State Legislature

Oregon Legislature

Oregon Legislature

The Oregon Legislature, which is also known as the Oregon Legislative Assembly, is the bicameral legislative body of Oregon, responsible for proposing and passing bills within the state, as well as determining a state budget. The Oregon Legislature, as a bicameral institution, is made up of an upper and lower house, with the upper house of the Oregon Legislature being the Senate, and the lower house of the Oregon Legislature being the House of Representatives. 


The Oregon Legislature is made up of 90 members in total, with 30 of these members belonging to the Oregon Senate, and 60 members belonging to the Oregon House of Representatives. The Oregon Legislature, divided as such, involves 60 districts for the Oregon House of Representatives, and 30 districts for the Oregon Senate. Each Senate district of the Oregon Legislature is made up of exactly two House districts. 

Furthermore, one of the differentiating qualities of the Oregon Legislature is that it is considered a citizens’ assembly. This means that the Oregon Legislature is not made up of dedicated politicians, and members of the Oregon Legislature hold other jobs, as the Oregon Legislature only meets once every two years. 



The Oregon Legislature might be called into special sessions if it was considered necessary by members of the Oregon Legislature, however, or by the Governor of Oregon. This is a relatively recent change, as well, as up until 1976 only the Governor of Oregon could call the Oregon Legislature into session in a special circumstance.

State Legislatures

State Legislatures

Each and every state within America has its own state legislature. These state legislatures are bodies which are made up of an assembly of representatives of some form, who then vote on important legislation which could then be passed as a law at the state level. Each of the state legislatures would thus obviously only have legislative power over the workings of that state in particular, as opposed to having power over the workings of the country as a whole, like Congress would have. A state legislature would also only include representatives elected by the citizens of that particular state. 
The legislative bodies within most states are known primarily as either “Legislature” or “General Assembly,” though there are some additional terms which vary, such as “General Court” or “Legislative Assembly,” depending upon the state in question.
Furthermore, all of the state legislatures are actually bicameral bodies, making them akin to Congress, which is technically a single, bicameral legislature. In other words, as bicameral legislative bodies, they are made up of two different houses. The only exception is Nebraska, which has a unicameral legislature, meaning that there is only a single house within its legislature.
This means that most state legislatures still consist of an upper and lower house, with the upper chamber generally being smaller than the lower  chamber, though this is not certain. State legislatures might have the exact makeup of the legislatures determined by county divisions, in a fashion similar to how Congress has its makeup determined by the states. 

California Legislature

California Legislature

The California State Legislature is the body responsible for creating, repealing, and modifying laws in California. The California State Legislature is a bicameral body, which means that it is composed of two different houses. The lower house of the California legislature is the California State Assembly, while the upper house of the California legislature is the California State Senate. The California State Assembly has 80 members, while the California State Senate has 40 members.
Representatives in the lower house of the California legislature hold two year terms of office, with a limit of three terms. Representatives in the upper house of the California legislature hold four year terms of office, with a limit of two terms of office. Each member of the California State Legislature, whether in the Assembly or the Senate, is elected from a single district.
This means that there are 40 districts for elections of the upper house of the California State Legislature, and there are 80 districts for elections of the lower house of the California State Legislature. Both houses of the California State Legislature convene in Sacramento, California, at the California State Capitol building. 
The California legislature functions similarly to the legislatures for the country as a whole, and the other state legislatures throughout the nation. One of the most important ways in which the California State Legislature differs from other state legislatures is in the fact that for any bill which would modify the taxes imposed on California state residents, or for the budget of California, a 2/3 majority is necessary in both houses for the bill or budget to pass.

Colorado Legislature

Colorado Legislature

The Colorado Legislature is the legislative body for the state government of Colorado, meaning that it has the power to pass, repeal, and modify legislation within Colorado. The Colorado Legislature is also known as the Colorado General Assembly. The Colorado Legislature is a bicameral institution, meaning that it consists of an upper house, known as the Colorado Senate, and a lower house, known as the Colorado House of Representatives.

The Colorado Legislature has 100 members in total, with 65 members of the Colorado Legislature belonging to the Colorado House of Representatives, while 35 members of the Colorado Legislature belong to the Colorado Senate. 

By the Colorado law, the terms for the lower house of the Colorado Legislature are 2 years in length, while the terms for the upper house of the Colorado Legislature are 4 years in length. The actual elections for the upper house of the Colorado Legislature are staggered out such that the whole of the upper house is not elected in a single election, and half of the members of the upper house of the Colorado Legislature will not be up for election until the next election, two years later.

All the members of the lower house of the Colorado Legislature are up for election every two years. Members of the Colorado Legislature are not allowed to serve more than 8 consecutive years in office, but they can run again if they take a certain amount of time off from the position. Both members of the upper and lower house of the Colorado Legislature must wait 4 years before being able to run for the position again.

Florida Legislature

Florida Legislature

The Florida Legislature is responsible for passing, repealing, and modifying legislation within the state of Florida. The Florida Legislature, like the vast majority of most state legislatures and the legislature of the United States itself, is a bicameral body, with an upper and a lower house. The upper house of the Florida Legislature is the Florida Senate, and the lower house of the Florida Legislature is the Florida House of Representatives.

The upper house of the Florida Legislature contains 40 members, while the lower house of the Florida Legislature contains 120 members. Members of either house of the Florida Legislature can only hold 8 years in office, maximum, although in the Florida Senate this is equal to two four year terms, while in the Florida House of Representatives it is equal to four two-year terms.

Representatives to the lower house of the Florida Legislature are each elected from a single district, which means that no two representatives will come from the same one of the 120 different districts throughout Florida. Similarly, there are 40 districts for the Florida Senate elections, and only one representative is elected from each district per year. The Florida Legislature meets in the Florida State Capitol, located in Tallahassee. 

The Florida Legislature is known to have had 2,138 bills submitted within both houses, together, in the year of 2009. Of these 2,138 submitted bills, only about 300 were passed. 300 is about the average number of bills which are passed from the Florida Legislature in any given year, as well. Contact Florida lawyers for legal advice and assistance.

Utah State Legislature

Utah State Legislature

The Utah State Legislature is the legislative body for Utah. The Utah State Legislature is a bicameral body, which means that it is made up of two houses, one upper and one lower. The upper house of the Utah State Legislature is the Utah Senate, and the lower house of the Utah State Legislature is the Utah House of Representatives.
The Utah State Legislature is made up of a total of 104 members currently. 29 of the members of the Utah State Legislature belong to the Utah State Senate, while 75 of the members of the Utah State Legislature belong to the Utah House of Representatives. 
Members of the Utah State Legislature are elected from many districts within Utah, with every member of the Utah State Legislature being elected from his or her own unique district. This means that there are 75 districts for the Utah House of Representatives, and 29 districts from the Utah Senate. Each district for the lower house of the Utah State Legislature thus covers close to 35,000 people, while every district for the upper house of the Utah State Legislature covers close to 91,000 individuals.
The upper house of the Utah State Legislature involves terms of four years in duration, while the lower house of the Utah State Legislature involves terms of two-years. Neither house of the Utah State Legislature imposes any kind of term limits on members. The Utah State Legislature meets within the Utah State Capitol building, which is located in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Hawaii Legislature

Hawaii Legislature

The Hawaii Legislature, or Hawaii State Legislature, is the legislative body for the state of Hawaii, meaning that it holds power over the legislation of Hawaii under the terms of the Hawaii Constitution. The Hawaii Legislature is a bicameral institution made up of an upper and a lower house, with the upper house of the Hawaii Legislature being called the Hawaii Senate, and the lower house of the Hawaii Legislature being called the Hawaii House of Representatives.

The Hawaii Legislature is made up of 76 members in total, with 51 of these members belonging to the Hawaii House of Representatives, and the other 25 members of the Hawaii Legislature belonging to the Hawaii Senate. There is one district per member of the Hawaii Legislature, as each member of the Hawaii Legislature is elected from that one district.

This also means there are fewer districts for the upper house of the Hawaii Legislature than there are for the lower house of the Hawaii Legislature. The Hawaii Legislature convenes both houses in the Hawaii State Capitol Building, which is located in the city of Honolulu, on the island of Oahu. 

The Hawaii Legislature convenes in two year sessions, which are not meant to exceed 60 days in duration for any individual amount of time. In order to be elected to the Hawaii Legislature, an individual must have been living in Hawaii for three years, must be at least 18 years old, and must be a registered voter for the district in which that individual is running. Contact Hawaii lawyers for legal advice and assistance.

Oklahoma Legislature

Oklahoma Legislature

The Oklahoma Legislature is the legislative branch for the government of the state of Oklahoma. This means that it is the branch of state government which is primarily focused on creating and performing duties pertaining to the legislation of Oklahoma.
The Oklahoma Legislature is a bicameral legislature, meaning that it is a legislature of two different houses, with one house being the upper house called the Oklahoma Senate, and the other house being the lower house, called the Oklahoma House of Representatives. The Oklahoma Legislature has a total of 149 members at the current time. 101 members of the Oklahoma Legislature are members of the Oklahoma House of Representatives, with 48 other members of the Oklahoma Legislature being members of the Oklahoma Senate.
The Oklahoma Legislature has terms set up in the upper house such that state Senators, who serve four-year terms, are staggered as to when they are elected. The members of the lower house of the Oklahoma Legislature are elected once every two years. The districts from which members of the Oklahoma Legislature are voted into office vary depending upon the house in question, though for both houses of the Oklahoma Legislature, there is one district for every representative or senator. 
The Oklahoma Legislature itself is a biennial organization. This means that the Oklahoma Legislature meets only once every two years, as opposed to meeting more often as do certain other  state legislatures. The Oklahoma Legislature meets in Oklahoma City, at the Oklahoma State Capitol building.