There are two parts to the written assignment:

1) your group project assignment described below ,a list of rough bullet points on your individual project bill (further instructions also described below).

For the group project, each student must select the one component from the list below that they will write about and submit to their BB group project and also submit the same assignment to the "Assignment Submission Folder".

All students in the same group will be able to read all the submitted components from other members of their group, and all members in the same group will also see instructor comments on each student's written group project component.

The purpose of the group semester assignment is to make sure students can read all students' components of their group semester project, as this will be a way of making sure students are familiar enough with class concepts from the group assignment examples that they can then complete their individual semester project.

For each group project, all group members must select one of the components listed below and write approximately 1 1/2 pages on that subject (absolute minimum is one full page, but much better would be about 1 1/2 pages). The first group member to sign up for a particular component gets to write about that particular component (first come/first served).

PLEASE NOTE: ITEMS 8-12 ARE OPTIONAL/SECONDARY AND NO STUDENT MAY SELECT ANY ITEM 8 THROUGH 12 FOR THEIR GROUP PROJECT COMPONENT UNTIL EACH COMPONENT 1 THROUGH 7 HAS ALREADY BEEN SELECTED BY ANOTHER STUDENT. FOR ANY GROUP WITH 7 OR LESS STUDENTS, THIS MEANS YOU MAY ONLY SELECT A COMPONENT NUMBERED 1 THROUGH 7 BELOW.

Each group member must write their one component based on the bill/policy issue for that group.

Component topics-each group member must choose only one:

1) Democracy Matrix-discuss selected bill as a high salience or low salience issue, as the concepts are discussed in the "Democracy Matrix" reading

2) Democracy Matrix-discuss selected bill as voting public agrees with policy proposal/voting public disagrees with policy proposal, as the concepts are discussed in the "Democracy Matrix" reading

3) Social Construction-a) first, identify and describe the "target population" (or "target populations") relevant to the group bill, and b) per class social construction reading, discuss target population(s) as positively or negatively constructed

4) Social Construction-a) first, identify and describe the "target population" (or "target populations") relevant to the group bill, and b) per class social construction reading, discuss target population(s) as having high politicalpower or low political power (may need to consult textbook reading on "Interest Groups" as to what helps make for political power or what type of groups or demographic constituencies in Texas tend to be more powerful)

5) Policy Tools-a) first, identify and describe what is the desired behavior (or desired behaviors) that the bill is attempting to get people to do, or get people not to do? (note that there may be only one, or there may be multiple behaviors) b) per the class reading on Policy Tools, how are the policy tools of Capacity building, Authority, Symbolic/Hortatory, Incentive, and Learning Tools most relevant to the selected group bill/policy issue? First, be sure to focus on any policy tools explicitly listed in the bill, and then if space allows also feel free to add any policy tools that may not be explicitly listed in the bill, but may still be important to the bill and how the bill could be implemented if it were passed into law.

6) Policy Tools-a) first, identify and describe what is the desired behavior (or desired behaviors) that the bill is attempting to get people to do, or get people not to do? (note that there may be only one, or there may be multiple behaviors) b) per the class reading on Policy Tools, how are the policy tool sub-types of Incentive-Force, Incentive-Charge, Incentive-Sanction, Incentive-Inducement most relevant to the selected group bill/policy issue? First, be sure to focus on any policy tools explicitly listed in the bill, and then if space allows also feel free to add any policy tools that may not be explicitly listed in the bill, but may still be important to the bill and how the bill could be implemented if it were passed into law.

7) Based on our class reading "Political Culture, Socialization & Ideology"-discuss "classical liberalism" and "social conservatism" (two of the dominant political ideologies in Texas) and how each are relevant to the selected bill/policy issue. For example, based on each of these two dominant political ideologies in Texas, would voters and/or legislators be receptive/supportive to the selected bill?

How could the selected bill be presented to the voters/legislators believing in "social conservatism" in a way that would help the bill successfully be passed into law? How could the selected bill be presented to the voters/legislators believing in "classical liberalism" in a way that would help the bill successfully be passed into law?

8) Research, identify and describe real interest groups currently active in Texas that would be relevant to the selected bill. For each group you list, briefly describe the group and also explain which side of the issue each group would be on for the selected bill (Would the group support the bill? Why? Or would the group be against the bill? Why?)

9) Discuss concepts in "Legislative Branch Strategies" class reading in Blackboard and how they might be relevant to advocating for the bill in the Texas Legislature. Be sure to include a discussion of "natural coalition", "bought coalition", and "side payments".

10) Based on the textbook "Introduction" chapter concepts on the policy making process, discuss "context""agenda setting""formulation" and "adoption". Discuss and hypothesize (make a really good educated guess) how these steps could be relevant to the selected bill and conduct a "thought experiment" on how the selected bill might play out (or unfold) during the Texas Legislature's 2017 legislative session.

11) Based on the textbook "Introduction" chapter concepts on the policy making process, discuss "adoption""legitimation""implementation""evaluation" and "change". Discuss and hypothesize (make a really good educated guess) how these steps could be relevant to the selected bill, and conduct a "thought experiment" on how the selected bill might play out (or unfold) during the Texas Legislature's 2017 legislative session and beyond.

12) Based on the textbook reading chapter on "The Federal Context of Texas Policymaking", how is Federalism relevant to the selected bill in how it could be passed into law in Texas? In how it would be implemented in Texas? How else might the "federal context" impact the bill if it became law?

INDIVIDUAL PROJECT ASSIGNMENT BELOW

Please keep in mind the point of this specific assignment related to your individual project is to get you thinking about class concepts and how they related to your individual project bill, and also to help give you some preliminary feedback before you write out the final version of your individual project that you will submit in December. The more thinking you put into these rough bullet points, the better feedback you can get from the instructor to improve your final version of your individual project assignment.

This assignment need only be approximately 1 page or 1 1/2 pages long, and you only need to give rough bullet points on the direction you plan to take on each point listed below (so for example, for #1 you would give one bullet explaining whether you judge your bill would be a high salience or low salience issue, and one rough bullet point brief explanation of WHY you judged your bill as high or low.)

Begin this assignment by listing the bill number (and companion bill number if there is one) and also include the bill "caption" i.e., "An act relating to. . . . "

Add a couple rough sentences explaining in your own words what this bill would accomplish/change if it were passed into law and implemented. That is, based on how things are right now in Texas, how would this bill make things different from the "status quo" if it were passed into law?

Please note for this assignment that items 1-7 below are REQUIRED for your to address in the assignment, and items 8-12 below are OPTIONAL for you to include only if you plan to cover them in your final essay assignment and you think they are relevant to your bill and/or interesting for your to consider.

1) REQUIRED: Democracy Matrix-discuss selected bill as a high salience or low salience issue, as the concepts are discussed in the "Democracy Matrix" reading

2) REQUIRED: Democracy Matrix-discuss selected bill as voting public agrees with policy proposal/voting public disagrees with policy proposal, as the concepts are discussed in the "Democracy Matrix" reading

3) REQUIRED: Social Construction-a) first, identify and describe the "target population" (or "target populations") relevant to the group bill, and b) per class social construction reading, discuss target population(s) as positively or negatively constructed

4) REQUIRED: Social Construction-a) first, identify and describe the "target population" (or "target populations") relevant to the group bill, and b) per class social construction reading, discuss target population(s) as having high political power or low political power (may need to consult textbook reading on "Interest Groups" as to what helps make for political power or what type of groups or demographic constituencies in Texas tend to be more powerful)

5) REQUIRED: Policy Tools-a) first, identify and describe what is the desired behavior (or desired behaviors) that the bill is attempting to get people to do, or get people not to do? (note that there may be only one, or there may be multiple behaviors) b) per the class reading on Policy Tools, how are the policy tools of Capacity building, Authority, Symbolic/Hortatory, Incentive, and Learning Tools most relevant to the selected group bill/policy issue? First, be sure to focus on any policy tools explicitly listed in the bill, and then if space allows also feel free to add any policy tools that may not be explicitly listed in the bill, but may still be important to the bill and how the bill could be implemented if it were passed into law.

6) REQUIRED: Policy Tools-a) first, identify and describe what is the desired behavior (or desired behaviors) that the bill is attempting to get people to do, or get people not to do? (note that there may be only one, or there may be multiple behaviors) b) per the class reading on Policy Tools, how are the policy tool sub-types of Incentive-Force, Incentive-Charge, Incentive-Sanction, Incentive-Inducement most relevant to the selected group bill/policy issue? First, be sure to focus on any policy tools explicitly listed in the bill, and then if space allows also feel free to add any policy tools that may not be explicitly listed in the bill, but may still be important to the bill and how the bill could be implemented if it were passed into law.

7) REQUIRED: Based on our class reading "Political Culture, Socialization & Ideology"-discuss "classical liberalism" and "social conservatism" (two of the dominant political ideologies in Texas) and how each are relevant to the selected bill/policy issue. For example, based on each of these two dominant political ideologies in Texas, would voters and/or legislators be receptive/supportive to the selected bill? How could the selected bill be presented to the voters/legislators believing in "social conservatism" in a way that would help the bill successfully be passed into law? How could the selected bill be presented to the voters/legislators believing in "classical liberalism" in a way that would help the bill successfully be passed into law?

8) OPTIONAL: Research, identify and describe real interest groups currently active in Texas that would be relevant to the selected bill. For each group you list, briefly describe the group and also explain which side of the issue each group would be on for the selected bill (Would the group support the bill? Why? Or would the group be against the bill? Why?)

9) OPTIONAL: Discuss concepts in "Legislative Branch Strategies" class reading in Blackboard and how they might be relevant to advocating for the bill in the Texas Legislature. Be sure to include a discussion of "natural coalition", "bought coalition", and "side payments".

10) OPTIONAL: Based on the textbook "Introduction" chapter concepts on the policy making process, discuss "context""agenda setting""formulation" and "adoption". Discuss and hypothesize (make a really good educated guess) how these steps could be relevant to the selected bill and conduct a "thought experiment" on how the selected bill might play out (or unfold) during the Texas Legislature's 2017 legislative session.

11) OPTIONAL: Based on the textbook "Introduction" chapter concepts on the policy making process, discuss "adoption""legitimation""implementation""evaluation" and "change". Discuss and hypothesize (make a really good educated guess) how these steps could be relevant to the selected bill, and conduct a "thought experiment" on how the selected bill might play out (or unfold) during the Texas Legislature's 2017 legislative session and beyond.

12) OPTIONAL: Based on the textbook reading chapter on "The Federal Context of Texas Policymaking", how is Federalism relevant to the selected bill in how it could be passed into law in Texas? In how it would be implemented in Texas? How else might the "federal context" impact the bill if it became law?