O
UR
S
TATE
G
OVERNMENT
F
OCUS
Q
UESTIONS
1. What is amajor difference between our state and federal constitutions?
2. How did Pennsylvania’s Constitution serve as amodel for the federal
Constitution?
3. What are the three branches of state government?
4. What are the roles and duties of each branch of government?
5. What are themain occupations associated with each branch of government?
6. How does a bill become a law?
7. What are the names of themain courts in our state?
Our State Government Versus Our Federal Government
Every state in our country has its own state government. Pennsylvania’s government
is outlined through a state
constitution
, which is similar to the U.S. Constitution. The
word constitution simply means an “official plan for government.” Citizens and state
officials share the job of organizing and running our state government to ensure the
well-being of all Pennsylvania residents.
Pennsylvania’s state constitution was written in 1776, well before our national
constitution was written in 1787. Our constitution has been revised four times, in 1790,
1838, 1874, and 1968.
How is our state constitution different fromour
federal
constitution? Both
constitutions start out with a
preamble
, an introductory statement that explains the
purpose of the document. Both preambles refer to “we, the people” and confirm the
right to liberty, peace, and justice.
One difference lies in how the rights of citizens and the structure of government are
addressed. Our state constitution outlines the rights of citizens before the structure of
government. The U.S. Constitution first addresses the structure of government, and
citizen’s rights are outlined as amendments. This is because it was first crucial to get
our federal government operational. Without a strong central government, you would not
have to worry about citizens’ freedoms and rights. WilliamPenn’s ideas for citizens’
rights and government were amodel for our state constitution, which, in turn, served as
amodel for our country’s constitution.
The first section of Pennsylvania’s Constitution, called the Declaration of Rights,
outlines our rights and freedoms as citizens. Procedures for establishing our state
government are described next in 11 Articles.
Some important principles in our first state constitution served as amodel for our
federal constitution. The rights of citizens were guaranteed, and the powers of the
governing branches were separated to ensure no branch had toomuch power. Our
branches of government created a balanced system, or what is known as a systemof
checks and balances. Our state constitution also covered elections, taxation, finance, and
local government. Let’s explore how the three branches of state government work today.
LESSON
24
KEY
WORDS
constitution
federal
preamble
legislative
bills
revenue
veto
chambers
executive
audits
judicial
appealed
KEY
PLACES
Harrisburg
KEY
GOVERNMENT TERMS
House of
Representatives
Senate
Speaker of the House
President Protempore
General Assembly
governor
lieutenant governor
attorney general
state treasurer
auditor general
State Supreme Court
State Superior Court
Commonwealth Court
Common Pleas Court
District Justice
Harrisburg
, our state capital, lies near the center of our state along the east
side of the Susquehanna River.
108
Understanding Pennsylvania
