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Article V Call

Application

The State of ____________________ in passing this law or resolution assumes the costs and responsibilities presented in the embedded Application for Article V Convention.

APPLICATION TO CONGRESS TO CALL FOR ARTICLE V CONVENTION

WHEREAS we the Legislators of the state of ___________________ find that the Presidency and Congress are in dire need of repair; and

WHEREAS Presidents and Congresses have proven unable to fix their institutions; and

WHEREAS there are additional Constitutional issues that have not been address through the Congressional amendment process; and

WHEREAS Article V of the Constitution requires the Congress of the United States to call an Article V Convention for proposing amendments upon the application of the legislatures of two-thirds of the several states

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE MEMBERS OF THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ______________________, that we make an application to the Congress of the United States of America for an Article V Convention that will use the following framework in order to discuss and propose amendments to the Constitution of the United States of America.

 

Article V Convention Framework

Congressional Firewall

If Congress fails to call for the Article V Convention within six (6) months after the thirty fourth (34th) state passage of this application for an Article V Convention, then the states that have passed this application shall challenge Congress by petitioning the Supreme Court for relief.

If the challenge should fail, then all state applications for an Article V Convention shall become immediately null and void.

If Congress changes or discards the framework in this application for an Article V Convention, then the states that have passed this application shall challenge Congress by petitioning the Supreme Court for relief.

If the challenge should fail, then all state applications for an Article V Convention shall become immediately null and void and no Article V Convention shall be held.

Membership

States that had not passed the call for an Article V Convention before it was called by Congress may join the Article V Convention if they pass the call for an Article V Convention in time to select their delegates as outlined below.

For the purposes of the Article V Convention the District of Columbia shall be considered a state and may join the Article V Convention if the District of Columbia city council passes the call for an Article V Convention in time to select their delegates as outlined below. The District of Columbia cannot be counted towards the required two-thirds of the several states for calling the Article V Convention.

States may withdraw from the Article V Convention by passing a law or resolution withdrawing their call for the Article V Convention. A withdrawal shall take effect upon passage of the law or resolution.

Each state shall select three (3) residents to represent them as delegates at the Article V Convention. Three (3) alternatives shall also be selected along with the order in which they would be called to service.

For the purposes of the Article V Convention the District of Columbia shall be considered a state and shall select one (1) resident to represent them as a delegate at the Article V Convention. Two (2) alternatives shall also be selected along with the order in which they would be called to service. For the purposes of the Article V Convention the District of Columbia city council shall perform the duties of a state legislature.

State delegates shall be elected during the next federal general election after Congress has called for the Article V Convention. If there are less than one hundred and twenty (120) days before the next federal general election, then the delegate election will occur in two (2) years at the next federal general election.

State delegates shall not currently or previously have been elected to any federal office.

State delegates shall not currently or previously have been appointed and confirmed to a federal office.

State delegates shall not currently or previously have held an elected or appointed leadership role in a state level or national level political party.

State delegates shall not be current members of their state government, legislative or executive branches.

A quorum for a meeting of the full Article V Convention is thirty (30) states.

With approval of the legislature of a state or its appointed representative a delegate may be replaced with the next alternate. If no further alternatives have been selected the delegation shall continue with the remaining active delegates.

Each state delegation shall select a lead delegate. The lead delegate may be changed at any time by a vote of the delegation.

The lead delegates shall form the Article V Convention organizational committee.

             A quorum for the organizational committee is thirty (30) delegates.

The organizational committee shall select the chair for the Article V Convention and two (2) alternative chairs along with the order in which they will serve. Chairs shall be retired federal judges or retired State Supreme Court Justices. The chair shall chair the Article V Convention and organizational committee. The chair shall see that the framework is implemented, that the framework and Article V Convention rules are followed, and that order is maintained.

The chair’s role is administrative only. The chair shall not vote on any Article V Convention issue.

The chair will have the ability to rule that the Article V Convention is out of order due to a violation of the framework or the rules of the Article V Convention.

The organizational committee by at least a sixty-seven percent (67%) majority vote of the organizational committee members may remove the chair and install the next selected retired federal judge as the chair of the Article V Convention.

If a chair of the Article V Convention is unable to continue as the chair the next alternate shall become the chair.

If both alternate chairs are dismissed or unavailable the organizational committee may by at least a sixty-seven percent (67%) majority vote, select another chair or by at least a sixty-seven percent (67%) majority vote to end the Article V Convention causing all state applications for the Article V Convention to become null and void and for the Article V Convention to end.

Any delays in the change in chairs shall not count against any time limits of the Article V Convention.

When, Where, Duration, and Funding

The organizational committee shall meet for the first time before July first (1st) of the year following the election of delegates. The meetings, locations, and times shall be determined by the chair in consultation with organizational committee members.

The organizational committee shall complete its preconvention tasks within one year of their first meeting.

If the Article V Convention is not started within twenty-four (24) months after the election of the delegates all state applications for the Article V Convention become null and void and the Article V Convention shall end.

If the legality of the Article V Convention is challenged in court the organizational committee may by a majority vote set a new date to replace the date that delegates were elected. The new date will be the date when reasonable legal challenges have been overcome and shall be used to determine all applicable time limits.

The organizational committee shall determine by a majority vote the dates of the Article V Convention, the location of the Article V Convention, the procedures of the Article V Convention, the rules of the Article V Convention and other organizational issues related to the Article V Convention.

The rules of the Article V Convention may not change the framework outlined in this application unless each change to the framework is approved by at least a seventy-five percent (75%) majority of the Article V Convention delegates during the Article V Convention or by a unanimous vote of the organizational committee prior to the start of the Article V Convention.

Compensation for a delegate’s time and service shall be a stipend of two hundred and fifty dollars ($250) per day to be paid by each state to their delegates. Each state may change the stipend amount by passing a separate state law setting a higher stipend amount. Travel, hotel, and meal expenses shall be paid for by each state following existing rules for state employees at a director’s level or higher.

Any expenses not paid for by the federal government for the Article V Convention shall be equally split between all states sending delegates to the Article V Convention. The organizational committee shall be responsible for the funding and expenditures of the Article V Convention.

Process

Each state may send up to three (3) amendments to the Article V Convention for consideration. The amendments must be received by the chair at least thirty (30) calendar days prior to the first day of the Article V Convention. Each state by passage of a state law will determine how they will select their proposed amendments.

The citizens of the state must be given a reasonable opportunity to provide suggestions and input on the amendments that will be submitted to the Article V Convention.

No amendment may be considered by the Article V Convention that is not proposed by one or more of the states. Proposed amendments may be changed but the intent of the final amendment must closely align with the intent of one or more proposed amendments by the states.

The delegates must approve the proposed rules of the Article V Convention as determined by the organizational committee by a majority vote. The rules may be changed by a majority vote of the delegates. The rules must be accepted by the end of the fifth (5th) day of the Article V Convention, if not, the rules as proposed and officially changed by the delegates up to that point shall be the rules of the Article V Convention. Any further changes to the rules will require at least a sixty-seven percent (67%) majority vote of the Article V Convention delegates.

For all votes the number of delegates used to determine the percentage of the vote shall be the total number of the active delegates at that time to the Article V Convention or to the specific committee, not the number of delegates that voted.

Unless directed otherwise by the legislature of their state or its appointed representative, for votes on an amendment submitted by the state they represent or on an amendment that closely follows the intent of an amendment submitted by the state they represent the state delegates will all vote YES to approve the amendment thus following the directions of their state. If the delegates believe that their amendment as amended or an amendment from another state while close to the intent of their state amendment in some way contradicts or undermines their originally submitted amendment, they shall vote NO.

On all other votes, delegates will vote as individuals rather than as a delegation.

All present delegates must vote YES or NO on all voting issues. Delegates not voting will be listed as absent for the vote.

Amendments must include as part of the official text the date when it was approved by the Article V Convention and the following clause.

Expiration

If this amendment has not been ratified by the Legislatures of three-fourths (75%) of the several states after ten (10) years starting on the approval date by the Article V Convention the amendment shall be withdrawn from the Legislative ratification process and shall become null and void.

Amendments must be approved by at least a sixty percent (60%) majority vote of the Article V Convention delegates.

The organizational committee may, through its rules, implement a review of the approved amendments by a finalization committee.

Any amendment changed by the finalization committee shall require at least a sixty percent (60%) majority vote of the Article V Convention delegates for final approval.

 If the changes to an amendment approved by the finalization committee fails to get approval of the Article V Convention delegates, then the amendment as originally approved by the Article V Convention shall be the final approved amendment.

Each approved amendment shall be sent to the President, the leaders of both houses of Congress, the Archivist of the United States, and the Director of the Federal Register within 24 hours of approval.

Each approved amendment shall be published to the public within 48 hours of approval.

Each approved amendment shall be sent to each Governor and the leader of each of house of the State Legislatures within a week of approval.

Article V Convention Firewall

If for a period longer than fourteen (14) days, the number of states participating in the Article V Convention falls below thirty (30) states the Article V Convention shall recess until either thirty states are again participating in the Article V Convention, or thirty (30) days have passed. If thirty (30) days have passed the Article V Convention process shall end and all applications for an Article V Convention shall become null and void.

If at any time the chair feels that the Article V Convention has failed to follow the framework or rules of the Article V Convention and the chair’s attempts to resolve the issue fail, then the chair shall call for all activities to cease and then put the Article V Convention into recess. Then the chair must call for an immediate meeting of the organization committee to determine the next steps as set in the Article V Convention rules.

Misc.

Any amendment passed by the Article V Convention shall remain approved by the Article V Convention if the Article V Convention is terminated early for any reason.

Meetings of the Article V Convention shall be open to reasonable coverage by the press as defined in the Article V Convention’s rules.

Minutes of the meetings of the Article V Convention and all Article V Convention committees shall be made public as soon as possible and as defined in the Article V Convention’s rules.

States are encouraged to pass laws to make it illegal for anyone to bribe or threaten a delegate in order to influence the voting of the delegate.