Suppose the Texas Legislature sends the governor a bill that will provide funding for the University of Houston, for the construction of new prisons, and for advertising to encourage major corporations to relocate their headquarters to Texas. What are the governor's veto options

on legislature power is the Governor's ability to veto any bill the Legislature sends to her.

The governor has the power to either approve or veto bills passed by the Texas Legislature. The Governor has line-item veto power, enabling the governor to veto individual components (or lines) of a bill.

Explanation:

If a bill is passed by the Legislature and presented to the governor before the final three days of the session, the bill will become law unless the governor vetoes it by returning it to the Legislature within three days. The governor normally signs the bills and files them with the Secretary of State, but his signature is not required.

A bill passed during the last three days of session in an odd-numbered year (the first year of the biennium) must be signed or vetoed by the governor within three days of presentment to the governor. If the governor fails to return the bill to the house of origin in an odd-numbered year within three days of presentment, the bill becomes law.

When a bill is passed during the last three days of session in an even-numbered year (the second year of the biennium) the governor has a longer time to act on it. He/she must sign and deposit it with the secretary of state within 14 days of 'sine die' adjournment or the bill will not become law. Inaction by the governor results in a "pocket veto," and the governor is not required to provide a reason for the veto.

Only on appropriations bills can the governor exercise the line-item veto authority. This option allows the governor to eliminate the appropriation items to which he/she objects. As with all vetoes, the governor must include a statement listing the reasons for the veto with the returned bill. Here, too, the timetable is either 14 days after 'sine die' adjournment for bills passed during the final three days of the session, or within three days after the governor receives the bill at any other time.

A two-thirds vote of the members in each house is needed to override a veto. But because only the governor can call a special session of the Legislature, anything vetoed after the Legislature adjourns is history-at least until next year.