Article V balanced budget resolution working way through Legislature
 
By M.D. Kittle  /   March 6, 2017 / Wisconsin Watchdog
 
MADISON, Wis. - Wisconsin could become the 30th state to pass a resolution calling for a constitutional convention, on path to a federal balanced budget amendment.
 
CALLING ALL STATES: State Sen. Chris Kapenga, R-Delafield, says his bill calling for Wisconsin to join a convention of states to discuss a balanced budget amendment to the U.S. Constitution is moving forward.
Last week, state Sen. Chris Kapenga circulated for co-sponsorship a resolution requesting Congress call a convention under Article V of the U.S. Constitution.
 
Kapenga's bill calls for Wisconsin's involvement in a states convention to discuss an amendment requiring the federal government, like 49 of the states including Wisconsin, to operate under a balanced budget.
 
"We're excited about it. We've got a good list of cosponsors, so it looks pretty good for this resolution to go through," the Delafield Republican told Wisconsin Watchdog last week in an interview on the Vicki McKenna Show, on NewsTalk 1130 in Milwaukee.
 
Kapenga also is introducing a Delegate Act and a Rules Resolution. The Delegate Act places certain restrictions on Wisconsin's Delegates at the convention, while the Rules Resolution asserts that the Wisconsin Legislature prefers to convene a convention for proposing amendment language under a predesignated draft set of rules, according to a statement issued last week.
 
Wyoming late last month became the 29th state to pass an Article V resolution on a balanced budget amendment, according to the Balanced Budget Amendment Task Force. The number, however, includes Texas, which approved the measure decades ago, according to The Associated Press.
 
The Texas Senate last month approved a call for a convention to amend the U.S. Constitution to limit federal power through a suite of changes, including a balanced budget rule and term limits, the AP reported.
 
"Under Article V of the Constitution, adding an amendment requires a two-thirds congressional vote and then ratification by three-fourths of states, or 38. That brought the country all 27 constitutional amendments," AP reported.
 
"Because it's hard to imagine Congress making itself less powerful, a second option is two-thirds of the states, or 34, requesting a national convention to draft amendments. Any amendments would subsequently have to be ratified by at least 38 states."
 
Texas' current campaign for a convention under Republican leadership goes beyond a balanced budget amendment pushed by some Article 5 proponents.
 
Supporters of a pure balanced budget amendment argue that the federal debt, quickly approaching $20 trillion, is now the greatest single risk to the United States.
 
"When I bring this forward, we're not saying that everything else is a bad idea, but I have to deal with the political realities," Kapenga said. "This is what people can rally around and I can get the votes on."
 
"Now there are other things, like reducing federal powers in other areas. I fully agree with that and I think most people do," the senator said. "But because we haven't done this in the history of our nation before, people are a little more comfortable saying let's go through a single subject first to make sure we understand how it works and get some comfort around it."

The Balanced Budget Amendment Task Force Has the Solution!

Since 2009, Congress has borrowed more than $1 trillion each year, pushing the national debt from $10 to $19 trillion or nearly $160,000 per tax-payer, and it plans to borrow another trillion each year over the next decade - providing proof that Washington has no plans to change!
 
In order to prevent a severe economic meltdown, we must impose fiscal restraints on Congress via a federal balanced budget amendment (BBA).
 
Thomas Jefferson first called for a BBA in 1798 when he wrote, "I wish it were possible to obtain a single amendment ... taking from the Federal Government the power of borrowing."
 
Congress has flirted with the possibility of proposing a balanced budget amendment for over forty years, but has never found the courage to do it.

Only the States have the constitutional power to rid Congress of its deficit spending addiction via a BBA. In order to do so, 34 States must call a convention to propose an amendment and 38 States must ratify it.
 
29 states have already called for a convention to propose a balanced budget amendment! With your help we can reach 34 by mid 2017!

For more information on the Balanced Budget Amendment Task Force, visit us at www.BBA4USA.org, Phone:(855) 502-2248, and E-mail: [email protected].