Texas state legislature

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Texas State Legislature
The Texas legislature should meet annually instead of biennially. According to Galbraith, Texas is still one of the few states sticking to biennial legislature despite its drawbacks. One of the primary reasons Texas should consider changing its system is because of budgeting. Indeed, the Texas legislature must make critical financial decisions in the budget; these decisions stand for two years. Considering Galbraith, this is a drawback as the economy is difficult to predict. Notably, if the state legislature decides the budget, it cannot change until the next meeting (Galbraith). Therefore, shifting to annual meetings will ensure that the decisions are reviewed in real time and budgets can be changed instead of waiting for two years. According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, annual legislatures also ensures continued oversight of the administration. For example, through the annual meetings, the Texas legislature ensure that the Governor and other officials are accountable and fulfilling their mandate.
At the same time, Texas legislature should consider meeting annually as this saves the need for special sessions. The time limits associated with biennial sessions also make logjam bills hard to pass; this can lead to passage of many perky bills which may not assist people (Galbraith). Additionally, the annual sessions will also increase the status of the legislature and act as an oversight over the executive.

Complex and ongoing problems at hard to deal with in the current biennial legislature. The increasing duties of the state legislature also make it essential for the sessions to be held annually (National Conference of State Legislatures). Overall, Texas should move to the annual system to ensure that the challenges associated with the current system are tackled.
Works Cited
Galbraith, Kate. “Biennial Blues?” The Texas Tribune, 2010, https://www.texastribune.org/2010/12/31/defying-national-trend-texas-clings-biennial-legis/. Accessed 6 Nov 2018.
National Conference of State Legislatures. “Annual versus Biennial Legislative Sessions”. Ncsl.Org, 2018, http://www.ncsl.org/research/about-state-legislatures/annual-versus-biennial-legislative-sessions.aspx. Accessed 6 Nov 2018.