CGFM - Exam Review With Questions and Answers 2023

CGFM - Exam Review With Questions and Answers 2023 Government Sovereignty - CORRECT ANSWER-Nat'l government can't be sued by states or by citizens w/out its permission. Government Authority - CORRECT ANSWER-Derived from constitutions or charters (local versions of a constitution), statutes, executive orders & regulations. 3 Levels - CORRECT ANSWER-1) National 2) State 3) Local The primary purpose of each is to provide services to citizens. Separate and distinct, yet they may coordinate their efforts. 3 Branches - CORRECT ANSWER-1) Legislative 2) Executive 3) Judicial Separation of Powers - CORRECT ANSWER-Feature of the Constitution that requires each of the three branches of government—legislative, executive, and judicial—to be relatively independent of the others so that one cannot control the others. Power is shared among the three branches of government. Checks and Balances - CORRECT ANSWER-Constitutionally-mandated system that allows each branch of government to amend or veto acts of another branch so as to prevent any one branch from exerting too much power. Judicial Review - CORRECT ANSWER-Power given to the judicial branch in order to sustain checks and balances. Courts can overturn laws passed by the legislature & signed by the president/governor if courts deem them unconstitutional. Enables judges to question the legality and reasonableness of a gov't manager's administrative actions. (Test question) Federalism - CORRECT ANSWER-U.S. system of gov't. Power is distributed among different levels of gov't and no one level of gov't has complete authority over all areas of public policy. No centeralized system of gov't in U.S. Popular Sovereignty - CORRECT ANSWER-Basic concept of the Constitution. The idea that ultimate authority belongs to the voting people and even a sovereign gov't is accountable to citizens. Legal Constraints - CORRECT ANSWER-Derived from constitutions, statutes, and ordinances. They can include limits on the type of tax, rate of tax, and tax collection purposes. Purpose Term Amount Process - CORRECT ANSWER-Ways in which constitutions and charters specify whether the government can incur debt and limit government borrowing. (PTAP) Reserved Clause - CORRECT ANSWER-Stems from the 10th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Powers not delegated to the Nat'l gov't, nor prohibited to the states, are reserved to the states and the people. Nat'l gov't can influence lower levels, but can't dictate the manner in which state & local gov't will operate. Areas of Overlap in Governmental Responsibilities - CORRECT ANSWER-Nat'l and state gov'ts exercise authority in civil defense and the Nat'l Guard. For example, during peacetime, Nat'l Guard units fall under the direction of state governors and meet the needs of the state. During nat'l emergencies, these units are under command of the President, Commander in Chief. State and local gov'ts have some responsibility for traffic safety. All 3 levels impact public education. Grants - CORRECT ANSWER-Money that is distributed to lower-level governments with the purpose of funding special projects. Laboratories of Democracy - CORRECT ANSWER-Nickname given to state and local governments because they experiment with policies and procedures that are later adopted at the nat'l level. Performance Reporting - CORRECT ANSWER-Example of upward influence (laboratory of democracy). U.S. gov't requirement created in the 90s for federal agencies . Process of collecting and distributing performance information; includes status reporting, progress measurement, and forecasting. Legislative - CORRECT ANSWER-Passes laws. House of Representatives and Senate form legislative branch of Nat'l gov't. Includes Congressional Budget Office, the Library of Congress, Gov't Accountability Office, and Architect of the Capitol. Executive - CORRECT ANSWER-Administers laws. Executes gov't programs. Includes the U.S. Departments of Education, Interior, and Defense. Judicial - CORRECT ANSWER-Interprets laws and exercises judicial review over actions of the other branches. Municipal Governments - CORRECT ANSWER-The lowest level of government and exercises authority over a municipality (i.e. city, town, village). Usually, the scope of its powers are determined by its delegated authority from the level of government that creates it and the laws it passes are called ordinances. U.S. Constitution - CORRECT ANSWER-A set of principles (guidelines) that describe the duties and powers of the U.S. government. Written in 1787 and ratified in 1791. Has been amended 27 times. The first 10 amendments form the Bill of Rights. Comprised of seven articles. Article I - CORRECT ANSWER-Defines powers of the legislative branch. Power to enact law, collect taxes, coin money, raise armies and declare war. Article II - CORRECT ANSWER-Defines the role and power of the presidency and executive branch. Power to command armed forces, grant pardons for offenses against the U.S., and to appoint ambassadors and Supreme Court judges with the advice and consent of the Senate. Article III - CORRECT ANSWER-Defines power of judicial branch. Power over legal cases arising under the U.S. Constitution and related to treaties and ambassadors; controversies between two or more states; and controversies between citizens of different states. Line-Item Veto - CORRECT ANSWER-Executive power to strike, or remove, specific items from a spending bill without vetoing the entire package. Many state constitutions allow governors to enact this power. U.S. presidents have wanted similar authority. In 1996, Congress passed this act, President Clinton used it in 1997. His actions were challenged and it was declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court in 1998. (Budget) Appropriation - CORRECT ANSWER-A part of the congressional budgeting process that involves determining how many dollars will be spent in a given year on a particular set of gov't activities. Government Commissions - CORRECT ANSWER-Special-government components that may be permanent or temporary and make regulations (limitations or restrictions on the behavior of an individual or a business); they are bureaucratically determined prescriptions for how business is to take place. These components often enjoy a heightened degree of autonomy. ex. FDA regulates how drugs are tested and marketed. Hierarchy of Government Authorities - CORRECT ANSWER-1) Constitution 2) Laws 3) Executive orders 4) Rules and regulations Executive Orders - CORRECT ANSWER-A rule or regulation issued by the president that bypasses the lengthy and difficult process required to enact legislation, but has the same effect and formal status as legislation. Potential disadvantage is that legislature or the next chief executive can revoke it. Initiative - CORRECT ANSWER-Direct-Action Authority of Citizens. Enables citizens to present their view of a problem and a proposed solution. Referendum - CORRECT ANSWER-Direct-Action Authority of Citizens. Requires certain legislative actions to be presented to voters for approval. Recall - CORRECT ANSWER-Direct-Action Authority of Citizens. Enables voters to remove elected officials from office. Famous example is removal of Gray Davis - CA, leading to Arnold Schwarzenegger. General-Purpose Government (GPG) - CORRECT ANSWER-Type of local government that provides a wide range of services [functions] such as public works, public safety, recreation, health and law enforcement. Counties, municipalities, and townships are this type of government. Revenue sources include property taxes, user fees (liquor license, fishing permits), sales/income taxes, and state & fed. aid. Special-Purpose Government (SPG) - CORRECT ANSWER-Type of local government that provides only a single function or limited number of functions (such as drainage and flood control, education, irrigation, soil and water conservation, fire protection, and water conservation). School districts and non-school districts are this type of government. Authority to establish an SPG comes from the constitutions, statutes or charter of the "parent" GPG. It can also be created via a local ordinance or a ballot proposition. Some revenue sources are dependent on general-purpose gov't, while others have been granted the authority to impose and collect taxes, charge user fees or incur debt. Reasons Special-District Gov'ts are Created - CORRECT ANSWER-1) Demand for new, specialized services not offered by parent gov't; 2) Ability to circumvent debt & tax limitations; and 3) Managerial flexibility. Quasi-Governmental Entity - CORRECT ANSWER-Blend characteristics of gov't and for-profit orgs. Some are called gov't corporations. Often formed to support businesslike functions where most, if not all, operating expenses are expected to be covered through revenues and fees, rather than from appropriated budget authority. Also, they may have fewer management restrictions. Nat'l level example: Tennessee Valley Authority. State level example: Mississippi Home Corporation. Service Agreements - CORRECT ANSWER-Legal document outlining requirements/expectations of both parties. Can be created to mitigate fragmentation and overlap among services provided by quasi-governmental entities and other specialpurpose gov'ts. Tribal Governments - CORRECT ANSWER-Entities that direct Indian reservations. Also, called tribal councils. Have a nation-to-nation relationship with the U.S. and are not subordinate to states. Determine criteria for legal membership in the council and have sovereignty within tribal lands--establish businesses, adopt and enforce their own civic codes, establish public safety mechanisms, and have power to eject nonmembers from tribal lands. Have the authority to license activities and collect taxes within tribal areas. Cannot coin money, wage wars, or conduct foreign relations. Charter - CORRECT ANSWER-Basic authority by which a local gov't operates, comparable to a state's constitution. Ordinance - CORRECT ANSWER-Local law, comparable to a state statute or U.S. Code. "Power of the Purse" - CORRECT ANSWER-Executive branch components can only spend what has been authorized and appropriated by the legislative branch. Permanent Commission - CORRECT ANSWER-Governmental components created to fulfill a regulatory role. For example, FTC and SEC, at the nat'l level, created by acts of Congress. Temporary Commission - CORRECT ANSWER-Governmental components created to study a particular case, such as National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the US and the Warren Commission. Government Budget - CORRECT ANSWER-A control device that limits expenditures by purpose, time and amount. The budget may further restrict spending by fund, object class and program. Subject to judicial review. Budget Process - CORRECT ANSWER-The executive branch proposes to the legislative branch the amount it believes should be spent on various programs, and the legislative branch concurs or directs that the amounts be modified. The primary purpose is to prioritize gov't expenditures and to allocate the financial resources to be raised to finance said expenditures. Many budgets also identify the sources of revenues. In prioritizing and constraining expenditures, a budget guides the operations of various gov't organizations. Budgetary Control - Legislative - CORRECT ANSWER-Separation of powers as budgetary control: Creates the budget through laws & ordinances. Budgetary Control - Executive - CORRECT ANSWER-Separation of powers as budgetary control: Implements the budget through various programs & services. Budgetary Control - Judicial - CORRECT ANSWER-Separation of powers as budgetary control: Settles disputes over the formation & execution of the budget. Government Management Cycle - CORRECT ANSWER-Planning, Programming, Budgeting, Operations, Accounting, Reporting, Auditing