82R7794 KYF-F
By: Creighton H.J.R. No. 100
A JOINT RESOLUTION
applying to the Congress of the United States to call a convention
to propose an amendment to the United States Constitution to
require a balanced federal budget.
WHEREAS, The gravity of federal debt and federal obligations
was established early in American history, with deficits occurring
only in relation to extraordinary circumstances such as war; yet
for much of the 20th century and into the 21st, the United States
has operated on a budget deficit, including the 2010 budget year,
which surpassed an astounding $1.3 trillion, an annual deficit that
exceeded the entire gross state product of Texas; and
WHEREAS, The federal debt is greater than $14 trillion, a sum
that if shared equally by each person in America would be a burden
of over $45,000 per person, and yet the federal government
continues to accrue debt; and
WHEREAS, The higher the deficit becomes, the more the
government must pay in interest on the debt, and the use of deficit
spending by the federal government compounds the problem of the
national debt, which becomes the responsibility of future
generations of Americans without their consent; and
WHEREAS, Many states have previously requested that Congress
propose a constitutional amendment requiring a balanced budget, but
Congress has proven to be unresponsive; anticipating situations in
which Congress at times could fail to act, the drafters of the
United States Constitution had the foresight to adopt the language
in Article V that establishes that on application of the
legislatures of two-thirds of the several states, Congress shall
call a convention for proposing amendments; and
WHEREAS, A balanced budget amendment would require the
government not to spend more than it receives in revenue and compel
lawmakers to carefully consider choices about spending and taxes;
by encouraging spending control and discouraging deficit spending,
a balanced budget amendment will help put the nation on the path to
lasting prosperity; and
WHEREAS, The United States Constitution contains no
restriction on the power of the federal government to incur a budget
deficit; and
WHEREAS, Article V of the United States Constitution provides
that on application of the legislatures of two-thirds of the
several states Congress shall call a convention for proposing
amendments to the constitution; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the 82nd Texas Legislature apply to Congress
to call a convention under Article V of the United States
Constitution for the exclusive purpose of proposing an amendment to
the constitution providing that except in time of war or other
national emergency the total of all federal appropriations for a
fiscal year may not exceed the total of all estimated federal
revenue for that fiscal year; and, be it further
RESOLVED, That the 82nd Texas Legislature request Congress to
propose and submit to the states for ratification an amendment to
the constitution to provide for a balanced federal budget; and, be
it further
RESOLVED, That, unless rescinded by a succeeding
legislature, this application by the 82nd Texas Legislature
constitutes a continuing application in accordance with Article V
of the United States Constitution until at least two-thirds of the
legislatures of the several states have applied to Congress to call
a convention to propose an amendment to the constitution to provide
for a balanced federal budget, but if Congress proposes and submits
to the states for ratification a constitutional amendment identical
in subject matter to that contained in this resolution, this
application is no longer of any force; and, be it further
RESOLVED, That this application is rescinded in the event
that a convention to propose amendments to the United States
Constitution includes purposes other than providing for a balanced
federal budget; and, be it further
RESOLVED, That the Texas secretary of state forward official
copies of this resolution to the president of the United States, to
the speaker of the House of Representatives and the president of the
Senate of the Congress of the United States, and to all members of
the Texas delegation to Congress with the request that this
resolution be officially entered in the Congressional Record as an
application to Congress for a convention to propose an amendment to
the United States Constitution to provide for a balanced federal
budget; and, be it further
RESOLVED, That the Texas secretary of state forward official
copies of this resolution to the secretaries of state and to the
presiding officers of the legislatures of the several states with
the request that they join this state in applying to Congress for a
convention to propose an amendment to the United States
Constitution to provide for a balanced federal budget.