12th grade State, local and tribal government worksheet

State, local and tribal government

Grade 12 Social Studies Worksheet - Challenge Me

Circle the best answer.

1. Read this first

   Use this

   Cards A to C on Arizona petition counts (cards A and C are exact; card B is data). Card A, "Arizona's petition rules". Who made it: Arizona voters and the Constitution (1912), as set out by Ballotpedia. When: in force today. For whom: Arizona voters and officials. Why: to set how many signatures a petition needs. Excerpt 1: "initiated constitutional amendment (ICA): 15 percent of the votes cast for governor" Excerpt 2: "initiated state statute (ISS): 10 percent of the votes cast for governor" Excerpt 3: "veto referendum (VR): 5 percent of the votes cast for governor" Card B, "Required signatures". Who made it: Ballotpedia, from the Arizona Secretary of State. When: 2020 to 2026. For whom: students of government. Why: to show recent counts. Data and note: Initiated constitutional amendment, initiated statute, veto referendum. 2020 and 2022: 356,467; 237,645; 118,823. 2024 and 2026: 383,923; 255,949; 127,975. Each count is a percent of the votes cast for governor at the election before. Card C, "Arizona's recall rule". Who made it: Arizona voters and the Constitution, as set out by Ballotpedia. When: in force today. For whom: Arizona voters and officials. Why: to set how many signatures a recall needs. Excerpt: "The number of signatures required to qualify for a recall attempt for the ballot is 25% of the number of votes cast in the last election for that office."

2. 1.

   Statute signatures rose from 237,645 to 255,949. Pia says the rule changed. Using cards A and B, what best explains the rise of about 8 percent?

   • Registered voters rose about 8 percent, and the 10 percent rule counts registered voters rather than those who voted
   • Votes cast for governor rose about 8 percent between the two elections while the rule stayed at 10 percent
   • Lawmakers raised the share from 10 percent to about 10.8 percent, which is the rise that the table shows
   • More groups filed petitions, which raised the number that each group needed to collect by about 8 percent
3. 2.

   A writer says Arizona's 255,949-signature rule shuts out small groups. Tala looks for the missing evidence. What would most challenge the writer?

   • Records of petitions that qualified with mostly volunteer gatherers and little money
   • Statements by lawmakers that the 10 percent share is low compared with the shares in other states
   • The number of votes cast for governor in the year before 2020, as a check on the base
   • The number of signatures that card B shows for the recall and for the veto referendum in 2024

4. Use this

   Cards A to E on petitions and amendments in two states (the excerpts are exact; card C is data). Card A, "West Virginia Constitution, Article XIV, Section 2". Who made it: the people of West Virginia. When: 1872. For whom: the Legislature and voters. Why: to say how the constitution is amended. Excerpt 1: "be agreed to on its third reading, by two thirds of the members elected thereto" Excerpt 2: "it shall be the duty of the Legislature to provide by law for submitting the same to the voters of the state for ratification or rejection" Card B, "The two West Virginia houses". Who made it: Ballotpedia. When: read in 2026. For whom: students of government. Why: to count the seats. Data and note: The West Virginia Senate has 34 seats and the House 100 seats. Card C, "What West Virginia lacks". Who made it: Ballotpedia. When: read in 2026. For whom: students of government. Why: to name the ways a constitution can be changed. Excerpt: "West Virginia does not feature the power of initiative for either initiated constitutional amendments or initiated state statutes." Card D, "Arizona's petition rules". Who made it: Arizona voters and the Constitution (1912), as set out by Ballotpedia. When: in force today. For whom: Arizona voters and officials. Why: to set how many signatures a petition needs. Excerpt 1: "initiated constitutional amendment (ICA): 15 percent of the votes cast for governor" Excerpt 2: "initiated state statute (ISS): 10 percent of the votes cast for governor" Excerpt 3: "veto referendum (VR): 5 percent of the votes cast for governor" Card E, "Where Arizona signatures may come from". Who made it: Ballotpedia. When: read in 2026. For whom: students of government. Why: to say whether signatures must be spread out. Excerpt: "Arizona does not have a distribution requirement. As such, any proportion of the required signatures may be collected from any county or congressional district."

5. 3.

   Zee asks how many West Virginia senators can block a proposed amendment, using cards A and B. Which answer is right?

   • 17 senators, since a bare majority of 34 can stop a measure that needs a two-thirds vote to pass
   • No number, because the House alone decides whether an amendment goes to the voters in West Virginia
   • 11 senators, since 11 refusals leave 23 in favor, and 23 is below two thirds of the 34 senators
   • 12 senators: two thirds of 34 is 23, and 12 refusals leave only 22 in favor
6. 4.

   Ari says West Virginia makes constitutional change harder than Arizona. Using cards A to D, which verdict is best?

   • It depends who asks: citizens have no petition route in West Virginia but one in Arizona; a two-thirds Legislature needs none
   • No: Arizona needs 383,923 signatures, so Arizona is harder for every group that wants a constitutional change
   • Yes: West Virginia voters have no initiative, so voters there cannot change the constitution at all, by any route
   • Yes: West Virginia needs two thirds of both houses and a voter majority, stricter than 15 percent in signatures and a majority
7. 5.

   A writer says Arizona's petition rules favor voters near its largest city. Bo looks for missing evidence. What would most challenge the writer?

   • Whether the largest county holds more than half of the state's people, as the writer would measure it
   • Where all the signatures on qualifying petitions came from, since card E allows any mix of counties
   • The 15 percent share that card D sets for amendments compared with the share for statutes in Arizona
   • How many signatures are required for an amendment in West Virginia, which has no petition route at all

8. Use this

   Cards A to D on tribal power and the Court (the excerpts are exact; card D is made up). Card A, "Worcester v. Georgia (1832)". Who made it: Chief Justice John Marshall, for the Court. When: 1832. For whom: the parties, other courts and the public. Why: to decide whether Georgia could convict a man for living in Cherokee territory without a state license. Excerpt: "The Cherokee nation, then, is a distinct community occupying its own territory, with boundaries accurately described, in which the laws of Georgia can have no force" Card B, "Montana v. United States (1981)". Who made it: Justice Potter Stewart, for the Court. When: 1981. For whom: the parties, other courts and the public. Why: to decide whether a tribe could regulate what nonmembers do on land within its reservation that nonmembers owned. Excerpt 1: "the inherent sovereign powers of an Indian tribe do not extend to the activities of nonmembers of the tribe." Excerpt 2: "A tribe may regulate, through taxation, licensing, or other means, the activities of nonmembers who enter consensual relationships with the tribe or its members, through commercial dealing, contracts, leases, or other arrangements." Excerpt 3: "A tribe may also retain inherent power to exercise civil authority over the conduct of non-Indians on fee lands within its reservation when that conduct threatens or has some direct effect on the political integrity, the economic security, or the health or welfare of the tribe." Card C, "Santa Clara Pueblo v. Martinez (1978)". Who made it: Justice Thurgood Marshall, for the Court. When: 1978. For whom: the parties, other courts and the public. Why: to decide whether a tribe's membership rule could be challenged in federal court. Excerpt: "Although no longer 'possessed of the full attributes of sovereignty,' they remain a 'separate people, with the power of regulating their internal and social relations.'" Card D, "Readings and a case". Who made it: written for this sheet. Summary in our words, not a quotation: Reading X: a state's law can never reach activity inside a reservation. Reading Y: whether tribal or state law applies depends on who is involved and what is at stake. These readings are written for this sheet and are not from any court. Case: a nonmember company, on land it owns inside the Tallgrass Nation's reservation, dumps waste into a creek that is the Nation's only source of drinking water. The company has no dealings with the Nation. The Nation orders a cleanup.

9. 6.

   Esme compares the readings on card D using cards A to C. Which reading do the cards support best?

   • Reading X: Worcester says Georgia's laws had no force in Cherokee territory, so no state law can reach it today
   • Reading X, because Montana says the powers of a tribe do not extend to nonmembers, so only tribal law reaches members
   • Neither: cases from 1832, 1978 and 1981 are too far apart to support any reading about tribes and states
   • Reading Y: Worcester sets one nation apart, but Montana and Santa Clara show limits, with only two exceptions over nonmembers
10. 7.

    Jun applies card B to the case on card D. May the Nation order the company to clean up the creek, and why?

    • No: the company owns the land and has no consensual dealings with the Nation, so the first exception does not apply
    • Yes: card B says a tribe's sovereignty reaches every person on its reservation, so the Nation may order anything
    • No: card A says the laws of a state, not of a nation, apply to land the company owns inside the reservation
    • Yes: the second exception covers conduct with a direct effect on a tribe's health or welfare, even with no dealings at all
11. 8.

    A writer says Worcester shows tribal sovereignty has never changed. Kira tests the claim with cards A to C. What is the best verdict?

    • Shown: card A calls the Cherokee nation a distinct community in its own territory, which is full sovereignty and has not changed
    • Refuted: card C says tribes lack full sovereignty now, and card B limits power over nonmembers in all but two cases
    • Shown: Worcester came first, and later cases only repeat its holding, so sovereignty stayed the same across them
    • Cannot tell: a case from 1832 cannot show anything about 1978, so the cards give no way to check the claim

12. Use this

    Card A on local governments in four states (data). Card A, "Local governments in four states, 2022". Who made it: the US Census Bureau. When: counted in 2022. For whom: the public. Why: to compare local governments by state. Data and note: Units counted, not powers or budgets. Arizona: 674 in all; 15 counties, 91 municipalities, 326 special districts, 242 school districts; 7,158,923 people. West Virginia: 639; 55, 231, 298 and 55; 1,795,045 people. Georgia: 1,379; 152 counties, 537 municipalities, 510 special districts, 180 school districts; 10,725,274 people. Nebraska: 2,541; 93 counties, 528 municipalities, 350 townships, 1,303 special districts, 267 school districts; 1,963,333 people. (Apportionment population, 2020.)

13. 9.

    Luz says Nebraska proves that more local governments mean more fragmentation. Using card A, which statement is best?

    • Disproved: Nebraska has only 93 counties, so its local government is simple and not fragmented in any way
    • Proved in part: Nebraska has 350 townships, which no other state on the card has, so it is the only fragmented one
    • Proved: Nebraska has the most units per person of the four states, so its services must be the most fragmented
    • Nebraska has about 129 units per 100,000 people, over half special districts, but the card shows only counts
14. 10.

    Georgia has 152 counties and Arizona 15. Milo says Georgia's counties are about ten times smaller. Using card A, what is the best verdict?

    • Refuted: Georgia has more people, so each county there is bigger than any Arizona county, whatever its size
    • On average Georgia's counties hold about 70,600 people and Arizona's about 477,300, so about seven times smaller
    • Supported: 152 is about ten times 15, so Georgia's counties must be about ten times smaller than Arizona's
    • Unsupported: averages hide the largest counties, so the card cannot say anything about county size in either state