This is a Complaint pleading for use in litigation of the title matter. Adapt this form to comply with your facts and circumstances, and with your specific state law. Not recommended for use by non-attorneys.
This is a Complaint pleading for use in litigation of the title matter. Adapt this form to comply with your facts and circumstances, and with your specific state law. Not recommended for use by non-attorneys.
An amendment may be proposed by a two-thirds vote of both Houses of Congress, or, if two-thirds of the States request one, by a convention called for that purpose. The amendment must then be ratified by three-fourths of the State legislatures, or three-fourths of conventions called in each State for ratification.
The Texas Constitution provides that the legislature, by a two-thirds vote of all members of each house, may propose amendments revising the constitution and that proposed amendments must then be submitted for approval to the qualified voters of the state.
The proposal for submission must be approved by a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each House, entered by yeas and nays on the journals.
The Texas Constitution lays the ground rules for government in Texas and can only be changed through a two-step process: The Texas Legislature first passes a joint resolution proposing the amendment. A majority of Texas voters then approve the amendment in a special election.
The amendment process is very difficult and time consuming: A proposed amendment must be passed by two-thirds of both houses of Congress, then ratified by the legislatures of three-fourths of the states. The ERA Amendment did not pass the necessary majority of state legislatures in the 1980s.
Most of the states (36 of 49) require legislatures to approve the amendments during one legislative session. An additional four states require amendments to be passed during one or two successive legislative sessions, depending on whether the amendment receives a simple majority or supermajority.
There are three ways to propose changes in State constitutions: constitutional convention, legislature, and initiative. Constitutional convention refers to new constitutions being written and older ones being revised, and this procedure is only used for revising in broader purpose.
The most common method of amending state constitutions is through popular initiatives. Popular initiatives have been most successful when the measure seeks to limit the power of legislators. State constitutional conventions have lost favor with both legislators and voters in recent years.