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Between 1898 and 1918, voters in 20 American states adopted constitutional amendments granting citizens the power of the initiative. The embrace of direct democracy by voters invites inquiry into why some state legislatures opted to delegate to citizens the power of the initiative, while others did not. Drawing on an original data set, this article uses Event History Analysis hazard models to explain the puzzle of why legislatures might devolve institutional power to citizens. Our longitudinal, macrolevel analysis of socioeconomic and political forces reveals that political considerations-interparty legislative competition, party organizational strength, and third parties-are the most powerful predictors of a legislature's decision to refer the initiative to the ballot. Although several of our findings comport with the conventional wisdom explaining the adoption of the initiative during the Progressive Era, others are surprising, offering us new theoretical insights into why and when legislative bodies might be willing to divest themselves of their institutional power. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article we will examine the origin of policy ideas in a state legislature. Using data from a survey of Minnesota legislators and from a survey of staffers, we compare the sources of information used in each of three stages of the policy process: problem identification, policy formulation, and enactment. We compare the importance of traditional sources to the influence of think tanks, foundations, and newspaper editorials. We find that legislators rely primarily on their own experiences and those of their constituents. When they are compared to all other sources, the new "idea factories" have little influence in the policy process. There are few differences between policy stages in terms of the information that the legislators and staffers rely upon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presents a historical context for reelection rates and congressional turnover through citizen legislatures and incumbent processes since the founding of American democracy. Indirect elections of senators in the House of Representatives; Mandatory rotation of offices; Transformation into the industrial nation-state; 18th century Republicanism; Dangers of political careerism.

Discusses the American Continental Congress' adoption of the Articles of Confederation in the 18th century. Arguments about the Articles of Confederation drafted by John Dickinson's Committee; Solution of the Articles of Confederation which led to the Northwest Ordinance of 1787; Ways in which the language of the Articles foreshadows the language of the Constitution drafted by the Convention of 1787.

States that the 93rd Congress of the U.S. will be remembered as one of the authentic congressional reform congresses. Improvement of congressional structure particularly in the House of Representatives; Reassertion of the balance between the executive and legislative branches; Restructuring of the budgetary process; Features of the Impoundment Control Act.

Examines the relationships between American colonial assemblies and their constituents, and the changes in those relationships over time, by focusing on three very dissimilar colonial legislatures. Virginia House of Burgesses; Massachusetts General Court; Pennsylvania Assembly; Different regions and types of colonies.

The article looks into the social history of Kansas during the territorial period. According to the author, the first event of importance in the political development of the Kansas Territory was the election of the territorial legislature in 1855. The whole affair was considered so fraudulent that the free state people demanded the nullification of the election. The year 1855 was also a period of trouble for the Territory. The Indians suffered from famine and pestilence, while the white people suffered from pestilence and civil strife. In 1856, hostilities between the pro-slavery people and the free-state people were renewed and several minor conflicts followed. The free-state people finally succeeded in electing the Legislature in 1857 and Kansas became a state on January 29, 1861.

Discusses the studies on legislative history of the U.S. in the context of behavioral sciences. Information on the legislative studies of Joel Silbey and Thomas Alexander using a statistics-based roll call analysis; Problem of longitudinal analysis; Characteristics of behavioral theory.