| Michigan Senate seeks federal 'balanced budget amendment' to U.S. Constitution |
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MLive.com
By Jonathan Oosting
 LANSING, MI - The Michigan Senate on Thursday adopted a joint resolution petitioning Congress to amend the U.S. Constitution by requiring a balanced budget each year.
The resolution, approved in a 26-12 party-line vote and now headed to the House, would align Michigan with at least 19 other states seeking to force the federal government to balance its budget. Thirty-four states are needed to convene a convention to amend the Constitution, and 38 would have to ratify any changes for them to take effect.
Sponsoring Sen. Mike Green, R-Mayville, said that states must force the issue because Congress has been unwilling or unable to reign in a federal deficit that has topped $17 trillion, equating to more than $54,000 per citizen.
"Before they even start kindergarten, my 2-1/2 year-old twin grandsons are stuck with six figures of national debt," Green said. "And by the way, those numbers are growing every day. The national debt is growing faster than our economy and is expected to skyrocket well over $21 trillion by 2017. Folks, that's a credit card that we're handing off to our kids and grandkids. And that's just crazy."
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