The Nebraska Legislature defeated a filibuster to support a call for a convention of states to modify the United States Constitution, making it the 17th state to do so in its history.
According to the Unicameral Update, state legislators approved a legislative resolution, LR14, on Friday by a vote of 32 to 11 in favor.
According to the National Constitution Center, Article V of the Constitution outlines convening a convention of states. It is intended to circumvent Congress to modify the Constitution, but it has never been utilized.
If a state requests that its Constitution be amended, the request may only be considered if approved by two-thirds of the state’s legislature. According to the Associated Press, the United States is halfway to obtaining the 34 states necessary for a convention due to Nebraska’s demand.
Like those of other states, Nebraska’s legislature proposes changes to the Constitution that would “impose budgetary limits on the federal government, limit the authority and jurisdiction of the federal government, and limit the terms of office of its officials and members of Congress.”
According to the paper, the resolution will be rescinded on February 1, 2027, when it becomes obsolete.
According to Nebraska state Sen. Steve Halloran (R), who sponsored the resolution, he pushed for it because “it is clear that Congress cannot control its runaway spending,” citing the significant increase in the national debt under presidents of both political parties as justification for his actions.
Halloran of Hastings said that the federal government had overstepped its constitutional bounds by assuming excessive power from the states over time.
According to the president, to prevent the federal government from dragging our nation into bankruptcy, the states must use their constitutional rights by proposing modifications via an Article V Convention of States.
As reported by the Omaha World-Herald, opponents of a proposal to restrict the convention’s scope in the Nebraska Legislature said that there was no way to do so.
They also provided no specifics on how the convention would be formed, such as whether each state would have one vote or if votes would be distributed according to population.
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According to the Omaha World-Herald, state Senator John McCollister of Omaha said that “the purpose for the conference is genuine and true.” “However, there are just too many questions that remain unanswered.”
The Associated Press reported that Wisconsin had become the 16th state to ask for a constitutional convention earlier this week. It had been the first state since Mississippi did so earlier this year.
According to the Convention of States Action, Georgia, Alaska, Florida, Alabama, Tennessee, Indiana, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Arizona, North Dakota, Texas, Missouri, Arkansas, and Utah are among the states that have approved a call for the convention. In addition, the resolution is being considered by 19 additional states.
According to the National Constitution Center, the only method amendments have been proposed to the states in the past has been via a proposal by Congress to the states under Article V of the Constitution.