| 1 | 1 | | 1.1 A resolution |
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| 2 | 2 | | 1.2 memorializing Congress to overturn the United States Supreme Court decision Citizens |
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| 3 | 3 | | 1.3 United v. FEC; requesting that Congress clarify that the rights protected under the |
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| 4 | 4 | | 1.4 Constitution are the rights of natural persons and not the rights of artificial entities and |
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| 5 | 5 | | 1.5 that spending money to influence elections is not speech under the First Amendment; |
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| 6 | 6 | | 1.6 asking that Congress propose a constitutional amendment to provide such clarification. |
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| 7 | 7 | | 1.7 WHEREAS, when the states and federal government first authorized the creation of |
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| 8 | 8 | | 1.8corporations, they were regulated by the people and their elected representatives through law; and |
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| 9 | 9 | | 1.9 WHEREAS, the Supreme Court granted constitutional rights to corporations thereby limiting |
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| 10 | 10 | | 1.10the right of the people to regulate corporations through federal, state, or local law; and |
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| 11 | 11 | | 1.11 WHEREAS, Supreme Court rulings on political spending in recent decades have undermined |
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| 12 | 12 | | 1.12the First Amendment, which was designed, even according to the Supreme Court in 1976, "to secure |
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| 13 | 13 | | 1.13the widest possible dissemination of information from diverse and antagonistic sources," and "to |
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| 14 | 14 | | 1.14assure the unfettered interchange of ideas for the bringing about of political and social changes |
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| 15 | 15 | | 1.15desired by the people." Supreme Court rulings that have equated money as speech have enabled |
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| 16 | 16 | | 1.16people, corporations, and other entities to spend virtually unlimited money in support of favored |
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| 17 | 17 | | 1.17candidates and interests, undermining the core First Amendment value of open and robust debate |
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| 18 | 18 | | 1.18in the political process and the opportunity for voters to hear speech from all candidates and all |
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| 19 | 19 | | 1.19perspectives; and |
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| 20 | 20 | | 1.20 WHEREAS, by giving artificial entities the constitutional rights of persons and treating |
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| 21 | 21 | | 1.21money as speech, the courts have undercut the rights of citizens to equal and meaningful participation |
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| 22 | 22 | | 1.22in the democratic process, and given corporations and other entities more power than people when |
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| 23 | 23 | | 1.23government is supposed to be "of the people, by the people, and for the people"; and |
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| 24 | 24 | | 1.24 WHEREAS, this undermines public confidence in the democratic process and democratic |
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| 25 | 25 | | 1.25institutions; and |
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| 26 | 26 | | 1 |
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| 27 | 27 | | 25-01596 as introduced01/06/25 REVISOR JFK/MI |
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| 28 | 28 | | SENATE |
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| 29 | 29 | | STATE OF MINNESOTA |
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| 30 | 30 | | S.F. No. 569NINETY-FOURTH SESSION |
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| 31 | 31 | | (SENATE AUTHORS: MARTY, McEwen, Johnson Stewart, Dibble and Kupec) |
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| 32 | 32 | | OFFICIAL STATUSD-PGDATE |
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| 33 | 33 | | Introduction and first reading01/23/2025 |
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| 34 | 34 | | Referred to Elections 2.1 WHEREAS, under Article V of the Constitution of the United States, the Congress, whenever |
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| 35 | 35 | | 2.2two-thirds of both Houses shall deem it necessary, shall propose amendments to the Constitution; |
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| 36 | 36 | | 2.3NOW, THEREFORE, |
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| 37 | 37 | | 2.4 BE IT RESOLVED by the Legislature of the State of Minnesota that it requests that Congress |
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| 38 | 38 | | 2.5propose an amendment to the Constitution that shall substantially read as follows: |
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| 39 | 39 | | 2.6 "(1) The rights protected by the Constitution of the United States are the rights of natural |
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| 40 | 40 | | 2.7persons only. |
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| 41 | 41 | | 2.8 (2) Any entity, including any organization or association of one or more persons, established |
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| 42 | 42 | | 2.9or allowed by the laws of any State, the United States, or any Foreign State shall have no rights |
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| 43 | 43 | | 2.10under this Constitution separate from the rights of its members, and is subject to regulation by the |
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| 44 | 44 | | 2.11people, through Federal, State, or local law through which the entity is granted rights and given |
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| 45 | 45 | | 2.12responsibilities. |
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| 46 | 46 | | 2.13 (3) Federal, State, and local government shall regulate, limit, or prohibit contributions and |
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| 47 | 47 | | 2.14expenditures, including a candidate's own contributions and expenditures, to ensure that all citizens, |
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| 48 | 48 | | 2.15regardless of their economic status, have access to the political process, and that no person gains, |
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| 49 | 49 | | 2.16as a result of their money, substantially more access or ability to influence in any way the election |
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| 50 | 50 | | 2.17of any candidate for public office or any ballot measure. |
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| 51 | 51 | | 2.18 (4) Federal, State, and local government shall require that any permissible contributions and |
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| 52 | 52 | | 2.19expenditures be publicly disclosed." |
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| 53 | 53 | | 2.20 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Secretary of State of the State of Minnesota is directed |
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| 54 | 54 | | 2.21to prepare copies of this resolution and transmit them to the Speaker and the Clerk of the United |
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| 55 | 55 | | 2.22States House of Representatives, the President and the Secretary of the United States Senate, the |
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| 56 | 56 | | 2.23United States Secretary of State, and Minnesota's Senators and Representatives in Congress. |
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| 57 | 57 | | 2 |
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| 58 | 58 | | 25-01596 as introduced01/06/25 REVISOR JFK/MI |
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