Congress And Constitutional Amendments: How It Works

The process of amending the US Constitution is outlined in Article V of the Constitution. Congress can propose amendments with a two-thirds majority vote in both the House of Representatives and the Senate. Alternatively, Congress can call a convention for proposing amendments upon the request of two-thirds of the state legislatures. The Archivist of the United States is responsible for administering the ratification process, which involves sending the proposed amendment to the states for their consideration. Once an amendment is ratified by the required number of states, the Archivist certifies that the amendment is valid and has become part of the Constitution. This process has been used to pass all 27 amendments to the Constitution, with the most recent amendment being passed by Congress in 1971 and ratified in 1992.

Explore related products

American Constitutional Law, Volume II: The Bill of Rights and Subsequent Amendments

$103.16 $150

The Democracy Amendments: Constitutional Reforms to Save the United States

$12.92 $24.18

The Constitution of the United States and The Declaration of Independence

$1.99 $6.95

The Constitution of the United States of America: The Declaration of Independence, The Bill of Rights

$9.99 $9.99

The People’s Constitution: 200 Years, 27 Amendments, and the Promise of a More Perfect Union

$18.34 $45

The First Amendment: [Connected Ebook] (Aspen Casebook) (Aspen Casebook Series)

$326 $326

Two-thirds majority in Congress

The process of amending the Constitution of the United States is outlined in Article V of the Constitution. This article establishes two methods for proposing amendments. The first method, which has been used for all amendments so far, involves a two-thirds majority vote in both the House of Representatives and the Senate. This means that at least two-thirds of the members present in each chamber must vote in favour of the proposed amendment for it to pass.

The second method, which has never been used, is for Congress to call a constitutional convention upon the request of two-thirds of the state legislatures. This method has been the subject of much scholarly debate.

Once an amendment is proposed by Congress, it is forwarded to the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) for processing and publication. The Director of the Federal Register within NARA is responsible for administering the ratification process, which involves sending the proposed amendment to the states for their consideration.

The process of ratification can be done through the state legislatures or by calling a convention, depending on what Congress specifies. To be ratified, an amendment must be approved by either three-fourths of the state legislatures or three-fourths of state conventions.

Throughout history, there have been numerous instances where Congress has successfully proposed and ratified amendments to the Constitution. For example, Amendment XI, which modified Article III, Section 2 of the Constitution, was passed by Congress on March 4, 1794, and ratified on February 7, 1795. Another example is the 26th Amendment, which gave 18-year-olds the right to vote. It was passed by Congress on March 23, 1971, and ratified on July 1, 1971.

State legislatures

The process of amending the US Constitution is outlined in Article V of the Constitution. This article establishes two methods for proposing amendments. The first method involves a two-thirds majority vote in both the House of Representatives and the Senate, with the proposed amendment then being submitted to the states for ratification. This is the method that has been used for all amendments so far.

The second method, which has never been used, involves a constitutional convention called for by two-thirds of state legislatures. This method bypasses Congress and allows the states to propose amendments directly. However, even in this case, the proposed amendment must still be ratified by either three-fourths of state legislatures or three-fourths of state conventions, as specified by Congress.

Once an amendment is passed by Congress or proposed through a constitutional convention, it is the responsibility of the Archivist of the United States to administer the ratification process. The Archivist submits the proposed amendment to the states, and upon receiving the required number of authenticated ratification documents from the state legislatures, the Archivist certifies the amendment as valid, and it becomes part of the Constitution.

It is worth noting that the first ten amendments to the Constitution, known as the Bill of Rights, were proposed by the First Congress in 1789 and ratified by three-fourths of the state legislatures in 1791. These amendments were specifically designed to protect individual liberties and prevent government overreach.

Ratification

The authority to amend the Constitution of the United States is derived from Article V of the Constitution. Amendments can be proposed by Congress with a two-thirds majority vote in both the House of Representatives and the Senate. The other method, which has never been used, is for Congress to call a convention for proposing amendments upon the request of two-thirds of the state legislatures.

Once an amendment is passed by Congress, it is sent to the Archivist of the United States, who heads the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). The Archivist is responsible for administering the ratification process. The Archivist submits the proposed amendment to the States for their consideration by sending a letter of notification to each Governor along with the relevant informational material. The Governors then formally submit the amendment to their State legislatures or call for a convention, depending on what Congress has specified.

When a State ratifies a proposed amendment, it sends the Archivist an original or certified copy of the State action. The Archivist does not make any substantive determinations regarding the validity of State ratification actions. However, the Archivist examines ratification documents for facial legal sufficiency and an authenticating signature. If the documents are in order, the Director of the Federal Register, to whom many of the Archivist's duties have been delegated, acknowledges receipt and maintains custody of them.

When the Director of the Federal Register verifies that the required number of authenticated ratification documents has been received, a formal proclamation is drafted for the Archivist to certify that the amendment is valid and has become part of the Constitution. This certification is published in the Federal Register and U.S. Statutes at Large, serving as official notice to Congress and the Nation that the amendment process has been completed.

Explore related products

American Constitutional Law: Introductory Essays and Selected Cases

$140

The Liberty Amendments: Restoring the American Republic

$16.7 $26.99

A Companion to the United States Constitution and Its Amendments

$34.65 $45

A Real Right to Vote: How a Constitutional Amendment Can Safeguard American Democracy

$12.65 $27.95

The Second Founding: How the Civil War and Reconstruction Remade the Constitution

$16.69 $17.95

Perfecting the U.S. Constitution: 27 and Counting, The Amendments that Shaped America’s Future (Anthem Studies in Law Reform, 1)

$19.99 $90

The Bill of Rights

The amendments of the Bill of Rights add to the Constitution specific guarantees of personal freedoms, such as freedom of speech, the right to publish, practice religion, possess firearms, and assemble. They also include other natural and legal rights, such as the right to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures. The Fifth Amendment provides several protections for people accused of crimes, including the right against self-incrimination and the right to not be imprisoned without due process of law. The Sixth Amendment provides additional protections to people accused of crimes, such as the right to a speedy and public trial and trial by an impartial jury in criminal cases.

The concepts codified in these amendments are built upon those in earlier documents, especially the Virginia Declaration of Rights (1776), the Northwest Ordinance (1787), the English Bill of Rights (1689), and the Magna Carta (1215). The Bill of Rights also includes a provision to extend the protection of some of the amendments to the states, although initially, the amendments only applied to the federal government. Since the early 20th century, both federal and state courts have used the Fourteenth Amendment to apply portions of the Bill of Rights to state and local governments.

The process of amending the Constitution is derived from Article V of the Constitution. After Congress proposes an amendment, the Archivist of the United States administers the ratification process. The Archivist submits the proposed amendment to the States for their consideration, and when a State ratifies a proposed amendment, it sends the Archivist an original or certified copy of the State action. When the required number of authenticated ratification documents is received, the Archivist certifies that the amendment is valid and has become part of the Constitution.

Unamendable subjects

The authority to amend the US Constitution is derived from Article V of the Constitution. The Congress, with a two-thirds majority vote in both the House of Representatives and the Senate, can propose amendments to the Constitution. However, the last two sentences of Article V made certain subjects unamendable.

The first sentence prohibited amendments before 1808 that would have affected either of the two subjects addressed in Article I, Section 9 of the Constitution:

• Limitations on Congress's power to prohibit or restrict the importation of slaves before 1808.
• Limitations on Congress's power to enact an unapportioned direct tax.

The second sentence states that no state, without its consent, shall be deprived of its equal suffrage in the Senate. This means that a state cannot be deprived of equal suffrage without its agreement.

There are academic debates over the legal force of Article V's clause on unamendable subjects. Scholars have debated whether it is possible to amend provisions that embody fundamental norms or characteristics of the US Government, such as provisions that establish a republican form of government. Other debates have focused on whether Article V's procedures for amendment can themselves be amended. While it is generally accepted that constitutional amending provisions can be used to amend themselves, some scholars argue that Article V cannot be amended to create new limitations on the amending power.

Frequently asked questions