5 The Constitutions of Texas

Learning Objectives

By the end of this section, you will be able to:

• Discuss the constitutions of Texas
• Describe the current constitution of Texas

Constitutions of Texas

Texas has been governed by multiple constitutions.

• The Mexican Constitution of 1824
  • Texas was part of Mexico
  • Called for an official religion (Catholicism)
• The Constitution of Coahuila and Texas, 1827
  • First state constitutions under Mexican rule
• The Texas Constitution of 1836
  • Texas gains their independence, becomes their own country (Republic of Texas)
• The Texas Constitution of 1845
  • US Annexation of Texas
  • Texas is pre-approved to split up in to as much as 5 states
• The Texas Constitution of 1861
  • Texas secedes from the Union and joins the Confederate States of America
• The Texas Constitution of 1866
  • Adopted as a condition for readmission to the United States of America
• The Texas Constitution of 1869
  • State constitution rewritten to abide by Reconstruction policies
  • Created a powerful Texas Governor
• The Texas Constitution of 1876
  • current state constitution

Texas Constitution of 1876

Texas Democrats gained control of Congress in 1873 and decided it was time to draft a new constitution for Texas. The Texas Constitutional Convention of 1875 met in Austin with the purpose of replacing the Constitution of 1869- it was believed that the new constitution should restrict the state government and hand the power back to the people. Some examples of how the government was restricted were^[1]:

• Legislative sessions moved from annual to biennial sessions
• Creation of a plural executive
• Mandated a balanced budget
• State Judges would be elected by the people
• The people would vote on the ratification of amendments

The structure of the current constitution of Texas (Constitution of 1876) is a Preamble, 17 Articles, and 491 Amendments (Since 2015)^[2]. The Texas Constitution does not contain a “necessary and proper clause” like the U.S. Constitution, therefore making it the second longest state constitution in America (2nd only to Alabama’s).

• Article 1: Bill of Rights
  • Similar civil liberties and civil rights as in the U.S. Constitution’s Bill of Rights
• Article 2: The Powers of the Government
  • Establishes three branches of government with separation of powers
• Article 3: Legislative Department
  • Specifics about the Texas Legislator
• Article 4: Executive Department
  • Specifics about the plural executive
• Article 5: Judicial Department
  • Specifics about the Texas Judicial system
• Article 6: Suffrage
  • Forbids the following from voting:
    • any non US citizen
    • any non-registered Texas voter
    • any convicted felon who has not completed their sentence
    • any person deemed mentally incompetent by the courts
• Article 7: Education
  • Mandates an “efficient” free public school system
  • Established the Permanent School Fund
• Article 8: Taxation and Revenue
  • Places limits on the raising and spending of public funds
• Article 9: Counties
  • Authorizes the Texas Legislature to create county governments
• Article 10: Railroads
  • Regulated the railroad system
• Article 11: Municipal Corporations
  • Specifics regarding local governments, including empowering them to tax, and how to charter cities
• Article 12: Private Corporations
  • Specifics regarding private businesses, including how they would be regulated
• Article 13: Spanish and Mexican Land Titles
  • Specifics on what which land with previous claims would become state property
• Article 14: Public Lands and Land Office
  • Established the Land Office which regulated land titles
• Article 15: Impeachment
  • Specifics on how to remove a public official from office
• Article 16: General Provisions
  • Miscellaneous regulations i.e. forbid Congress from printing money, forbid U.S. public officials from holding a state office
• Article 17: Mode of Amending the Constitution of this State
  • 2/3rds proposal from Congress
  • Registered voters vote on approval, and with a majority vote the amendment is ratified

The entire Texas Constitution can be accessed at http://www.constitution.legis.state.tx.us/