Malcolm Rivera
The United States Constitution has been amended only 27 times since it was drafted in 1787, suggesting that the framers made it a difficult task to amend the document on purpose. The Constitution provides that an amendment may be proposed either 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. A proposed amendment must be passed by two-thirds of both houses of Congress and then ratified by the legislatures of three-fourths of the states. To become part of the Constitution, an amendment must be ratified by three-fourths of the states.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Difficulty of amending | High |
| Impact | Affecting all Americans or securing rights of citizens |
| Number of proposals | 11,848 since 1789 |
| Number of amendments | 27 since 1787 |
| Number of proposals per Congress | 200 every two years |
| Number of proposals that get voted on | ~20 every two years |
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What You'll Learn
The amendment process
The process of amending the United States Constitution is a challenging and time-consuming endeavour. The framers of the Constitution deliberately designed it to be difficult to amend, ensuring its longevity and resilience. This difficulty is evident in the relatively low number of successful amendments throughout history. Since its drafting in 1787, there have been only 27 amendments, with the first 10 being adopted simultaneously as the Bill of Rights in 1791.
Once an amendment is proposed, it must be ratified. Ratification requires approval by three-fourths of the state legislatures, equivalent to 38 out of 50 states. This can be achieved through state ratifying conventions or by the legislatures of the required number of states. The Twenty-first Amendment, ratified in 1933, is the only amendment to date that has been ratified through state ratifying conventions.
During the ratification process, the Archivist of the United States plays a crucial role in administering the process under the provisions of 1 U.S.C. § 106b. The Archivist works closely with the Director of the Federal Register (OFR) to ensure the amendment's legal sufficiency and authenticity. Once the OFR verifies the required number of authenticated ratification documents, a formal proclamation is drafted for the Archivist to certify the amendment's validity. This certification is published in the Federal Register, officially declaring the amendment as part of the Constitution.
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Congress's role
Congress plays a crucial role in the constitutional amendment process in the United States. Firstly, Congress has the authority to propose amendments to the Constitution. For an amendment to be proposed by Congress, it must secure a two-thirds majority vote in both the House of Representatives and the Senate. This is a significant hurdle, as achieving such a supermajority requires broad bipartisan support for the amendment.
Once an amendment is proposed by Congress, it is then forwarded directly to the National Archives and Records Administration's (NARA) Office of the Federal Register (OFR) for processing and publication. The OFR plays an important procedural role in the amendment process. It adds legislative history notes to the joint resolution and publishes it in slip law format, creating an official record of the proposed amendment. The OFR also assembles an information package for the states, providing them with the necessary documentation to consider and act on the proposed amendment.
After an amendment is proposed and processed by the OFR, it enters the ratification stage. Ratification is the process by which an amendment is approved and adopted, becoming an official part of the Constitution. An amendment must be ratified by three-fourths of the states (38 out of 50 states) to become part of the Constitution. This can be achieved through state legislatures or state ratifying conventions.
Congress also has some influence over the ratification process. While the Archivist of the United States is responsible for administering the ratification process, Congress can specify whether an amendment is submitted to state legislatures or a constitutional convention for ratification. Additionally, Congress has, on several occasions, stipulated ratification deadlines, requiring an amendment to be ratified within a certain timeframe. This authority was affirmed by the Supreme Court in the Coleman v. Miller case in 1939.
In summary, Congress plays a central role in the constitutional amendment process by proposing amendments, processing them through the OFR, influencing the ratification method and deadlines, and ultimately, achieving ratification by securing the approval of a sufficient number of states. The amendment process in the United States was designed to be challenging, and Congress's role reflects this, ensuring that any changes to the Constitution are carefully considered and broadly supported.
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State legislatures
Some states require majority legislative support for proposing amendments, while others mandate supermajority backing, with the specifics differing between single and consecutive legislative sessions. The simplest approach is to permit majority approval in a single session, which is possible in 10 states.
In the amendment process, state legislatures can propose amendments or call for a constitutional convention. Governors submit proposed amendments to state legislatures, and upon ratification, the state forwards the documents to the Archivist of the United States for processing. An amendment becomes part of the Constitution when ratified by three-fourths of the states (38 out of 50).
Legislatively referred constitutional amendments are a common method, with 49 state legislatures voting on amendments before referring them to voters. However, Delaware is an exception, as it doesn't require voter approval. Citizen-initiated amendments, on the other hand, are considered at a faster pace in states like California and Colorado but face additional requirements in states like Nevada.
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Ratification
The process of amending the United States Constitution is a challenging and time-consuming endeavour. To date, there have been 27 successful amendments, with the first 10 being ratified simultaneously in 1791 as the Bill of Rights. The process of ratification is a two-step procedure, with amendments requiring proper proposal and ratification before becoming operative.
The first step of proposing an amendment can occur through two avenues. The first is via a two-thirds majority vote in both the House of Representatives and the Senate, bypassing the President, as they do not have a constitutional role in the amendment process. The second option is through a constitutional convention, called for by two-thirds of state legislatures. However, this second option has never been utilised.
Once an amendment is proposed, it is sent to the states for ratification. For an amendment to be ratified, it must be approved by three-fourths of the states (38 out of 50). This can be achieved through the legislatures of three-fourths of the states or state ratifying conventions in three-fourths of the states. The latter method has only been used once, in 1933, for the Twenty-first Amendment, which repealed the Eighteenth Amendment and prohibited alcohol.
When an amendment is ratified, the Archivist of the United States, who heads the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), is responsible for administering the ratification process. The Archivist, along with the Director of the Federal Register, follows established procedures and customs, including examining ratification documents for authenticity and legal sufficiency. Once the required number of ratified documents is verified, a formal proclamation is drafted for the Archivist to certify the amendment's validity. This certification is published in the Federal Register, officially declaring the amendment's adoption into the Constitution.
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The Bill of Rights
The United States Constitution has been amended 27 times since it was first drafted in 1787. The first ten amendments, collectively known as the Bill of Rights, were ratified on December 15, 1791. These amendments were designed to secure the rights of citizens and have a major impact on all Americans.
The process of amending the Constitution is deliberately difficult and time-consuming. A proposed amendment must be passed by a two-thirds majority in both the House of Representatives and the Senate, and then ratified by three-fourths of the state legislatures (38 out of 50 states). This two-step process, outlined in Article V of the Constitution, ensures that any changes to the nation's plan of government are carefully considered and have broad support.
In addition to the Bill of Rights, other notable amendments include the Reconstruction Amendments (the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments), which abolished slavery, guaranteed equal protection under the law, and granted citizenship and voting rights to African-American men, respectively. The 21st Amendment, ratified in 1933, repealed the 18th Amendment and ended the prohibition of alcohol.
While the process of amending the Constitution is challenging, it is not impossible. Those seeking to amend the Constitution must demonstrate broad support for their proposal and ensure that it has a significant impact on the rights and well-being of all Americans.
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Frequently asked questions
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. Alternatively, it can be proposed by a constitutional convention called for by two-thirds of the State legislatures. Once proposed, an amendment becomes part of the Constitution as soon as it is ratified by three-fourths of the States (38 out of 50).
The United States Constitution was written to "endure for ages to come", so the framers made amending the document a difficult task. The idea for an amendment must have a major impact on all Americans or secure the rights of citizens. For example, an amendment to outlaw flag burning or to allow voluntary school prayer.
There have been 27 amendments to the Constitution, including the first 10 amendments, known as the Bill of Rights, which were ratified in 1791.
The ERA Amendment did not pass the necessary majority of state legislatures in the 1980s. Supporters of congressional term limits and a balanced budget amendment were also not successful in getting the new amendments they wanted.
