If There's Another Constitutional Convention, State Lawmakers Are Ready

For decades, but increasingly in recent years, state lawmakers have been pushing for a convention to add amendments to the U.S. Constitution, only to run into opposition from groups warning that such a meeting could devolve into the wholesale rewriting of the nation's charter.

This week, an estimated 100 bipartisan legislators from 30 states will be in Utah, attempting to put in rules and procedures they hope could act to keep such a constitutional convention on track, should legislatures from 34 states demand such a gathering.

"We're not focused on a specific amendment, so we're not advocating for a balanced budget or any other amendment that is being proposed out there in the world of the Internet, and there are many of them," said Utah Senate President Wayne Niederhauser, R-Sandy, a member of the Assembly of State Legislatures' executive committee. "What we're focused on is establishing the rules and procedures under which a convention to propose amendments to the Constitution could be held."

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