Rob Landers

Owensville High School

 GS 4.A—The student will examine the Missouri
Constitution and state government.
 Complete text of Missouri Constitution.
 http://www.moga.mo.gov/const/moconstn.htm
 Governor is head of Executive Branch
 Serves a four year term (limited to 2 terms)
 Requirements:
 30 years old
 U.S. citizen for 15 years
 Missouri citizen for 10 years
 Duties/Powers of Governor:
 Commander-in-Chief of National Guard
 Appoint directors of agencies and State Judges
 Issue Pardons and Reprieves
 Annual “State of the State” address
 Submit an annual budget
 Approve or Veto bills
 If the Governor dies or resigns, the Lieutenant
Governor takes over
 Duties/Powers of Lt. Governor
 Serves as president of Missouri Senate
 Votes only if there is a tie
 Serves on various boards and official groups
 Qualifications are the same as Governor
 The Secretary of State is responsible for
providing and preserving information for the
public
 Oversees all elections
 Qualifications: must be a resident of Missouri
for 1 year
 The Attorney General serves as the chief legal
officer of the state
 Represents the interests of government
agencies and citizens
 Qualifications: Must be an attorney and live in
Jefferson City while in office
 The Missouri legislature is known as the
General Assembly
 It is divided into two houses:
 Senate—upper house
 House of Representatives—lower house
 Legislature is in session from January to May
each year
 Senate has 34 members
 Senators serve 4 year terms (1/2 elected
every two years)—8 years max.
 Presided over by Lt. Gov. (President pro
Tempore takes over in his absence)
 Approves gubernatorial appointments
 Qualifications:
 30 years old
 A qualified Missouri voter for 3 years
 A resident of their district for 1 year
 House of Representatives has 163 members
 Representatives serve 2 year terms—8 years
max.
 H.O.R. is presided over by the Speaker of
the House
 Qualifications:
 24 years old
 A qualified voter of Missouri for 2 years
 A resident of their district for 1 year
 Bills can originate in either house
 Bills are sent into committee for consideration
of validity and need
 Committees can report on bills in 6 ways
 No report at all
 Report as “do pass”
 Pass with amendments
 Return the bill without recommendation
 Replace with a “committee substitute” bill
 Report as “do not pass” (which kills the bill)
 The bill then goes through several readings and
is eventually voted on for passage
 18 Senate votes and 82 House votes are
required to pass (constitutional majority)
 If both houses pass same bill, it is declared
“truly agreed to and finally passed”
 The governor then has 15 days to act on the bill
 If vetoed, a 2/3 vote of both houses can
override that veto
 Divided into three levels:
 Circuit
 Appeals
 Supreme
 All judges must be licensed to practice law and
are required to retire at age 70.
 Circuit and Associate Circuit courts are
divided by county
 Handle civil and criminal trials
 Associate Circuit court judges must be at
least 25 years of age, a qualified voter of
Missouri, and a resident of the county and
serve 4 year terms
 Circuit judges must be at least 30 years of
age, a citizen of the United States at least 10
years, a qualified voter of Missouri at least
three years, and a resident of the circuit at
least one year and serve 6 year terms
 Appeals Court judges must be at least 30 years
old, U.S. citizen for 15 years, MO voter for 9
years.
 They are appointed and then retained by a vote of
the people every 12 years
 The State Supreme Court is highest court in
land
 Has seven members
 Chief position rotates every two years
 Same qualifications as Appeals courts
 Use the following link to review for the test:
http://www.studystack.com/menu-27386
 http://www.studystack.com/menu-27386
 http://www.moga.mo.gov/const/moconstn.h
tm
 Senate, Missouri State (2007). Showing You the
Show-Me State.
 http://www.netstate.com/states/symb/seals/
mo_seal.htm
 Citizen of Missouri
 Public Office
 Law Enforcement