83S10051 LB-D
By: Anderson H.C.R. No. 2
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
WHEREAS, The current Texas Constitution is this state's fifth
charter document since statehood, having been formed on the basis
of previous documents dating back to the days when Texas was an
independent republic; and
WHEREAS, The proud independence of Texas has carried forth
inimitably through each of its constitutions, granting the
government limited powers and giving broad control to voters,
thereby embodying the principle of "consent of the governed"; and
WHEREAS, First enacted in 1876, the Texas Constitution was
organized into 289 sections contained within 17 articles outlining
the scope, role, and limitations of governance in this state;
through proposed changes sent to Texas voters by the legislature,
sections within those same 17 articles have been added and deleted,
bringing our current document to 385 sections; and
WHEREAS, The Texas Constitution of 1876 has expanded through
the ratification of proposed amendments, with 474 amendments being
approved, while 179 have been defeated; and
WHEREAS, Today the Texas Constitution is the nation's
second-longest such document; sections have been placed in the
constitution with apparent disregard for the appropriate article
with which they belong; outdated bonding authority and other
archaic references remain bound in the document, despite previous
attempts to address nonsubstantive revisions to the Texas
Constitution, the most recent of which occurred in 1999; and
WHEREAS, The Texas Constitution of 1876 remains the supreme
law of the State of Texas, and a strong, independent statement
asserting the right of Texans to shape their government to their
view and their capacity to support it; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the 83rd Legislature of the State of Texas,
1st Called Session, hereby request the lieutenant governor and the
speaker of the house of representatives to create a joint interim
committee to study a nonsubstantive reorganization of the Texas
Constitution; and, be it further
RESOLVED, That the committee submit a full report, including
findings and recommendations, to the 84th Texas Legislature in
January 2015.