Upper East Texas News

The Convention of States Project holds meetings in Texas Senate District 1 in Northeast Texas each month, rotating to various parts of the district on the second Saturday of each month. Enthusiasm for Convention of States is growing rapidly.

Have you heard of Convention of States? The Convention of States (COS) Project is a national effort to call a convention under Article V of the United States Constitution, restricted to proposing amendments that will (1) impose fiscal restraints on the federal government, (2) limit its power and jurisdiction, and (3) impose term limits on its officials and members of Congress.

Since the Project launched in 2013, it has grown to over 5.5 million supporters nationwide, with petition signers in every state house district across America, actively working in all fifty states. There are hundreds of constitutional scholars, state and federal senators and representatives, governors, state party leaders, men of faith, and historians who have endorsed Convention of States. You may be asking some of the following questions.

Why do we need a Convention of States? Bottom line, the federal government is spending this country into the ground, seizing power from the states, and taking freedom from the American people.

What is a Convention of States? It is a meeting initiated by the state legislatures under Article V of the Constitution for the express purpose of proposing amendments to the U.S. Constitution. Thirty-four state legislatures must pass a resolution applying for a convention of states dealing with the same subject matter. As of today, 15 states (Texas being one) have passed the COS resolution and 22 states are in play (passed in committee or one chamber).

Can Congress block a Convention of States? No. Once 34 states apply for a convention to propose amendments on the same issue, Article V of the Constitution requires Congress to name the place and the time for the convention.

If Article V says Congress “calls” the Convention, does that mean it controls the convention and chooses the delegates? No. Once 34 states apply, Congress has no discretion whether to call a convention and no control over the delegates. States are free to develop their own selection processes for choosing their delegates. Delegates discuss and propose amendment proposals that fit the topic framed by the 34 state resolutions that triggered the convention. Each state gets one vote. Thirty-eight states must ratify any proposed amendments sent back to the states by the convention.

How do we know that a Convention of States will work? Interstate conventions were common during the foundation of our nation; the basic procedures and rules for such conventions were uniform. We’re actually getting back to our roots.

Will we still support our candidates of choice and issues important to us? Yes, by all means. The American people need elected officials that represent our values under a government structure that holds them accountable. In addition to the Convention of States planks, all citizens are educated to be self-governing and support legislative issues important to them on State and Federal levels (i.e. 2nd amendment rights, pro-life, border security, to name a few).

Is Convention of States safe? Absolutely! Article V includes numerous safeguards that protect the U.S. Constitution and ensures that only widely approved amendments are adopted. The strongest safeguard? Any amendment proposed by the Convention goes through the exact same ratification process as amendments proposed by Congress. It must be approved by 38 states. That means if 13 states vote no, the answer is no. It doesn’t get much safer than that!

So what is the plan? The goal is to call for an Article V Convention to propose amendments on particular subjects, rather than a particular amendment. The mission is to grow the largest national grassroots army of self-governing citizens to implement an Article V convention. We now have over 5.5 million supporters and growing daily in 100% of legislative districts across America.

If you would like to learn more about Convention of States, check out the website at www.conventionofstates.com or contact Susan Hamilton, Regional Captain for Senate District 1 (Susan.Hamilton@cosaction.com).