Bill Text: NJ SCR149 | 2010-2011 | Regular Session | Introduced

---

Bill Title: Applies to Congress for the calling of a Constitutional convention to require a balanced federal budget.

Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Republican 1)

Status: (Failed) 2011-04-11 - Withdrawn from Consideration [SCR149 Detail]

Download: New_Jersey-2010-SCR149-Introduced.html

---

SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION No. 149

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

214th LEGISLATURE

 

INTRODUCED MARCH 10, 2011

 

 

Sponsored by:

Senator  MICHAEL J. DOHERTY

District 23 (Warren and Hunterdon)

 

 

 

 

SYNOPSIS

     Applies to Congress for the calling of a Constitutional convention to require a balanced federal budget.

 

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

     As introduced.

  

A Concurrent Resolution applying to the Congress for the calling of a convention for the sole purpose of proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States requiring a balanced federal budget.

 

Whereas, Fiscal discipline and economic integrity have been core principles of American governance; and

Whereas, The American people have historically demanded the same prudent, responsible, and intellectually honest financial behavior from their elected representatives as ultimately compels individual behavior; and

Whereas, It is the firm conviction of the people of New Jersey that it is wrong to fund the prosperity of the present generation by robbing future Americans of their own; and

Whereas, Mortgaging the birthright of our children and grandchildren is a dangerous departure from traditional American values that threatens to permanently undermine the strength of our nation; and

Whereas, Our national debt is increasingly owed to the governments of foreign nations, not to the citizens of the United States, thus transferring our wealth to others and making it unavailable to supply the means for America's future growth and prosperity; and

Whereas, This generation will bequeath to its children one of the world's most indebted industrial democracies; and

Whereas, High federal deficits cause increasingly high payments for debt interest, make future borrowing more costly, reduce investment activity, and thus reduce the size of the future economy; and

Whereas, The federal government has for too long relied on revenue increases and borrowing against our future rather than on prudent spending decisions within the limit of current revenues; and

Whereas, Lasting control of this nation's budget deficit can be achieved only by addressing the spending habits of our federal government, not by increasing the tax burden under which our citizens already labor; and

Whereas, Article V of the Constitution of the United States makes provision for amending the Constitution on the application of two-thirds of the several states, calling a convention for proposing amendments that shall be valid to all intents and purposes if ratified by the legislatures of three-fourths of the several states, or by conventions in three-fourths thereof, as the one or the other mode of ratification may be proposed by Congress; now, therefore,

 

     Be It Resolved by the Senate of the State of New Jersey (the General Assembly concurring):

 

      1.   The Legislature of the State of New Jersey makes application to the Congress of the United States, pursuant to Article V of the Constitution of the United States, to call an Article V amendment convention for the sole, specific and exclusive purpose of proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States to achieve and maintain a balanced federal budget.

 

      2.   An amendment to the Constitution of the United States to be proposed by a convention for submission to the states for ratification shall:

      a.    Require that federal outlays for a budget period not exceed the receipts for the same period of time;

      b.   Impose spending limits on the federal government by setting a

base budget year and allowing spending to increase only on account of

economic or demographic criteria established in the amendment;

      c.    Prohibit imposition of new taxes or an increase in existing taxes or existing tax rates;

      d.   Impose future debt or borrowing limits;

      e.    Allow for provisions of the amendment to take effect upon ratification or no more than four years thereafter;

      f.    Allow Congress to enforce and implement the provisions of the amendment by appropriate legislation, and to authorize competent estimates of revenues, outlays, and economic or demographic criteria;

      g.    Allow flexibility in permitting federal balanced-budget requirements to be waived in any fiscal year in which a declaration of war is in effect, or any fiscal year in which the United States is engaged in military conflict which causes an imminent and serious military threat to national security and is so declared by a joint resolution, adopted by a majority of the duly chosen and sworn members of each House of Congress, which becomes law; and

      h.    Consider a prohibition against federal mandates on states to impose taxes or fees, or any other requirement, unless all costs of compliance are fully and contemporaneously funded.

      i.     Set extraordinary vote requirements of at least two-thirds for deviations from the limits listed in this section if adopted;

 

      3.   If Congress adopts, before 90 days after the legislatures of two-thirds of the states have made application for a convention as described in section 1 of this resolution, an amendment to the Constitution of the United Stated containing provisions similar in subject matter to that contained in section 2 of this resolution, then this application for a convention shall no longer be of any force or effect.

 

      4.   With the exception noted in section 3, the application contained in section 1 constitutes a continuing application in accordance with Article V of the Constitution of the United States until at least two-thirds of the legislatures of the several states have made application for a convention to propose an amendment similar in subject matter to that contained in section 2 of this resolution.

      5.   This application for a limited constitutional convention shall be automatically rescinded if the Supreme Court of the United Stated holds that the Congress of the United States cannot call a constitutional convention limited solely and exclusively to the subject requested by two-thirds of the several states.

 

      6.   This application shall be deemed null and void, rescinded, and of no effect in the event that a convention called pursuant to this resolution is not limited to the specific and exclusive purpose set forth in sections 1 and 2 of this resolution.

 

      7.   Duly authenticated copies of this resolution, signed by the Speaker of the General Assembly and the President of the Senate and attested by the Clerk of the General Assembly and the Secretary of the Senate, shall be transmitted to the President of the United States Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, each member of Congress elected thereto from New Jersey and the presiding officer of each house of each state legislature in the United States.

 

 

STATEMENT

 

      This resolution is intended to serve as an application to the United States Congress, pursuant to Article V of the Constitution of the United States, for the calling a convention for the sole purpose of proposing an amendment to the Constitution requiring a balanced federal budget.  Such an amendment is necessary to restore fiscal discipline and economic integrity to our national governance.

     Specifically, this resolution urges the Congress to consider a Constitutional balanced budget amendment which: 1) Requires that federal outlays for a budget period not exceed the receipts for the same period of time; 2) Imposes spending limits on the federal government by setting a base budget year and allowing spending to increase only on account of economic or demographic criteria established in the amendment; 3) Prohibits imposition of new taxes or an increase in existing taxes or existing tax rates; 4) Imposes future debt or borrowing limits; 5) Sets extraordinary vote requirements of at least two-thirds for deviations from the limits; 6) Allows for provisions of the amendment to take effect upon ratification or no more than four years thereafter; 7) Allows Congress to enforce and implement the provisions of the amendment by appropriate legislation, and to authorize competent estimates of revenues, outlays, and economic or demographic criteria; 8) Allows flexibility in permitting federal balanced-budget requirements to be waived in any fiscal year in which a declaration of war is in effect, or any fiscal year in which the United States is engaged in military conflict which causes an imminent and serious military threat to national security and is so declared by a joint resolution, adopted by a majority of the duly chosen and sworn members of each House of Congress, which becomes law; and 9) Considers a prohibition against federal mandates on states to impose taxes or fees, or any other requirement, unless all costs of compliance are fully and contemporaneously funded.

     Article V of the United States Constitution provides that on the application of the Legislatures of two-thirds of the States, Congress shall call a convention for proposing amendments to the Constitution which will become valid when ratified by the Legislatures of three-fourths of the states or by conventions of three-fourths of the states.