Who Approves A Constitutional Amendment?

The process of amending the US Constitution is a difficult and time-consuming endeavour. The Constitution provides that an amendment may be proposed by Congress with a two-thirds majority vote in both the House of Representatives and the Senate, or by a constitutional convention called for by two-thirds of the state legislatures. Notably, the President does not have a constitutional role in the amendment process, and their approval is not required for a constitutional amendment. This essay will explore the process of constitutional amendments, the role of the President, and provide examples of amendments that have been ratified.

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The President has no constitutional role in the amendment process

Once approved by Congress, a joint resolution proposing a constitutional amendment does not require presidential approval before it is sent out to the states for ratification. This is in contrast to Article I Section 7, which states that all federal legislation must be presented to the President for signature or veto before becoming law. However, Article V, which outlines the amendment process, does not include this requirement. The Supreme Court affirmed this interpretation in Hollingsworth v. Virginia (1798) and Hawke v. Smith (1920), holding that the President's action is not necessary for the submission of a constitutional amendment.

While the President has no formal role in the amendment process, there have been instances where Presidents have played a ministerial role in transmitting Congress's proposed amendments to the states for ratification. For example, President George Washington sent the first twelve proposed amendments, including the Bill of Rights, to the states for ratification after Congressional approval. Additionally, President Abraham Lincoln signed the joint resolution proposing the Thirteenth Amendment, and President Jimmy Carter signed a joint resolution extending the deadline for ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment. These actions, however, were not constitutionally required and did not change the fact that the President has no official function in the amendment process.

The process of amending the Constitution is deliberately difficult and time-consuming. Of the more than 10,000 measures proposed in Congress, only 33 amendments have been approved and sent to the states for ratification. Of these, 27 have been ratified and are now part of the Constitution. This highlights the importance and rarity of successfully amending the Constitution, which was designed "to endure for ages to come."

The President can play a ministerial role in transmitting Congress's proposed amendments

The President of the United States does not have a constitutional role in the amendment process. The Constitution does not establish a role for the President in amending the Constitution. The joint resolution proposing an amendment does not go to the White House for signature or approval. Instead, it is forwarded directly to the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) Office of the Federal Register (OFR) for processing and publication.

However, some Presidents have played a ministerial role in transmitting Congress's proposed amendments to the states for potential ratification. For example, President George Washington sent the first twelve proposed amendments, including the ten proposals that later became the Bill of Rights, to the states for ratification after Congress approved them. President Abraham Lincoln signed the joint resolution proposing the Thirteenth Amendment abolishing slavery, and President Jimmy Carter signed a joint resolution extending the deadline for ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment. In recent history, the signing of the certification of a new amendment has become a ceremonial function that may include the President.

The OFR is responsible for processing and publishing the joint resolution proposing an amendment. It adds legislative history notes to the resolution and publishes it in slip law format. Once the OFR verifies that it has received the required number of authenticated ratification documents, it drafts a formal proclamation for the Archivist of the United States to certify that the amendment is valid and has become part of the Constitution. This certification is published in the Federal Register and serves as official notice to Congress and the Nation that the amendment process has been completed.

The Archivist of the United States is responsible for administering the ratification process

The President does not have a constitutional role in the amendment process. The Constitution does not establish a role for the President in amending the Constitution. While the President has signed off on amendments in the past, this was not necessary for their proposal or ratification.

The Archivist of the United States, who heads the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), is responsible for administering the ratification process. The Archivist has delegated many of the duties associated with this function to the Director of the Federal Register. The Archivist and Director follow procedures and customs established by the Secretary of State and the Administrator of General Services, who previously served in this capacity.

The Archivist is responsible for certifying a state's ratification of a constitutional amendment. When the OFR verifies that it has received the required number of authenticated ratification documents, it drafts a formal proclamation 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 and serves as official notice to Congress and the Nation that the amendment process has been completed.

The Archivist does not make any substantive determinations as to the validity of State ratification actions, but their certification of the facial legal sufficiency of ratification documents is final and conclusive. In recent history, the signing of the certification has become a ceremonial function attended by various dignitaries, including the President.

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The process of amending the Constitution is difficult and time-consuming

The process of amending the US Constitution is deliberately difficult and time-consuming. The Constitution has been amended only 27 times since it was drafted in 1787, and there have been more than 10,000 measures proposed in Congress to amend it. The US Constitution was written "to endure for ages to come", and the framers made it challenging to amend to ensure its longevity.

Amendments can be proposed by Congress with a two-thirds majority vote in both the House of Representatives and the Senate. This is a high bar to clear, and even then, the amendment must be ratified by the legislatures of three-fourths of the states. This is a lengthy process, as evidenced by the four years it took to ratify the Twenty-second Amendment, which imposed term limits on the presidency.

An alternative method to propose an amendment is for two-thirds of state legislatures to request that Congress call a Constitutional Convention. However, this has never happened. Once an amendment is proposed, it does not require presidential approval before being sent to the states. The President has no official role in the process, although some have played a ceremonial or ministerial role, such as signing the certification of an amendment.

The process of amending the Constitution is thus deliberately challenging and time-consuming, reflecting the framers' intention for the Constitution to be a stable and enduring document.

The Supreme Court affirmed that amendments don't need presidential approval or veto

The process of amending the Constitution of the United States is a difficult and time-consuming endeavour. The Constitution has been amended only 27 times since it was drafted in 1787. The authority to amend the Constitution is derived from Article V of the Constitution. This article provides two methods for amending the nation's frame of government. The first method authorises Congress, with a two-thirds majority vote in both the House of Representatives and the Senate, to propose constitutional amendments. The second method allows two-thirds of state legislatures to request Congress to call a Constitutional Convention to propose amendments. However, this method has never been used.

Once an amendment is approved by Congress, it does not require presidential approval or veto before being sent to the states for ratification. The Supreme Court affirmed this in Hollingsworth v. Virginia (1798), stating that constitutional amendments do not need to be placed before the President for approval or veto. This was further emphasised in Hawke v. Smith (1920), where the Supreme Court characterised the Court's decision in Hollingsworth as settling that the submission of a constitutional amendment did not require presidential action.

While the President does not have a constitutional role in the amendment process, they may play an informal, ministerial role in transmitting Congress's proposed amendments to the states for potential ratification. For example, President George Washington sent the first twelve proposed amendments, including the ten proposals that became the Bill of Rights, to the states for ratification after Congressional approval. Additionally, President Abraham Lincoln signed the joint resolution proposing the Thirteenth Amendment, and Congress affirmed that his signature was unnecessary.

The process of amending the Constitution is deliberately challenging to ensure the document's longevity. The amendment process involves multiple steps, including proposal, ratification, and certification. After Congress proposes an amendment, the Archivist of the United States is responsible for administering the ratification process. Once the required number of authenticated ratification documents is received, the Archivist certifies that the amendment is valid and has become part of the Constitution. This certification is a formal process and, in recent times, has included the ceremonial signing of the certification by dignitaries, which may include the President.

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