[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 6 (Wednesday, January 10, 2018)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E25-E27]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
REPORT TO CONGRESS REGARDING THE ARIZONA BALANCED BUDGET AMENDMENT
PLANNING CONVENTION
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HON. PAUL A. GOSAR
of arizona
in the house of representatives
Wednesday, January 10, 2018
Mr. GOSAR. Mr. Speaker, it is with great satisfaction and pride that
I report the outcome of the first formally authorized national
Convention of State Legislatures to convene in 156 years. The ``Arizona
Balanced Budget Amendment (BBA) Planning Convention'' was held
September 12-15, 2017 in the chamber of the Arizona House of
Representatives. The purpose of the convention was to discuss and plan
for an eventual Article V--convention of states to propose a federal
balanced budget amendment to the Constitution.
The convention was formally called by the Arizona legislature's
passage of HCR2022 sponsored by the Arizona Speaker of the House, J.D.
Mesnard, on March 16, 2017. Pursuant to that resolution, the purpose of
the convention was to create a proposed set of rules for adoption by
and to govern a future single subject Article V convention to propose a
BBA. Additionally, delegates were instructed to address the logistics
involved in preparing for and participating in an upcoming Article V
BBA convention. This report is intended to inform the work of the
Arizona BBA Planning Convention and highlight areas of importance.
The Arizona BBA Planning Convention has created a roadmap for future
conventions to draw upon when they convene, and has provided a sense of
security to those who questioned the ability of State delegates to hold
a convention that would address solely its single purpose and nothing
more. It was an important endeavor that deserves proper cataloguing in
the appropriate annals to include the Congressional Record, the Library
of Congress, the National Archives, State Libraries, and the
participating State Legislatures' records. I submit this congressional
report and ask that you consider the work of the delegates as
legitimate and pertinent.
In keeping with the traditions of past national conventions, the
Arizona BBA Planning Convention has encouraged delegations to create a
report of the convention to their state. Georgia, Michigan and
Minnesota, among others, are states whose delegates have provided a
comprehensive assessment. We encourage them to submit their work to the
above archives as well, and hope to preserve this work and encourage
more national conventions on a variety of topics in the future.
Therefore, I include in the Record a report to Congress in regard to
Arizona balanced budget amendment:
It is with great confidence that I believe each member of
Congress possesses the same depth of gratitude for the work
of our
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Founding Fathers as those of us who attended this first fully
authorized convention of states since the Civil War. We are
all tasked with the grand responsibility to govern the
people. In doing so, we reach with one hand into the future
to focus on protecting the prosperity of our children's
children, and with our other hand we reach to the past to
learn and explore what happened so that we are better able to
protect and preserve the vision of those who built this great
Republic.
One such visionary was Col. George Mason, who insisted that
the States should also be able to propose amendments to the
Constitution. He imagined that there would come a time when
the Legislatures would be called upon to take appropriate
action, and that there ought to be a second mechanism to
update our founding document should the need arise. This
method has recently gained interest and popularity across the
country, and for several years State Legislators have been
examining the viability of such an exercise.
It can be legitimately argued that the time George Mason
envisioned is before us. The momentum is increasing and the
reality of an Article V Convention of States is becoming ever
apparent. Greater Legislators than I were aware of the need
to prepare the way in advance, and it has been an honor to
join them in that effort. We hope to work together with
Congress to restore fiscal accountability through the
requirement of a balanced budget, and preparing a proposed
set of rules for the Balanced Budget Amendment Convention is
our gift to future delegates to make that process easier.
We present this report to you in hopes that you will
consider the work that has been accomplished thus far. The
Phoenix Correspondence Commission was created as an outgrowth
of this convention, and as a founding member of that
Commission, I look forward to beginning the conversation
needed to prepare for the much-anticipated Article V
Convention of States.
``We face the most predictable economic crisis in
history.'' That was the conclusion of Erskine Bowles, co-
chair of the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and
Reform (Simpson-Bowles Commission), to the U.S. Senate Budget
Committee on March 8, 2011. At the time of this ominous
warning to the nation in 2011, the national debt had just
eclipsed $14 trillion. It took 206 years for our nation to
amass $1 trillion in debt; it has increased by over $6
trillion in the just the last seven years. Had Congress acted
on the commission's proposal, it would have reduced the
national debt by $4 trillion over a decade and put Social
Security solidly on the road to solvency. Congress ignored
this unequivocal national wake up call. ``The fiscal path we
are on today is simply not sustainable,'' Bowles said. ``This
debt and these deficits that we are incurring on an annual
basis are like a cancer and they are going to truly destroy
this country from within unless we have the common sense to
do something about it.'' States are exercising the common
sense to do something about it. Acting under Article V of the
U.S. Constitution, 28 of the required 34 States have now
called for a convention of states to propose a balanced
budget amendment to the Constitution in order to avert this
``most predictable economic crisis in history.'' In September
of 2016, at the call of the Arizona Legislature, 19 States
convened in their official capacity to propose rules for
conducting an Article V balanced budget convention of states.
We call upon Congress, the States, and people of good faith
everywhere to extend their utmost efforts to support this
constitutional remedy for curing the national fiscal
``cancer'' before the exponentially increasing national debt
``destroy[s] this nation from within.''
The Phoenix convention was instructive in preparing for a
future Article V BBA convention. We learned much about the
process of communicating with the state legislatures and the
need to continue to educate them on the logistics of a
convention. We were encouraged from the manner in which the
delegates conducted themselves that any future convention,
like Phoenix, will stick to its task and never ``run away''
as Article V naysayers assert. The nature of delegate
appointment process and the rules, in addition to numerous
other safeguards, simply won't allow for it.
As a result of the Arizona convention, including the
establishment of the Phoenix Correspondence Commission, the
states as a group are positioned to assist Congress in
counting the number of live Article V BBA applications in
place, in assisting with identifying a time and location for
a future BBA convention to be held, in addressing any legal
issues which may arise concerning the calling of such a
convention, in preparing language for an appropriate
resolution to be passed by Congress fulfilling its mandatory
obligation to call the convention when the threshold number
of states have applied and to otherwise assist Congress in
performing its duties pursuant to Article V of the United
States Constitution.
At present, twenty-eight (28) states have passed (and not
rescinded) Article V applications calling for a convention to
propose a balanced budget amendment. As we approach the two-
thirds threshold triggering the call of a convention, we
stand ready to work cooperatively with Congress in moving
forward with this historic endeavor.
I authored the resolution calling for a Balanced Budget
Amendment Planning Convention in Phoenix because I love this
country. I believe it to be the greatest nation that has ever
existed, but I am greatly concerned that our country is not
on a sustainable fiscal path. Contrary to what some would
like us to believe, the responsibility to get our fiscal
house in order does not just rest with Congress, nor is
Congress the end-all-be-all for governing this country.
In fact, a critical responsibility of the states in this
great Union is in helping to keep our federal government in
check. That value of Federalism was a bedrock principle that
our Founding Fathers captured in the design of government put
forth in the Constitution of the United States, over two
centuries ago. I believe it is time for the states to start
flexing our constitutional muscles, just as our Founding
Fathers envisioned. And one vital tool for facilitating that,
was instilled by our Founders in Article V of the
Constitution. That is, the power of the states to propose
amendments, especially as a means of constraining the power
of the federal government. In 1798, then Vice President
Thomas Jefferson, in correspondence with a state legislator,
wrote, ``I wish it were possible to obtain a single amendment
to our Constitution. I would be willing to depend on that
alone for the reduction of the administration of our
government; I mean an additional article taking from the
Federal Government the power of borrowing.'' While it might
be more than two centuries late, I hope that soon we will be
able to give President Jefferson his wish--for our own sake
All fifty state legislatures were invited to attend the
Arizona BBA Planning Convention. The Arizona planning
committee actively sought a delegation from each state and
was fully inclusive in their efforts to host a bi-partisan
event. HCR2022 specifically required that the delegations be
chosen by resolution of the legislature or by formal joint
appointment by the leadership in both houses of their
respective state legislatures. This was to ensure that the
delegation was authorized to speak and vote on behalf of
their state Legislature. Delegates who were not listed on
their State's approved delegation list were not seated. The
meeting consisted of officially approved delegates from 19
state legislatures, with delegates from three additional
states observing. Committees established to fulfill the
requirements of HCR2022 were as follows: The Rules Drafting
Committee; The Planning Committee, which was divided into two
sub-committees: A Subcommittee on Ethics which was formed to
address the impact and management of outside influence on the
convention process and A Subcommittee on Delegates and
Correspondence to assist in planning for a future BBA
convention. A synopsis of the product of the Rules Committee
is as follows: Produced a model set of rules for an Article V
convention to propose a BBA. Some components of the set of
model rules were as follows: The Article V convention shall
be limited in scope to the balanced budget amendment.
Governing rules provide for appropriate order and conduct
during a BBA Article V convention which include, but are not
limited to, the following: Duties of the officers. A quorum
is a majority of the states in attendance. Each state shall
be given only one vote, as has been the precedent in all
preceding state conventions. Order of business and names of
committees. The cost of the convention to be divided equally
among the states in attendance.
A synopsis of the Planning Committee is as follows:
Recommendations for protecting the integrity of an Article V
Convention. Non-delegates should not be permitted on the
Chamber Floor, Members' Lounge, etc., and should only be
permitted in public areas. Any interaction of Convention
leadership and staff with non-delegate individuals or
organizations that pertains to Convention business or process
should be strictly prohibited, with the exception of the
press. Convention communications should only include official
activities. States should consider extending their ethics
restrictions (i.e. lobbying, food, gifts, etc.) to delegates
serving within a convention, in addition to any ethics
standards imposed by Convention rules. Sub-Committee on
Delegates and Correspondence reported the following: In
anticipation of the call for a convention for proposing
amendments, states are strongly encouraged to enact delegate
selection legislation at the earliest opportunity. The
Phoenix Correspondence Commission (PCC) was created. The PCC
will consist of commissioners appointed by the states to
carry out the following functions to organize a convention
for proposing amendments: Creating a single point of contact
to act as a liaison with Congress. Track all applications for
a convention for proposing amendments. Create a process to
suggest to Congress a time and place for a convention for
proposing amendments. Provide a process for legal
representation, if necessary. Perform tasks as needed to
organize the convention. Each state is strongly encouraged to
appoint a commissioner to the PCC to communicate on all
matters associated with a convention for proposing amendments
with any or all of the following: State Legislators, United
States Citizens, Convention Organizers, State Congressional
Delegations, and Congress. The members of the PCC will be
initially comprised of one member appointed from each
delegation present at this Arizona Balanced Budget Amendment
Planning Convention, until such time as each commissioner's
state formally appoints a commissioner to the PCC or declines
to do the same.
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