The article also establishes the general operation of absentee ballots, voter registration, and elections. Article III: Legislature Article III establishes the powers and limitations of the bicameral New York State Legislature, which consists of a Senate containing 50 members initially, and an Assembly containing 150 members. Except for Senators elected in 1895 who served three-year terms, every legislative member is elected to two-year terms. The current number of Senators is set by State Law §123, and the number of Senate districts is set at 63 by State Law §124; currently, there are 63 Senate seats. The legislative process, such as the passage of bills, is also described in this article. The article includes rules and processes for drawing legislative districts and making apportionments. The United States Census is used to determine the number of inhabitants; if it is not carried out or fails to provide this information, then the state Legislature has the power to enumerate its inhabitants. Whenever districts must be amended, an "independent redistricting commission" composed of ten members (two appointed by the temporary president of the Senate, two appointed by the Speaker of the Assembly, two appointed by the Senate Minority Leader, two appointed by the Assembly Minority Leader, and two appointed by the eight other appointed members) is created. Drawing of district lines must not violate racial or language minority voting rights. Each district must contain "as nearly as may be an equal number of inhabitants"; if it does not the commission must provide a reason. Additionally, districts must consist of a contiguous territory and be "as compact in form as practicable". Emergency powers are described in Section 25. The legislature is granted the power to enact measures allowing the continuity of government, and "provide for prompt and temporary succession" of public offices if they were to become unavailable in the event of an emergency caused by "enemy attack or by disasters (natural or otherwise)". The final paragraph states: "Nothing in this article shall be construed to limit in any way the power of the state to deal with emergencies arising from any cause". Article IV: Executive Article IV states that executive branch powers are vested in the governor and lieutenant governor, who are elected jointly to serve four-year terms. The governor can veto legislative bills, is the commander-in-chief of the state's military, can convene the legislature "on extraordinary occasions", and has the power to grant