SENATE FLOOR VERSION - HJR1056 SFLR Page 1 (Bold face denotes Committee Amendments) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 SENATE FLOOR VERSION April 13, 2022 ENGROSSED HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 1056 By: Lepak of the House and Standridge and Bullard of the Senate A Joint Resolution relating to an Article V Convention for propo sing amendments to the Unite d States Constitution and a gathering of the states in preparation for an Article V Convention; authorizing a delegation of commissioners fro m this state to attend and participate in gatherings of the states; stating purpose; providing for selection and composition of the delegation; providing that the delegation shall be bound by the rules established for the gathering of states; providing tha t the delegation to the convention of states shall also serve as commissioners to the A rticle V Convention for proposing amendments to the United States Constitution when called; providing for selection of alternates; prohibiting commissioners to the Artic le V Convention from voting for unauthorized amendments; providing for replacement of c ommissioners who violate the prohibition; providing for voting; requiring the taking of an oath; establishing an Article V Convention Committee; providing composition and duties; requiring commissioner to adhere to certain principles; and directing filing and distribution. WHEREAS, Article V of the Constitution of the United States provides that upon receipt of applications from two -thirds of the SENATE FLOOR VERSION - HJR1056 SFLR Page 2 (Bold face denotes Committee Amendments) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 legislatures of the several states, Congress shall call a convention of the states for proposing amendmen ts; and WHEREAS, the Oklahoma Legislature adopted SJR 4 in the 2nd Session of the 55th Oklahoma Legislature , and SJR 23 in the 1st Session of the 57th Oklahoma Legislature, that applied to the Congress of the United St ates "for the calling of a convention of the states limited to proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States requiring that in the absence of a national emergency the total of all federal appr opriations made by the Congress for any fiscal year may not exceed the total of all estimated federal revenues for that fiscal year, together with any related and appropriate fiscal restraints"; and WHEREAS, it appears that two -thirds of the states, inclu ding Oklahoma, soon will have applied for a co nvention to propose such an amendment adding to the Uni ted States Constitution a requirement that the federal government bal ance its budget; and WHEREAS, it has also been proposed by several states, including Oklahoma, that a convention be called for prop osing amendments to "impose fiscal restraints on the fed eral government, limit the power and jurisdiction of the federal gove rnment, and limit the terms of office for its officials and for members of Congress"; and WHEREAS, in its call Congress will be re quired to specify an initial time and place for the meeti ng of the Article V Convention for proposing amendments; and SENATE FLOOR VERSION - HJR1056 SFLR Page 3 (Bold face denotes Committee Amendments) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 WHEREAS, it is appropriate for the state legislatures to prepare for the Article V Conventi on and recommend to Congress an initial time and place to hold the convention; and WHEREAS, a gathering of the states called by a state legislature and consisting of members authorized by other state legislatures would be an effective way of considering a nd recommending solutions to common issues rel ated to an Article V Convention, including planning for and recommending rules and procedures for an Article V Convention, and recommending to Congress the initial date and location of an Article V Convention; and WHEREAS, a planning convention of the sev eral states in September in Phoenix, Arizona, was attended b y a delegation from Oklahoma as authorized by House Concurrent Resolu tion No. 1007 of the 1st Session of the 56th Oklahoma Legislature (2017). NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATI VES AND THE SENATE OF THE 2ND SESSION OF THE 5 8TH OKLAHOMA LEGISLATURE: THAT a delegation of commissioners selected as prov ided in this resolution shall be authorized to attend and participate in a gathering of states proposed by any state legislature for the purposes of developing rules and procedures for an Article V Convention for proposing amendments to the United States Constitution to require a balanced federal budget, or to impose fiscal restraints on the federal government, to limit the power and jurisdiction of the federal government and to limit the terms of SENATE FLOOR VERSION - HJR1056 SFLR Page 4 (Bold face denotes Committee Amendments) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 office for federal officials and members of Congress and for proposing an initial date and location for the meeting of the several states in an Art icle V Convention. THAT the delegation of co mmissioners shall be composed of seven members, three of whom shall be appointed by the Speaker of the Oklahoma House of Repr esentatives, three of whom shall be appointed by the President Pro Tempore of the Okla homa State Senate, and one of whom shall be appointed by agreement of both the Speaker of the Oklahoma House of Representatives and the President Pro Tempore of the Oklahoma State Senate. THAT two of the commissioners appointed by the Speaker of the Oklahoma House of Representatives shall be current members of the Oklahoma House of Representatives at the time of appointment, and two of the commissioners appointed by the Pr esident Pro Tempore of the Oklahoma State Senate shall be current members of the Okla homa State Senate at the time of appointment. The third commissioner appointed by the Speaker of the Oklahoma House of Representatives shall be a current or former member of the Oklahoma House of Representatives and the third commissioner appointed by the President Pro Tempore of the Oklahoma State Senate shall be a current or former member of the Oklahom a State Senate. THAT the commissioners shall be bound by the rules ad opted by the gathering of the states or provided for in the proposal for the Article V Convention. SENATE FLOOR VERSION - HJR1056 SFLR Page 5 (Bold face denotes Committee Amendments) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 THAT unless otherwise provide d by the Oklahoma Legislature, the commissioners provided f or in this resolution shall also serve as commissioners to the Articl e V Convention for proposing amendments to the United States Constitution when call ed and shall be bound by the rules adopted by the members of the Article V Convention. THAT if a commissioner is unable to participate in either the state gathering or an Ar ticle V Convention to propose amendments to the United States Constitution either permanently or temporarily, the appointing authority or authorities shall select an alternate, who shall be a current or former member of the appointing authority's legislati ve body, to serve for the time the commissioner is unable to serve. The alternate shall be bound by the same rules and procedures as the original commissioner. THAT no commissioner or al ternate from this state to an Article V Convention shall have the aut hority to vote to allow consideration of or vote to approve an unauthorized amend ment for ratification to the United States Co nstitution. THAT any commissioner or alternate casting a vote to allow consideration or approval of an unauthorized amendment shal l be immediately recalled by the appointing authority or authorities and be replaced by an alternate. THAT all voting in eit her a gathering of states or an Article V Convention shall be b y state with each state having one vote. SENATE FLOOR VERSION - HJR1056 SFLR Page 6 (Bold face denotes Committee Amendments) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 THAT commissioners and alte rnates shall take the following oath of office before accepting their appointme nt: "I do solemnly swear or affirm that to t he best of my abilities I will, as a commissioner (alternate com missioner) to a convention for proposing any amendment to the United States Constitution, uphold the Constitution and laws of the United States and the State of Oklahoma. I will abide by my s pecific instructions from the Legislature of the State of Oklahom a. I will not vote to allow consideration of or to approve any amend ment proposed for ratification to the United States Constitution that is unre lated to the subject of the approved call of the convention by Congress. I will vote only for convention rules that provide that each state have one equal vote and that a state or commissioner shall not be allowed to propose an amendment that is unrelated to the approved call of the convention. I a cknowledge that any violation of this oath may result in being rec alled by the Legislature of the State of Oklahoma or its authorized c ommittee." THAT an Article V Convention Committee shall be composed of three members, one appointed by the Speaker of th e Oklahoma House of Representatives, one appointed by the President Pro Tempore of the Oklahoma State Senate and one appointed jointly b y the Speaker and President Pro Tempore. A member of the Article V Convent ion Committee may not be a member of the dele gation. The duties of the SENATE FLOOR VERSION - HJR1056 SFLR Page 7 (Bold face denotes Committee Amendments) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 Article V Convention Committee and their appointing authority or authorities include: 1. Monitoring the dele gation to determine if it is following legislative instructions and obeyin g convention rules; 2. Advising the delegat ion on the Legislature's position on issues before the convention; 3. Disciplining any commissioner who violates the oath of office or instructions or is otherwise guilty of malfeasance or nonfeasance. Discip line may include recall from the convention, removal as a commissioner or demotion to the office of alternate commissioner; 4. Notifying the convention that a commissioner has been recalled, removed as a commissioner or demoted to the office of alternate commissioner; and 5. Replacing any recall ed commissioner. THAT commissioners shall vote only for Article V Conven tion rules consistent with the following principles: 1. The convention is convened under the authority reserved to the state legislature s of the several states by Article V of the Constitution of the United States; 2. The only participants at this conven tion are the several states represented by their respective delegatio ns duly selected in the manner that their respective legislatures h ave determined; SENATE FLOOR VERSION - HJR1056 SFLR Page 8 (Bold face denotes Committee Amendments) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 3. The scope of the convent ion's authority is defined by applications adopted by at least two -thirds of the legislatures of the several states, which authority is limited t o the subject of the approved call of the convention. The convent ion has no authority to propose or discuss an amendment on any other subject outside the approved call of the convention by Congress; 4. The convention shall provide for disciplining a comm issioner or delegation for exceeding the scope of the convention' s authority by raising subjects for discussio n or debate that lie outside the convention's authority; 5. The convention s hall not infringe on the respective state legislatures' authority to instruct, discipline, recall and replace commissioners; and 6. All voting at the convention or in a committ ee shall be by state with each state having one vote without apportionment or division. Each state legislature shall determine the internal voting and quorum rules for casting the vote of its delegation. THAT the Chief Clerk of the House of Representati ves, immediately after the p assage of this resolution, shall prepare and file one copy thereof with the Secretary of State and one copy with the Attorney General and transmit copies to the President and Secretary of the United States Senate and to the Spea ker and Clerk of the United States House of Representatives, to the members of th e Oklahoma Congressional Delegation, and to the presiding officers of SENATE FLOOR VERSION - HJR1056 SFLR Page 9 (Bold face denotes Committee Amendments) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 each of the legislative houses in the several states, r equesting their cooperation. COMMITTEE REPORT BY: COMMITTEE ON RULES April 13, 2022 - DO PASS