Texas 2015 - 84th Regular

Texas House Bill HJR78 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New	Differences
1	1	84R619 TJB-D
2	2	By: Workman, Flynn, Frank, et al. H.J.R. No. 78
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5	5	A JOINT RESOLUTION
6	6	applying to the Congress of the United States to call a convention
7	7	under Article V of the United States Constitution for the limited
8	8	purpose of proposing an amendment to the constitution to impose
9	9	fiscal restraints on the federal government.
10	10	WHEREAS, The drafters of the United States Constitution
11	11	empowered state legislatures to be guardians of liberty against
12	12	abuses of power by the federal government; and
13	13	WHEREAS, The federal government has abused its power by
14	14	creating a crushing national debt through improper and imprudent
15	15	spending; and
16	16	WHEREAS, The federal government has abused its power by
17	17	invading the legitimate role of the states through the manipulative
18	18	process of federal mandates that are to a great extent unfunded; and
19	19	WHEREAS, The federal government has ceased to abide by a
20	20	proper interpretation of the United States Constitution; and
21	21	WHEREAS, In 1977 the 65th Texas Legislature submitted to the
22	22	federal government H.C.R. No. 31 requesting Congress to prepare and
23	23	submit to the several states an amendment to the United States
24	24	Constitution providing for a federal balanced budget, or
25	25	alternatively requesting Congress to call a constitutional
26	26	convention for the purpose of proposing such an amendment; and
27	27	WHEREAS, Congress has not acted to amend the United States
28	28	Constitution to provide for a federal balanced budget or to
29	29	otherwise impose fiscal restraints on the federal government; and
30	30	WHEREAS, It is the solemn duty of state legislatures to
31	31	protect the liberty of the people and of future generations by
32	32	proposing amendments to the United States Constitution that place
33	33	clear restraints on federal power; and
34	34	WHEREAS, Article V of the United States Constitution
35	35	authorizes the several state legislatures to restrict the power of
36	36	the federal government through the amendment process; and
37	37	WHEREAS, Article V of the United States Constitution provides
38	38	that on application of the legislatures of two-thirds of the
39	39	several states Congress shall call a convention for the purpose of
40	40	proposing amendments to the constitution; now, therefore, be it
41	41	RESOLVED, That the 84th Texas Legislature hereby applies to
42	42	Congress to call a convention under Article V of the United States
43	43	Constitution for the limited purpose of proposing an amendment to
44	44	the constitution to impose fiscal restraints on the federal
45	45	government; and, be it further
46	46	RESOLVED, That, unless rescinded by a succeeding
47	47	legislature, this application by the 84th Texas Legislature
48	48	constitutes a continuing application in accordance with Article V
49	49	of the United States Constitution until at least two-thirds of the
50	50	legislatures of the several states have applied to Congress to call
51	51	a convention for the limited purpose of proposing an amendment to
52	52	the constitution to impose fiscal restraints on the federal
53	53	government; and, be it further
54	54	RESOLVED, That the Texas secretary of state forward official
55	55	copies of this resolution to the president of the United States, to
56	56	the speaker of the House of Representatives and the president of the
57	57	Senate of the Congress of the United States, and to all members of
58	58	the Texas delegation to Congress with the request that this
59	59	resolution be officially entered in the Congressional Record as an
60	60	application to Congress for a convention under Article V of the
61	61	United States Constitution for the limited purpose of proposing an
62	62	amendment to the constitution to impose fiscal restraints on the
63	63	federal government; and, be it further
64	64	RESOLVED, That the Texas secretary of state forward official
65	65	copies of this resolution to the secretaries of state and to the
66	66	presiding officers of the legislatures of the several states with
67	67	the request that they join this state in applying to Congress for a
68	68	convention under Article V of the United States Constitution for
69	69	the limited purpose of proposing an amendment to the constitution
70	70	to impose fiscal restraints on the federal government.