[Deschler-Brown Precedents, Volume 17, Chapters 34 - 40]
[Ch. 34. Constitutional Amendments]
[D. Ratification]
[Â§ 9. Generally; Certification and Publication]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]


[Page 49-50]
 
                               CHAPTER 34
 
                       Constitutional Amendments
 
                            D. Ratification
 
Sec. 9. Generally; Certification and Publication


    Unlike a joint resolution of a legislative nature, a joint 
resolution proposing a constitutional amendment is not presented to the 
President under Article I, Sec. 7, clause 2 of the Constitution. 
Rather, such a joint resolution is submitted to the States for 
ratification.                          -------------------

Sec. 9.1 Constitutional amendments that have passed both Houses are not 
    presented to the President.

    On Feb. 25, 1869,(1) Speaker Schuyler Colfax, of 
Indiana, overruled a point of order that a proposed constitutional 
amendment would have to be presented to the President for approval. The 
ruling of the Chair was as follows:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 1. 41 Cong. Globe 1563, 40th Cong. 3d Sess.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

        The SPEAKER. The gentleman having stated the point of order the 
    Chair will decide it. It has been raised once before and decided by 
    the Chair. He will repeat the substantial points of that decision, 
    which he thinks will satisfy the gentleman that his point is not 
    well taken, although based by him upon the Constitution of the 
    United States. The question was raised distinctly in 1803 in the 
    Senate of the United States, on a motion that the then proposed 
    amendment to the Constitution should be submitted to the 
    President[.] . . .
        On a distinct vote of 23 to 7 the Senate voted that the 
    Committee on Enrolled Bills should not present the proposed 
    amendment. This is a decision made by one of the early Congresses. 
    But the Chair is not satisfied with having it rest on that; he is 
    disposed to present higher authority in overruling the point of 
    order.
        In 1798, a case(2) arose in the Supreme Court of the 
    United States depending upon the amendment to the Constitution 
    proposed in 1794, and the counsel, in argument before the court, 
    insisted that the amendment was not valid, not having been approved 
    by the President of the United States. . . .
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 2. Hollingsworth v. Virginia, 3 U.S. (3 Dall.) 378 (1798).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

        The Court, speaking through [Justice Chase] . . . observed:

            ``The negative of the President applies only to the 
        ordinary cases of legislation. He has nothing to do with the 
        proposition or adoption of amendments to the Constitution.''

        As the Supreme Court of the United States has settled this 
    question by a decision, the Chair does not need to read further 
    authorities. . . .
        The Chair, therefore, thinks that the question is settled, not 
    only by the practice of Congress but by a decision of the Supreme 
    Court of the United States, and therefore overrules the point of 
    order.

[[Page 50]]

Sec. 9.2 Enrolled joint resolutions proposing constitutional amendments 
    are submitted to the appropriate Federal official, designated by 
    law, for submission to the States.

    Responsibility for receiving from Congress enrolled joint 
resolutions by which Congress proposes to the States amendments to the 
Constitution and for transmitting the same to the States has been 
vested in different officials of the executive branch over time. 
Currently, that responsibility is vested in the Archivist of the United 
States.(1) The delivery of such measures to the appropriate 
official is reported to the House originating the amendment.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 1. See Sec.  10, infra, and 1 USC Sec. 106b (relating to amendments to 
        the Constitution), and related annotations.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    An example from 1947 is as follows:(2)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 2. See 93 Cong. Rec. 2482, 80th Cong. 1st Sess., Mar. 24, 1947.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

                        enrolled joint resolution signed

        Mr. [Joseph] LeCOMPTE [of Kentucky], from the Committee on 
    House Administration, reported that that committee had examined and 
    found truly enrolled a joint resolution of the House of the 
    following title, which was thereupon signed by the Speaker:

            H.J. Res. 27. Joint resolution proposing an amendment to 
        the Constitution of the United States relating to the terms of 
        office of the President.

               joint resolution filed with the secretary of state

        Mr. LeCompte, from the Committee on House Administration, 
    reported that that committee did on this day present to and file 
    with the Secretary of State of the United States a joint resolution 
    of the following title:

         H.J. Res. 27. Joint resolution proposing an amendment to the 
          Constitution of the United States relating to the terms of 
                            office of the President.

    Another instance occurred on June 17, 1960:(3)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 3. 106 Cong. Rec. 13101, 86th Cong. 2d Sess.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

                      enrolled joint resolution presented

        The Secretary of the Senate reported that on today, June 17, 
    1960, he presented to the Administrator, General Services 
    Administration, the enrolled joint resolution (S.J. Res. 39) 
    proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States 
    granting representation in the electoral college to the District of 
    Columbia.