MORGANTOWN – West Virginia will apply to Congress to call a convention of states to propose an amendment to the U.S. Constitution to set congressional term limits.
HCR 9, the House resolution spelling this out, passed the Senate in a divided voice vote Monday.
There was no debate. Opponents have argued often and passionately that the Constitution contains no rules for conducting a convention, which could lead to a runaway convention where all sorts of amendments could be proposed and the entire constitution rewritten.
Supporters have argued that the delegates to such a convention, if one is ever called, would be operating under strict guidance from their states, and the convention would be confined to the one topic.
A Senate bill setting the parameters for convention delegates, SB 332, passed the Senate March 4, and has been sitting in House Judiciary.
Article V of the U.S. Constitution establishes two ways to amend the U.S. Constitution. First, two-thirds of both houses of Congress can propose amendments. Second, two-thirds of the 50 states can apply to Congress to call a convention of states to propose amendments.
In either case, the proposed amendments would have to be ratified either by the legislatures of three-fourths of the states or by conventions in three-fourths of the states.
HCR 9 takes the second approach for a congressional term limits amendment.
According to U.S. Term Limits, the organization lobbying for a convention, West Virginia joins Missouri, Alabama and Florida in passing a resolution. Fifteen other states have included term limits in a multi-subject resolution, but the organization is lobbying to have states pass a single-topic resolution.
Civics bill
The Senate unanimously passed SB 636.
The bill requires the state Board of Education to prescribe courses of study in history and civics covering the institutions and structure of American government; an understanding of American political philosophy and history; an objective and critical analysis of ideologies throughout history including, but not limited to, capitalism, republicanism, democracy, socialism, communism, and fascism; and the Bill of Rights and the 13th, 14th, 15th and 19th amendments to the Constitution.
The bill now heads to the House of Delegates.
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