[Constitution, Jefferson's Manual, and the Rules of the House of Representatives, 111th Congress] [111st Congress] [House Document 110-162] [The United States Constitution] [Pages 81-83] [From the U.S. Government Printing Office, www.gpo.gov] ARTICLE V.
|Sec. 190. Amendments to the Constitution.||The Congress, whenever two thirds of both Houses shall deem it necessary, shall propose Amendments to this Constitution, or, on the Application of the Legislatures of two thirds of the several States, shall call a Convention for proposing Amendments, which, in either Case, shall be valid to all Intents and Purposes, as Part of this Constitution, when ratified by the Legislatures of three fourths of the several States, or by Conventions in three fourths thereof, as the one or the other Mode of Ratification may be proposed by the Congress; Provided that no Amendment which may be made prior to the Year One thousand eight hundred and eight shall in any Manner affect the first and fourth Clauses in the Ninth Section of the first Article; and that no State, without its Consent, shall be deprived of its equal Suffrage in the Senate.|
|Sec. 191. Form of and action on amendments to the Constitution.||Amendments to the Constitution are proposed in the form of joint resolutions, which have their several readings and are enrolled and signed by the presiding officers of the two Houses (V, 7029, footnote), but are not presented to the President for his approval (V, 7040; see discussion|
|Sec. 192. The twothirds vote on proposed amendments.||The vote required on a joint resolution proposing an amendment to the Constitution is two-thirds of those voting, a quorum being present, and not two-thirds of the entire membership (V, 7027, 7028; VIII, 3503). The majority required to pass a constitutional amendment, like the majority required to pass a bill over the President's veto (VII, 1111) and the majority required to adopt a motion to suspend the rules (Dec. 16, 1981, pp. 31850, 31851, 31855, 31856), is two-thirds of those Members voting either in the affirmative or negative, a quorum being present, and Members who only indicate that they are ``present'' are not counted in this computation (Nov. 15, 1983, p. 32685). The requirement of the two-thirds vote applies to the vote on final passage and not to amendments (V, 7031, 7032; VIII, 3504), or prior stages (V, 7029, 7030), but is required if the House votes on agreeing to Senate amendments (V, 7033, 7034; VIII, 3505), or on agreeing to a conference report (V, 7036). One House having, by a two-thirds vote, passed in amended form a proposed constitutional amendment from the other House, and then having by a majority vote receded from its amendment, the constitutional amendment was held not to be passed (V, 7035).|
|Sec. 193. Decisions of the Court.||Decisions of the Supreme Court of the United States: National Prohibition Cases, 253 U.S. 350 (1920); Hawke v. Smith, 253 U.S. 221 (1920); Dillon v. Gloss, 256 U.S. 368 (1921); Leser v. Garnett, 258 U.S. 130 (1922); Coleman v. Miller, 307 U.S. 433 (1939); Chandler v. Wise, 307 U.S. 474 (1939).|