the state government touches him a dozen times. The average citizen does not always appreciate this fact.

The process of state legislation.

The consent of both chambers of the state legislature is necessary to the making of laws. The process of lawmaking is very much like that used in Congress (see pp. 275-278). Bills are introduced, referred to committees, reported back to the legislature, and voted on by each chamber.[[100]] Disagreements between the two chambers are adjusted by a conference committee. The rules of procedure are very complicated and new members of a state legislature often have some difficulty in understanding them. The purpose of the rules is threefold: To expedite business, to ensure the careful consideration of each measure, and to protect the rights of the minority party in the legislature. Despite the rules, however, legislative business is often unduly delayed; at other times measures are hustled through without proper consideration, and the rights of the minority are frequently over-ridden.[[101]] This is done by suspending the rules or by merely disregarding them.

The governor.

The State Executive.—The executive branch of the state government is made up of the governor and the heads of the various state departments. The governor is elected by the people for a term of two or four years. His powers are extensive. He is charged with the general supervision over the enforcement of the laws and the conduct of administrative affairs. He makes most of the important appointments to state administrative offices, the chief exceptions being the heads of state departments and the judges of the state courts, both of whom are in most cases elected by the people. The governor’s appointments, before they become effective, usually require confirmation by the upper branch of the state legislature or by an elective executive council. Where the civil service system is in force, moreover, it places a limit on the governor’s discretion in appointments. The governor also possesses the veto power over acts of the state legislature, but this may be over-ridden, as a rule, by a two-thirds vote of both chambers. In all essential features the veto power of the governor is much like that of the President. The power to pardon offenders convicted in the state courts likewise belongs to the governor in most states; in some states, however, he must obtain the concurrence of a pardoning-board or some other authority, and in a few states the entire power of pardon is given to a special board. The governor is commander-in-chief of the state militia and may call it out for service in emergencies. Like the President the governor is removable from office by impeachment.