Chapter 5: The Executive Branch

Test Bank

Multiple Choice

1. Elected state executive officials are subject to which term limits?

A. one 4-year term

B. two 4-year terms, but they can run for the same office after a 6-year break

C. two 4-year terms, and they can never run for the same office again

D. none; they are not subject to term limits

Answer Location: California’s Plural Executive

2. The length of an executive office’s term is ______.

A. 1 year

B. 2 years

C. 4 years

D. 6 years

Answer Location: California’s Plural Executive

3. California has a ______ executive, in which power is ______.

A. plural; split among several Constitutional officers

B. unitary; concentrated in the governor alone

C. singular; split between the governor and the department heads he appoints

D. none of these

Answer Location: California’s Plural Executive

4. Which organization within the executive branch is responsible for proposing and shaping the annual budget?

A. Legislative Counsel

B. Treasurer’s Office

C. Controller’s Office

D. Department of Finance

Answer Location: Budgeting Power

5. The attorney general is also known as ______.

A. the state’s chief law enforcement officer

B. head of the judicial branch

C. secretary of justice

D. the lieutenant governor

Answer Location: The Constitutional Executive Officers

6. The state constitutional officer who oversees all aspects of federal and state elections is the ______.

A. state clerk

B. county elections clerk

C. secretary of state

D. attorney general

Answer Location: The Constitutional Executive Officers

7. The state constitutional officer tasked with paying the state’s bills and monitoring the state’s financial condition is called the ______.

A. controller

B. member of the Board of Equalization

C. secretary of state

D. treasurer

Answer Location: The Constitutional Executive Officers

8. The state constitutional officer who acts as the state’s investment banker and bond manager is the ______.

A. secretary of state

B. controller

C. member of the Board of Equalization

D. treasurer

Answer Location: The Constitutional Executive Officers

9. Which constitutional executive officer is responsible for managing the state’s debt by selling and repaying bonds to investors, attempting to secure acceptable credit ratings, and maintaining the state’s financial assets?

A. treasurer

B. controller

C. Member of the Board of Equalization

D. secretary of state

Answer Location: The Constitutional Executive Officers

10. The Board of Equalization consists of ______ members who are responsible for standardizing the tax systems in the state, as well as collecting excise taxes.

A. 3

B. 5

C. 10

D. 20

Answer Location: The Constitutional Executive Officers

11. Which state constitutional officer’s job is officially nonpartisan?

A. all of them are nonpartisan

B. attorney general

C. insurance commissioner

D. superintendent of public instruction

Answer Location: The Constitutional Executive Officers

12. What does the insurance commissioner’s job entail?

A. collecting and disclosing all insurance company campaign donations to state politicians

B. reviewing and preapproving rates for car and homeowner insurance

C. disbursing checks to all state employees who sell goods and services to the state

D. sitting on the Tax Franchise Board and setting tax rates for insurance companies

Answer Location: The Constitutional Executive Officers

13. Which state executive(s) equalize property taxes and collect excise taxes on alcohol?

A. the controller and treasurer

B. all 12 executive officers

C. the State Board of Equalization

D. the controller only

Answer Location: The Constitutional Executive Officers

14. Which executive office was gutted in 2017 by having most of its tax collection duties and 90% of its staff reassigned to new Department of Tax and Fee Administration?

A. the controller and treasurer

B. the treasurer

C. the State Board of Equalization

D. the controller only

Answer Location: The Constitutional Executive Officers

15. Approximately how many public employees comprise the state bureaucracy?

A. 120,000

B. 210,000

C. 550,000

D. 1.1 million

Answer Location: Administrators and Regulators

16. Who is responsible for appointing members to more than 300 boards and commissions that share regulatory authority with the governor?

A. the governor

B. the secretary of state

C. the voters

D. the Assembly

Answer Location: Chief Executive | Administrators and Regulators

17. To whom are the constitutional executives accountable?

A. the people of California

B. the governor

C. the attorney general

D. no one

Answer Location: Figure 5.2 Organization Chart of California’s Executive Branch

18. What is fair to say about California’s plural executive?

A. Cooperation among the executive officers is regular, and coordination among them is smooth.

B. State executives have big incentives to set aside their ideological differences.

C. Splintering authority among many offices provides checks against the concentration of power, but obscures accountability.

D. Despite their differences, a plural executive produces coherent, consistent policymaking and planning.

Answer Location: California’s Plural Executive | The Constitutional Executive Officers

19. After the 2016 elections, all but ______ of the constitutional executive officers were Democrats.

A. zero

B. two

C. six

D. eight

Answer Location: The Constitutional Executive Officers

20. Edmund “Jerry” G. Brown Jr. has served in what statewide elected office(s)?

A. only governor (twice)

B. treasurer and twice as governor

C. secretary of state, attorney general, and twice as governor

D. state senator and twice as governor

Answer Location: Sources of Power | Photo Caption

21. All state executives have the duty to ______.

A. write laws

B. run elections and campaigns

C. carry out laws and policies

D. any of these

Answer Location: California’s Plural Executive

22. Which officials form the governor’s cabinet?

A. secretaries of the superagencies and other large departments

B. only members of independent agencies

C. the other 11 elected state officials

D. all members of the state’s commissions and boards

Answer Location: Chief Executive

23. Which entities are primarily responsible for establishing, clarifying, and changing the rules that regulate the activities of people and businesses in the state?

A. the department secretaries

B. the governor’s executive office

C. the other 11 elected state officials

D. state boards and commissions

Answer Location: Administrators and Regulators

24. What is true of the seven “superagencies” in the state bureaucracy?

A. They are independent, so they do not answer to the governor.

B. They are designed to help all the constitutional officers execute the law, and so their secretaries answer to all of the state executives.

C. They help organize the state’s administrative boards and agencies, and the governor appoints the secretaries who head them.

D. Their administrators can be recalled from office by the voters.

Answer Location: Administrators and Regulators

25. The office that analyzes the budget for the legislature is the ______, whereas the organization that prepares the budget for the governor is the ______.

A. the Legislative Analyst’s Office (LAO); the Controller’s Office

B. the State Treasurer’s Office; the Controller’s Office

C. the Legislative Analyst’s Office (LAO); the Department of Finance

D. the Senate Office of Research; the Department of Finance

Answer Location: Budgeting Power

26. How many times per year do the 12 elected executive officers meet together to strategize and coordinate policy?

A. once a week

B. once a month

C. twice a year

D. never

Answer Location: The Constitutional Executive Officers

27. If a sitting U.S. Senator dies or leaves office, which constitutional executive officer has the power to name a temporary replacement?

A. the secretary of state

B. the governor

C. the attorney general

D. a majority vote of all elected executive officers

Answer Location: Chief Executive

28. Who has the power to appoint judges?

A. the governor

B. the governor, attorney general, and chief justice of the state Supreme Court

C. no one in the executive branch

D. the legislative leaders: Assembly speaker and senate president pro tem

Answer Location: Chief Executive

29. Who assumes virtually all the powers of the governor when the sitting governor leaves the state’s borders?

A. attorney general

B. lieutenant governor

C. the secretary of state

D. the speaker of the assembly

Answer Location: The Constitutional Executive Officers

30. Which constitutional executive officer is responsible for implementing rules relating to lobbying, including the reporting and disclosure of related financial activities?

A. attorney general

B. lieutenant governor

C. the secretary of state

D. the speaker of the assembly

Answer Location: California’s Plural Executive

31. Which state executive official is considered to be “first among equals?”

A. treasurer

B. attorney general

C. governor

D. secretary of state

Answer Location: California’s Governor

32. Who has the ability to call a state of emergency after a natural disaster has struck?

A. governor

B. attorney general

C. treasurer

D. any of these

Answer Location: California’s Governor

33. The governor plays a significant role in the legislative process by ______.

A. monitoring bills as they move through the legislative process

B. calling special sessions of the legislature to address pressing issues

C. setting policy priorities through the budget

D. any of these

Answer Location: Legislative Powers

34. About how many bills did Governor Brown sign into law in 2016?

A. 50

B. 200

C. 900

D. 2,000

Answer Location: Legislative Powers

35. The most important information-gathering body that works directly for the governor is ______.

A. Department of Finance

B. Legislative Analyst

C. Senate Office of Research

D. Department of Education

Answer Location: Budgeting Power

36. Which of these constitutional officers is responsible for certifying the state election results?

A. superintendent of Public Education

B. governor

C. attorney general

D. none of these

Answer Location: The Constitutional Executive Officers

True/False

1. The governor resembles the U.S. President in that she/he appoints every other state executive (such as attorney general and secretary of state), as well as department heads to help carry laws into effect.

Answer Location: California’s Plural Executive | The Constitutional Executive Officers

2. Under term limits, executive officers in California may only be elected to two 4-year terms.

Answer Location: California’s Plural Executive

3. Under term limits, an individual may only run for one type of statewide office in his or her lifetime.

Answer Location: California’s Plural Executive

4. Unlike the U.S. president, California’s governor has the power of the line-item veto.

Answer Location: Legislative Powers

5. Like the U.S. president, the governor may issue executive orders.

Answer Location: Chief Executive

6. Next to the governor, the executive officer with the most power is the attorney general.

Answer Location: The Constitutional Executive Officers

7. The lieutenant governor takes temporary control of the governorship whenever the governor leaves the state on official or unofficial business.

Answer Location: The Constitutional Executive Officers

8. The state’s chief law enforcement officer is the lieutenant governor.

Answer Location: The Constitutional Executive Officers

9. The state’s chief law enforcement officer is the attorney general, who is charged with supervising all sheriffs, policy chiefs, and state agencies to enforce the law adequately and uniformly.

Answer Location: The Constitutional Executive Officers

10. The attorney general’s office is considered a stepping stone to the governor’s office, as many former attorneys general have become candidates for governor.

Answer Location: The Constitutional Executive Officers

11. All the constitutional officers meet as a governing board a minimum of four times per year to coordinate the implementation of state policy.

Answer Location: The Constitutional Executive Officers

12. Only the secretary of state may call a special election.

Answer Location: Legislative Powers

13. All elected state officials serve 4-year terms (4 years at a time), unless they are elected through a special election.

Answer Location: California’s Plural Executive

14. All state elected executives earn the same salary: $146,854.

Answer Location: Box 5.1 FAST FACTS on California’s Plural Executive

15. The governor earns a higher salary than all other executive branch officials.

Answer Location: Box 5.1 FAST FACTS on California’s Plural Executive

16. Under term limits, it is common for assembly members and state senators to run for statewide office, such as secretary of state or treasurer.

Answer Location: Figure 5.1 California Executives and Musical Chairs, 2017

17. Of the nine governors elected since World War II, more of them have been Republicans than Democrats.

Answer Location: Table 5.1 Modern-Era California Governors by Party Affiliation

18. Like legislators, the governor employs personal staff who analyze and research bills.

Answer Location: Legislative Powers

19. Civil service laws protect almost 99% of the state’s employees, who are hired on the basis of merit rather than nepotism (family ties) or patronage (reward for one’s party loyalty).

Answer Location: Chief Executive

20. A new Department of Tax and Fee Administration has assumed almost all of the tasks that the Board of Equalization performed prior to 2017.

Answer Location: The Constitutional Executive Officers

21. Governor Jerry Brown is the only state executive who has “stood up” to the Trump Administration and refused to conform to federal policies; the others have complied willingly.

Answer Location: California’s Plural Executive

22. Attorney General Xavier Becerra was appointed by Governor Jerry Brown when former AG Kamala Harris was elected to the U.S. Senate.

Answer Location: Figure 5.1 California Executives and Musical Chairs, 2017 | The Constitutional Executive Officers

23. A governor has the power to reduce the penalties associated with a crime, so that a formerly convicted person might regain certain rights, such as gun ownership.

Answer Location: Chief of Security

24. Few if any of the constitutional executive officers have either served as state legislators or in more than one constitutional office.

Answer Location: Figure 5.1 California Executives and Chairs, 2017

25. The governor and his or her aides (staff) monitor bills at all stages of the legislative process.

Answer Location: Legislative Powers

Short Answer

1. The expert staff of the ______ construct the state’s budget, providing information and advice to the governor about the state’s ever-changing financial and demographic status.

Answer Location: Budgeting Power

2. The three constitutional executive offices dedicated to managing the state’s money and finances are ______, ______, and ______.

Answer Location: The Constitutional Executive Officers

3. Because there are nine separately elected executives, California has a “______” executive, meaning that power is split among several Constitutional officers.

Answer Location: California’s Plural Executive

4. Next to the governor, which executive officer possesses the most power?

Answer Location: The Constitutional Executive Officers

Essay

1. Name the nine elected, constitutional executive offices in California.

Answer Location: Box 5.1 FAST FACTS on California’s Plural Executive | The Constitutional Executive Officers

2. What are the political consequences of a plural executive?

Answer Location: California’s Plural Executive

3. What are the consequences of term limits on California’s executive branch?

Answer Location: Figure 5.1 California Executives and Musical Chairs, 2017

4. Describe the governor’s responsibilities.

Answer Location: California’s Governor | Head of State | Chief Executive | Legislative Powers | Budgeting Power | Chief of Security

5. Describe the governor’s duties and responsibilities as “chief executive.”

Answer Location: Chief Executive

6. What are the governor’s duties with respect to legislating?

Answer Location: Legislative Powers

7. What are the governor’s budgeting responsibilities?

Answer Location: Budgeting Power

8. Describe the governor’s responsibilities as “chief of security.”

Answer Location: Chief of Security

9. What are the formal and informal sources of the governor’s power?

Answer Location: Sources of Power

10. What are the responsibilities of the lieutenant governor?

Answer Location: The Constitutional Executive Officers

11. What responsibilities belong to the secretary of state’s office?

Answer Location: The Constitutional Executive Officers

12. What are the responsibilities of the attorney general?

Answer Location: The Constitutional Executive Officers

13. Explain what the superintendent of public instruction does.

Answer Location: The Constitutional Executive Officers

14. Explain what is meant by “plural executive.”

Answer Location: California’s Plural Executive

15. Name a superagency and list at least four agencies within it.

Answer Location: Figure 5.2 Organization Chart of California’s Executive Branch

16. Why are several agencies called “superagencies”?

Answer Location: Administrators and Regulators

17. Which is more powerful: the governor and the executive branch organizations she/he oversees, or the legislature?

Answer Location: California’s Governor | Administrators and Regulators

18. What are the advantages and disadvantages of having a plural executive?

Answer Location: The Constitutional Executive Officers

19. Name two ways in which a constitutional officer has resisted a Trump administration policy.

Answer Location: The Constitutional Executive Officers | Introduction