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state legislatures are known by various names and come in many sizes, but most are organized like Congress.

Nebraska is unique because it is unicameral.

The upper house is called the senate and has fewer members than the lower house.

States vary considerably in who presides over the senate.

The size of state legislatures varies widely and is not determined by the size of the state.

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There are two types of legislative sessions: regular and special.

The regular session is the annual or biennial—every-other-year—gathering of the legislature.

A special session is a specially-called meeting of the legislature, typically to deal with pressing problems.

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The legal qualifications for state legislators are defined in a state’s constitution.

In most states, a person must be a resident of the district that they want to represent.

To serve as a senator, a person usually must be at least 25 years old and a resident of the state for some specified time.

To serve in the lower house, a person usually must be at least 21 years old and meet residency requirements.

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All state senators and representatives are directly elected by the people in their voting districts.

In a majority of states, this process looks very similar to congressional elections, but on a smaller scale.

Most states require a two-part process consisting of a closed or semi-closed primary

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Generally, the amount of money spent on a state election depends on the political importance of the district in question and the party affiliations of its voters.

Every ten years after the national census, states must adjust their district boundaries to reflect population shifts.

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Counties are normally the largest territorial and political subdivision within a state.

A county board has the authority to govern most counties. For the most part, county boards decide on the county budget, taxes, and zoning codes.

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The term municipality is a bit more generic and can be any subdivision of a state and can have any number of residents and any geographic area.

In the United States, the three basic forms of municipal government are the mayor-council form, the council-manager form, and the commission form.

Most city councils have fewer than ten members.

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Townships exist as units of local government in 20 states.

Townships are created as divisions of counties, and their size and jurisdiction vary greatly from one state to another.

Today, the term town meeting usually describes a meeting called by an elected official to get input from his or her constituents.

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Special districts are units of local government that deal with a specific function, such as education.

Creating a special district that is not subject to such limitations becomes a practical solution for local leaders.

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Local school districts are usually governed by an elected local body, the school board.

School boards are responsible for hiring and firing superintendents.

A new trend is having student representatives on the board. Hilliard has a superintendent advisory board, which I am apart of.

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Tribal government is a separate level of government that serves the Native American population.

Tribal governments levy taxes, pass their own laws, and operate their own court system.

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Citing the problem of voter fraud, lawmakers in have introduced a range of measures designed to prevent unauthorized people from voting.

Opponents of these laws have argued that they disproportionately impact poor, minority voters who are less likely to have a photo ID.

In the twenty-first century, numerous states have passed laws allowing early voting, all-mail voting, and “no-excuse required” absentee voting.

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Many states are attempting to  protect the environment by carefully regulating the use of energy sources.

Energy companies have come up with hydraulic fracturing to access fossil fuels more efficiently.

Some believe the process has negative environmental consequences.

Traditional sources of oil and gas are also regulated by the states.

Other issues affecting the environment, such as the size and location of landfills, are also regulated by state legislatures.

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Some states have passed laws allowing for public charter schools.

Other states have authorized vouchers for students to attend private schools.

Many states have adopted new standards and curricula and policies that incorporate technology into the classroom, such as Hilliard.

States are creating evaluation systems to help evaluate teaches.

States are also challenged to fund higher education.

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Legislatures often enact laws in response to trends in crime.

Housing inmates is very expensive. The estimated cost per inmate for one year is approximately $30,000.

Many states decided to prioritize their prison space for the most dangerous offenders.

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Regulating land use using such tools as zoning is one way local governments try to achieve the goal of creating livable cities.

Most large cities and many smaller ones have zoning ordinances.

Zoning ordinances may specify such factors as how big a building can be, how close to the street it can be built, etc.

Zoning ordinances can restrict how people can use their own property, so some people believe they violate their property rights.

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Some cities are famous for their traffic jams, which affect air quality and result in inefficient use of resources.

One way that state and local governments address this goal is by providing mass transit systems.

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State and local governments are quite concerned about the well being of their community’s economy.

Sometimes they offer tax breaks or credits to attract or retain business.

These types of programs are increasing in frequency.