As Amended by Senate Committee
Session of 2000
Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 1635
By Senators Salisbury, Barone, Becker, Biggs, Bleeker,
Bond, Brownlee,
Clark,
Corbin, Donovan, Downey, Emert, Feleciano, Gilstrap, Gooch,
Goodwin,
Hardenburger, Harrington, Hensley, Huelskamp, Jones,
Jordan,
Kerr, Langworthy, Lawrence, Lee, Morris, Oleen, Petty, Prae-
ger, Pugh,
Ranson, Salmans, Steffes, Steineger, Stephens, Tyson, Um-
barger,
Vidricksen and Vratil
1-31
17 A
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION memorializing the Congress of the
18 United States to
propose submission to the states an amendment to
19 the Constitution of
the United States of America restricting the ability
20 of the federal
judiciary to mandate any state or subdivision thereof to
21 levy or increase
taxes.
22
23 WHEREAS,
Unfunded mandates by the United States Congress and
24 the executive branch of the federal
government increasingly strain already
25 tight state government budgets if the
states are to comply; and
26 WHEREAS, To
further compound this assault on state revenues, fed-
27 eral district courts, with the blessing of
the United States Supreme Court,
28 continue to order states to levy or
increase taxes to supplement their
29 budgets to comply with federal mandates;
and
30 WHEREAS, The
court's actions are an intrusion into a legitimate leg-
31 islative debate over state spending
priorities and not a response to a con-
32 stitutional directive; and
33 WHEREAS, The
Constitution of the United States of America does
34 not allow, nor do the states need, judicial
intervention requiring tax levies
35 or increases as solutions to potentially
serious problems; and
36 WHEREAS, This
usurpation of legislative authority begins a process
37 that over time could threaten the
fundamental concept of separation of
38 powers that is precious to the preservation
of the form of our government
39 embodied by the Constitution of the United
States of America; and
40 WHEREAS, Fifteen
states, including Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Col-
41 orado, Delaware, Louisiana, Massachusetts,
Michigan, Missouri, Nevada,
42 New York, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee
and Utah, have peti-
43 tioned the United States Congress to
propose an amendment to the Con-
2
1 stitution of the United States of
America that reads as follows: ``Neither
2 the Supreme Court nor any inferior
court of the United States shall have
3 the power to instruct or order a
state or political subdivision thereof, or
4 an official of such state or
political subdivision, to levy or increase taxes.'':
5 Now, therefore,
6 Be it
resolved by the Senate of the State of Kansas, the House of
Rep-
7 resentatives concurring
therein: That the Kansas Legislature respect-
8 fully requests and petitions the
Congress of the United States to propose
9 submission to the states for their
ratification an amendment to the Con-
10 stitution of the United States of America
to restrict the ability of the
11 United States Supreme Court or any inferior
court of the United States
12 to mandate any state or political
subdivision of the state to levy or increase
13 taxes; and
14 Be it
further resolved: That the Secretary of
State is hereby directed
15 to send enrolled copies of this
resolution to the President of the United
16 States, the President pro tempore
of the United States Senate, the
17 Speaker of the United States House
of Representatives and to each mem-
18 ber of the Kansas Congressional
Delegation.
19 Be it further
resolved: That the Secretary of State is hereby
di-
20 rected to send enrolled copies of
this resolution to the President of
21 the United States; the President pro
tempore of the United States
22 Senate; the Speaker of the United
States House of Representatives;
23 each member of the Kansas
Congressional Delegation; each member
24 of the United States Supreme Court
and the United States Court of
25 Appeals for the 10th Circuit and all
federal district court judges for
26 the district of Kansas; and each
member of the Kansas Supreme
27 Court and the Kansas Court of Appeals
and all Kansas district court
28 judges.
29
30