Amendments: Who Ratifies Changes To The Constitution?

The process of amending the United States Constitution is outlined in Article Five, which includes two methods for proposing amendments and two methods for ratifying them. Amendments can be proposed by Congress, with a two-thirds majority vote in both the House of Representatives and the Senate, or by a convention called by Congress at the request of two-thirds of state legislatures. To become part of the Constitution, an amendment must be ratified by either three-quarters of state legislatures or by ratifying conventions in three-quarters of states. The first ten amendments, known as the Bill of Rights, were ratified simultaneously and form what is known as the Bill of Rights. Since the Constitution was enacted in 1789, Congress has proposed 33 amendments, 27 of which have been ratified and are now part of the Constitution.

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Amendments proposed by Congress

The process of amending the United States Constitution is a two-step procedure. Proposals to amend it must be properly adopted and ratified before becoming operative. A proposed amendment may be adopted and sent to the states for ratification by the United States Congress, whenever a two-thirds majority in both the Senate and the House deem it necessary.

Since 1789, Congress has sent 33 constitutional amendments to the states for ratification. Of these, 27 have been ratified. The first 10 amendments, known as the Bill of Rights, were ratified in 1791. The 1789 Joint Resolution of Congress proposing these amendments is on display in the National Archives' Rotunda for the Charters of Freedom.

On September 25, 1789, the First Congress of the United States proposed 12 amendments to the Constitution. Ten of the proposed 12 amendments were ratified by three-fourths of the state legislatures on December 15, 1791. The ratified Articles (Articles 3–12) constitute the first 10 amendments of the Constitution, or the U.S. Bill of Rights. In 1992, 203 years after it was proposed, Article 2 was ratified as the 27th Amendment to the Constitution. Article 1 was never ratified.

Congress has customarily included a provision requiring ratification within seven years from the time of submission to the states. The latter procedure has never been used. To become part of the Constitution, an adopted amendment must be ratified by either the legislatures of three-fourths (presently 38) of the states or state ratifying conventions in three-fourths (also presently 38) of the states. The decision on which ratification method will be used for any given amendment is Congress' alone to make.

Constitutional amendment proposals considered but not approved by Congress in the 19th century include the Dueling Ban Amendment, which would have prohibited any person involved in a duel from holding federal office. In the 20th century, an amendment abolishing the Senate was proposed by Representative Victor Berger in 1911 due to his belief that it was corrupt and useless to the country. An anti-miscegenation amendment was proposed by Representative Seaborn Roddenbery, a Southern Democrat from Georgia, in 1912 to forbid interracial marriages nationwide. Similar amendments were proposed by Congressman Andrew King in 1871 and Senator Coleman Blease in 1928, but none were passed by Congress.

Amendments proposed by convention

The Amendments proposed by convention in the United States are authorised by Article Five of the US Constitution. This method of proposing amendments is also referred to as an Article V Convention, a state convention, or an amendatory convention.

The convention method for proposing amendments has never been used. However, Article V states that on the application of two-thirds of the state legislatures (34 of the 50), Congress shall call a convention for proposing amendments. These amendments become law only after ratification by three-fourths of the states (38 of the 50).

The convention can propose amendments, whether Congress approves of them or not. These proposed amendments are then sent to the states for ratification. As with amendments proposed by Congress, three-quarters of the states would have to ratify the amendment for it to become part of the Constitution.

Congress has the authority to propose amendments to the Constitution, with a two-thirds majority vote in both the House of Representatives and the Senate. Once proposed, 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 it, it sends the Archivist an original or certified copy of the state action.

When the Office of the Federal Register (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.

In summary, while the convention method for proposing amendments has never been used, it is a valid option authorised by Article Five of the US Constitution. The process involves state legislatures applying for a convention, with Congress calling and facilitating the proposal of amendments, and ultimately, ratification by three-quarters of the states.

Ratification by state legislatures

The process of amending the U.S. Constitution is outlined in Article V of the Constitution. This article stipulates that two-thirds of both houses of Congress must propose amendments, which are then submitted to the state legislatures for ratification. This process, known as the "proposed amendments" route, has been the method used for every amendment so far.

For an amendment to be ratified, three-fourths of the state legislatures, or 38 out of 50 states, must approve it. This means that a small minority of states (13 out of 50) can block an amendment by refusing to ratify it. The process is administered by the Archivist of the United States, who heads the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), and the Director of the Federal Register.

State legislatures play a crucial role in the amendment process, and they can also initiate amendments. In most states, citizen-initiated amendments must secure the support of one-fourth of the legislature before being placed on the ballot, and they are then ratified by a simple majority of voters. However, some states, like Nevada, require approval by a majority of voters in two consecutive elections.

It's worth noting that state constitutions are much easier to amend than the federal Constitution. The U.S. Constitution has only been amended 27 times, while state constitutions have been amended around 7,000 times. The process for amending state constitutions varies, with some states, like Alabama and Louisiana, amending their constitutions more frequently than others, such as Tennessee and Kentucky.

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Ratification by state conventions

The United States Constitution outlines two methods for proposing amendments, one of which is the convention method, also known as the Article V convention method. This method involves convening a convention of delegates, who are presumed to be average citizens, to debate and vote on potential amendments. This method has been used over 600 times at the state level to amend state constitutions and was also used during the original Philadelphia Convention in 1787.

To propose amendments using the convention method, two-thirds of state legislatures (34 out of 50) must apply for Congress to call a convention. The convention can then propose amendments without requiring approval from Congress. The proposed amendments are then sent to the states for ratification. For an amendment to become part of the Constitution, three-quarters of the states (38 out of 50) must ratify it, either through their legislatures or by convening their own state conventions.

The convention method of ratification was designed to potentially bypass state legislatures and allow the sentiments of registered voters to be more directly considered on sensitive issues. This method also aimed to reduce the influence of political pressure on the decision-making process. However, the convention method has never been used to propose amendments at the federal level, with all amendments being proposed through a two-thirds vote in both houses of Congress.

The only amendment ratified by state conventions was the 21st Amendment in 1933, which repealed the 18th Amendment. This unique ratification process was a response to the specific circumstances surrounding the 21st Amendment, and most states have laws that refer to a one-off convention for this amendment.

Amendments that were never ratified

The process of amending the US Constitution is intentionally designed to be difficult. Since the 1780s, there have been nearly 1200 proposed amendments that have failed, with only 17 amendments being passed since 1791.

Some of the notable amendments that were never ratified include:

• The Corwin Amendment: Approved by Congress in 1861, it was ratified by two states and would have guaranteed the right of states to legalise slavery.
• The Equal Rights Amendment: This amendment came close to ratification but ultimately fell short.
• The Titles of Nobility Amendment: Like the Equal Rights Amendment, this proposal also came close to being ratified.
• The Child Labor Amendment: This amendment sought to grant Congress the power to regulate the labour of children under 18 but failed to gain enough support.
• The Flag Desecration Amendment: First proposed in 1995, this amendment sought to give Congress the power to make flag burning illegal but was never ratified by the Senate.
• The School Prayer Amendment: Proposed multiple times between 1962 and 2006, this amendment affirmed the right of people to pray and recognise their religious beliefs in public spaces, including schools.
• The amendment to rename the United States as "the United States of the Earth": Proposed by Representative Lucas Miller in 1893, this amendment did not gain traction and Miller was not nominated for a second term in the House.
• The amendment to eliminate the Senate and the Presidency: Proposed by residents of Potter County, Pennsylvania, in 1876, this amendment did not make it to the Senate.
• The amendment regarding Congressional salaries: Proposed in 1791, this amendment dealt with the salaries of Congressional members and was not ratified until over 200 years later.
• The amendment on Congressional apportionment: Proposed in 1791, this amendment aimed to establish how members of the House of Representatives would be apportioned among the states but was not ratified.

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