To which primitive data type is a text area (rich) field automatically assigned?

A developer uses an 'after update' trigger on the Account object to update all the Contacts related to the Account. The trigger code shown below is randomly failing.
List<Contacts> theContacts = new List<Contacts>(); for(Account a : Trigger.new){ for(Contact c : [SELECT Id, Account_Date__c FROM Contact WHERE AccountId = :a.Id]){ c.Account_Date__c = Date.today(); theContacts.add(c);
}
} updates theContacts;
Which line of code is causing the code block to fail?

What are two valid options for iterating through each Account in the collection List <Account> named AccountList? Choose 2 answers.

Which component is available to deploy using Metadata API? Choose 2 answers

An Approval Process is defined in the Expense_Item__cobject. A business rule dictates that whenever a user changes the Status to 'Submitted' on an Expense_Report__crecord, all the Expense_Item__c records related to the expense report must enter the approval process individually.
Which approach should be used to ensure the business requirement is met?