Amending the US Constitution – Methods For Amending the US Constitution

To Propose Amendments

• Two-thirds of both houses of Congress vote to propose an amendment, or

• Two-thirds of the state legislatures ask Congress to call a national convention to propose amendments. (This method has never been used.)

To Ratify Amendments

• Three-fourths of the state legislatures approve it, or

• Ratifying conventions in three-fourths of the states approve it. This method has been used only once -- to ratify the 21st Amendment -- repealing Prohibition.

The Supreme Court has stated that ratification must be within "some reasonable time after the proposal." Beginning with the 18th amendment, it has been customary for Congress to set a definite period for ratification. In the case of the 18th, 20th, 21st, and 22nd amendments, the period set was 7 years, but there has been no determination as to just how long a "reasonable time" might extend.

Of the thousands of proposals that have been made to amend the Constitution, only 33 obtained the necessary two-thirds vote in Congress. Of those 33, only 27 amendments (including the Bill of Rights) have been ratified.

via usgovinfo.about.com

Above is what I found when reading about Amending the Constitution I would suggest to anyone wanting to start a process that you urge your congressmen to introduce the bill because if you were to start at with the state legislatures they would be free introduce ANY proposals that strikes their fancy. I don't trust my elected "leaders" that much.

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