For immediate release
December 30, 2021
Contact: Aaron Dukette, U.S. Term Limits
Phone: (859) 779-0181
adukette@termlimits.com
Term Limits Convention Resolution Filed in Indiana
Washington, D.C. — The Indiana House filed a resolution applying to participate in a single-topic convention to propose a congressional term limits amendment. House Joint Resolution 2 (HJR2) is authored by Rep. Chris Jeter (district 88) and co-authored by House Majority Caucus Chair Rep. Greg Steurwald (district 40), and House Minority Whip Rep. Justin Moed (district 97). The authors are reinforced by a bipartisan slate of 24 members of the Indiana legislature who have signed the U.S. Term Limits resolution to co-sponsor the resolution. Senate Majority Caucus Chair Sen. Travis Holdman (district 19) hopes to be the prime senate sponsor upon passage by the house.
By using Article V of the U.S. Constitution, 34 state legislatures can team up for a convention to propose a congressional term limits amendment. The Term Limits Convention initiative is being spearheaded by the nonpartisan, grassroots nonprofit advocacy group U.S. Term Limits.
The President of U.S. Term Limits, Philip Blumel, commended the legislation’s bipartisan authors for working on such an important issue. Blumel said that “The people of Indiana are lucky to have public servants who see what is going on in Washington, D.C. and are willing to take action to fix it. By using Article V to term limit Congress, they can restore balance between states and the federal government as our Founders intended.”
Blumel also noted the high popularity of congressional term limits, which receive 87% support from Republicans, 83% support from Democrats, and 78% support from Independents nationwide, according to the most recent national poll by Scott Rasmussen.
In the 1990s, U.S. Term Limits assisted in successful campaigns to term limit 23 states’ congressional delegations by individual ballot measures. The Supreme Court ruled in the 1995 case U.S. Term Limits v. Thornton that these measures were unconstitutional, and that congressional term limits can only be imposed by constitutional amendment.
Once HJR2 passes both chambers of the state legislature this session, Indiana will put Washington, D.C. on notice that it intends to join other states in calling for a convention for the exclusive purpose of proposing term limits on the U.S. Congress. Once 34 state legislatures apply for the convention and approve a term limits amendment proposal, it must be ratified by 38 states to become part of the U.S. Constitution.
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US Term Limits is the largest grassroots advocacy group focused solely on implementing term limits at all levels of government, but particularly on the U.S. Congress. Find out more at termlimits.org.