Malcolm Rivera
In 1992, the Twenty-seventh Amendment was added to the Constitution of the United States. This amendment, also known as the Congressional Compensation Act of 1789, prevents members of Congress from giving themselves pay raises or cuts during their current session. Instead, any changes to their compensation must take effect during the next session of Congress, after the subsequent election in the House of Representatives. The amendment was proposed by a college student in a term paper in 1982 and was ratified by 38 states by May 5, 1992, with Alabama being the 38th state to sign off on it.
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The 27th Amendment was ratified
The 27th Amendment to the United States Constitution was ratified in 1992, more than 200 years after it was first proposed. This amendment, also known as the Congressional Compensation Act of 1789, addresses the rate of compensation for members of Congress.
The 27th Amendment stipulates that any changes to the compensation of members of the U.S. Congress can only come into effect after the subsequent election in the House of Representatives. In other words, a sitting Congress cannot give itself a pay raise or cut during its current session. This amendment ensures that any adjustments to congressional pay will only apply to the Congress that follows.
The long journey to the ratification of the 27th Amendment began in 1789 when Founding Father James Madison first proposed it. However, it remained dormant for almost eight decades after only six states voted for ratification by 1792. In 1982, the amendment gained new life when undergraduate student Gregory Watson at the University of Texas in Austin wrote a research paper on it, receiving a "'C'" grade from his professor who deemed the argument unconvincing.
Undeterred, Watson's work sparked a movement to curtail political corruption by ratifying the amendment. By May 5, 1992, 38 states had ratified the amendment, and it was officially certified by the Archivist of the United States as the 27th Amendment on May 18, 1992. This certification was made under Article V of the Constitution and published in the Federal Register, with near-unanimous support from Congress.
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Congressional pay changes
In 1992, the Twenty-seventh Amendment to the Constitution of the United States was ratified. This amendment, also known as the Congressional Compensation Act of 1789, addresses congressional pay changes.
The Twenty-seventh Amendment states that any changes to the compensation of members of Congress can only take effect after the subsequent election in the House of Representatives. In other words, if there is a change in the salary of members of Congress, it will not take effect immediately but only after the next election has occurred.
The purpose of this amendment is to reduce corruption in the legislative branch. By requiring an election before a congressperson's salary increase, the public can hold members of Congress accountable. This amendment ensures that members of Congress cannot approve salary increases for themselves without facing the possibility of reelection.
The Twenty-seventh Amendment was first proposed in 1789 as one of the twelve amendments submitted by the First Congress. However, it did not receive enough ratifications to come into force at that time. The amendment was largely forgotten until 1982 when Gregory Watson, a student at the University of Texas at Austin, wrote a research paper arguing for its ratification. Watson's paper sparked a movement, and by 1992, 38 states had ratified the amendment, leading to its certification by the Archivist of the United States on May 18, 1992.
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Amendment certification
The process of amending the Constitution of the United States is a complex and lengthy one, requiring a high level of certification. The Constitution has a total of 27 amendments, with the most recent one, the Twenty-seventh Amendment, being ratified in 1992, more than 200 years after its original proposal.
The Twenty-seventh Amendment, or the Congressional Compensation Act of 1789, addresses the issue of Congressional pay and limitations. It states that any changes to the compensation of members of Congress must take effect only after the subsequent election. In other words, a sitting Congress cannot give itself a raise or cut its pay during its current session. This amendment was proposed by founding father James Madison, along with several other amendments that became part of the Bill of Rights.
The road to the ratification of the Twenty-seventh Amendment was long and intriguing. It was originally proposed in 1789, and by 1792, six states had ratified it. However, the amendment then lay dormant for almost 80 years, as it lacked a time limit for ratification by the states. In 1982, a college student at the University of Texas in Austin, Gregory Watson, wrote a research paper on the amendment, arguing that it was still pending and could be ratified. Despite receiving a "C" grade for his paper, Watson's idea gained traction and sparked a movement to curtail political corruption.
By May 5, 1992, 38 states had ratified the amendment, with Alabama being the 38th state to do so on May 7, 1992, followed quickly by New Jersey. The Archivist of the United States then certified the amendment as ratified under Article V of the Constitution and published it in the Federal Register. This certification by the Archivist of the United States is a crucial step in the amendment process, ensuring the legitimacy and validity of the changes made to the Constitution.
The Twenty-seventh Amendment is a powerful example of how the Constitution can be amended to address specific concerns, such as curbing the power of Congress to grant itself pay raises. The certification process, though lengthy, ensures that any changes to the Constitution undergo rigorous scrutiny and receive widespread support before being finalized.
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Amendment proposal by a college student
The Twenty-seventh Amendment to the Constitution of the United States, ratified in 1992, was proposed by a college student, Gregory Watson, in a term paper. Watson was a sophomore at the University of Texas at Austin in 1982 and needed a topic for a government course. He chose to research what became the 27th Amendment and found that six states had ratified it by 1792, after which there was little activity. Watson's research led him to conclude that the amendment could still be ratified as Congress had not stipulated a time limit for states to consider it.
Watson's professor disagreed with his conclusion and gave him a "C" grade, stating that the argument was unconvincing and that the amendment was a “dead letter” issue. However, Watson's idea gained traction and, by May 5, 1992, 38 states had ratified the amendment, with Alabama being the 38th state to do so on May 7, 1992. The Archivist of the United States certified the amendment as the Twenty-seventh Amendment on May 18, 1992, more than 202 years after its original proposal.
The Twenty-seventh Amendment, also known as the Congressional Compensation Act of 1789, prevents members of Congress from granting themselves pay raises during their current session. Instead, any pay raises or cuts can only take effect for the Congress that follows a sitting Congress. This amendment was first proposed by Founding Father James Madison in 1789, along with other amendments that became the Bill of Rights.
The amendment's ratification in 1992 was a significant moment in US constitutional history, demonstrating the power of a single individual, in this case, a college student, to propose and drive the adoption of a constitutional amendment. It also highlighted the importance of ensuring that members of Congress do not have a personal stake in votes that affect their own compensation.
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Article One, Section 6, Clause 1 affected
In 1992, the United States Constitution was revised with the addition of the Twenty-seventh Amendment, also known as the Congressional Compensation Act of 1789. This amendment was proposed and submitted to the states for ratification on September 25, 1789, along with 11 other proposed amendments (Articles I-XII).
The Twenty-seventh Amendment states that any change to the rate of compensation for members of Congress can only take effect after the subsequent election for the House of Representatives. In other words, if there is a change in the salary of members of Congress, it will only come into effect after the next election cycle. This amendment was designed to reduce corruption in the legislative branch by giving the public an opportunity to remove members of Congress from office before their salaries increase.
The amendment was certified on May 18, 1992, by the Archivist of the United States, Don W. Wilson, after the requisite 38 states had ratified it. This certification was published in the Federal Register on May 19, 1992. The Twenty-seventh Amendment is the most recently adopted amendment to the Constitution, but it was one of the first proposed, having been originally suggested in 1789.
The addition of this amendment to the Constitution affected Article One, Section 6, Clause 1, which pertains to the compensation and privileges of senators and representatives. This clause, also known as the Ineligibility Clause or the Qualifications Clause, outlines the requirements and restrictions for membership in the Senate and House of Representatives. By adding the Twenty-seventh Amendment, the process for adjusting the compensation of members of Congress was further defined and subject to the approval of the electorate through elections.
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Frequently asked questions
The 27th Amendment was added to the US Constitution in 1992, also known as the Congressional Compensation Act of 1789.
The 27th Amendment prevents members of Congress from granting themselves pay raises or cuts during their current session. Any changes to pay must take effect during the next session of Congress.
By May 5, 1992, 38 states had ratified the amendment, and it was certified by the Archivist of the United States as the 27th Amendment on May 18, 1992.
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