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Minutes for SCR1609 - Committee on Federal and State Affairs
Short Title
Making application to the Congress of the United States to call a convention of the states to establish term limits for members of Congress.
Minutes Content for Thu, Feb 29, 2024
Jason Long, Office of the Revisor of Statutes, gave an overview of the resolution. He stated SCR1609 is a concurrent resolution making application to the U.S. Congress to call a convention of states for the limited purpose of establishing term limits for members of the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate. (Attachment 1)
After a period of questions and answers, the Chairman called for proponent testimony.
Proponent Oral Testimony
Shanna Chamblee, Regional Director, U.S. Term Limits, spoke as a proponent of the resolution. She stated 87% of Americans are in support of term limits on Congress, and six states have passed the resolution to call for a convention of states solely on the issue of term limits. She said the resolution passed the Kansas House last session with bipartisan support, but did not meet the state constitutional requirement of two-thirds. She said as more states pass resolutions, and momentum builds, Congress will eventually preemptively propose term limits on themselves. (Attachment 2)
After a period of questions and answers, the Chairman called for opponent testimony.
Opponent Oral Testimony
John Axtell, Volunteer Coordinator, Kansas Campaign for Liberty, spoke as an opponent of the resolution. He stated limiting the terms of elected officials will not be effective in bringing change, because the establishment behind the former seat holder will bring the new member "in line", as quickly as possible. He also said there's a presumption that when we send delegates to the convention, we can constrain them, but that is not true. (Attachment 3)
Shawn Meehan, Founder, Guard the Constitution, spoke as an opponent of the resolution. He stated the founders of our nation already considered the analysis of term limits, and chose not to enact them, and they do not fix the problem. He said the limited purpose of this resolution cannot be trusted to stay limited because all petitions for an Article V convention can be combined, no matter the subject matter, for an unrestricted convention. (Attachment 4)
After a period of questions and answers, the Chairman closed the hearing on SCR1609.
