State Government Study Guide Answers
1.) What kind of budget does our State Constitution require us to have? balanced 2.) What is a revenue? What is an expenditure?
Revenue: a source of income; money collected
Expenditure: money spent
3.) What are Georgia’s 3 main revenues? 3 main expenditures?
Revenues: income taxes, sales taxes, other taxes (special fees)
Expenditures: education, human services, public safety
4.) What is a surplus? What is a deficit?
Surplus: govt takes in more money than it spends
Deficit: govt spends more money than it takes in
5.) What are the 3 branches of Georgia’s state government? What is the main job of each branch?
Executive – enforces/executes laws
Judicial – interprets laws
Legislative – makes laws
6.) What is the largest branch?
Executive
7.) Who is the chief executive officer of Georgia?
Governor
8.) Who takes over if the governor dies or resigns?
Lieutenant Governor – Casey Cagle
9.) What are the requirements to become Georgia’s Governor? Lieutenant Governor?
Governor: 30 years old, US citizen for 15 years, resident of Georgia for 6 years
Lt. Gov: same
10.) The Governor and Lieutenant Governor are elected to how many years as a term?
4 years
11.) How many consecutive terms (back to back terms) can a Governor serve? How many years is this?
2 terms; 8 years max
12.) How many consecutive terms can a Lieutenant Governor serve?
Unlimited
13.) What is a formal power? What are some of the formal powers for Georgia’s Governor?
A power that is given by the constitution; managing the state’s budget, commander of the national guard, signing a bill into law
14.) What is an informal power? What are some of the informal powers of Georgia’s Governor?
A power that is not specifically stated in the constitution; representing the state in meetings, encourages business to come to the state
15.) What is the legislative branch of Georgia’s state government called? What two groups are the legislative branch divided into?
Georgia General Assembly; House of Representatives and Senate
16.) Who is the presiding officer of the Senate? What responsibilities do they have?
Lieutenant Governor; Recognize speakers on the floor of the chamber, assign proposed bills to committees, and appoint committee members
17.) Who is the leader of the House of Representatives? What responsibilities do they have?
Speaker of the House; Recognize speakers on the floor of the chamber, assign proposed bills to committees, and appoint committee members
18.) What are the age requirements to become a member of the House of Representatives and Senate?
House member: 21 years old Senate member: 25 years old
19.) What is one thing the House of Representatives is uniquely responsible for?
Writing appropriations (spending) bills
20.) What is one thing Georgia’s Senate is uniquely responsible for?
Confirming the Governor’s appointments
21.) When does the Georgia General Assembly meet? For how long?
2nd Monday of January for 40 days
22.) The General Assembly is divided up into groups or ___________________. committees 23.) What is a standing committee?
Permanent committee; meets every time the General Assembly meets
24.) How does a bill become a law?
Bill, Committee, House, Senate, Governor
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