EVER SEEN OR READ THIS SIMPLE TO READ DOCUMENT ?
We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish
Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote
the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our
Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of
America.
Article. I.
Section 1.
All legislative Powers
herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States, which shall
consist of a Senate and House of Representatives.
Section. 2.
Clause 1: The House of
Representatives shall be composed of Members chosen every second Year by the
People of the several States, and the Electors in each State shall have the
Qualifications requisite for Electors of the most numerous Branch of the State
Legislature.
Clause 2: No Person shall
be a Representative who shall not have attained to the Age of twenty five
Years, and been seven Years a Citizen of the United States, and who shall not,
when elected, be an Inhabitant of that State in which he shall be chosen.
Clause 3: Representatives
and direct Taxes shall be apportioned among the several States which may be
included within this Union, according to their respective Numbers, which shall
be determined by adding to the whole Number of free Persons, including those
bound to Service for a Term of Years, and excluding Indians not taxed, three
fifths of all other Persons. (See Note 2)
The actual Enumeration shall
be made within three Years after the first Meeting of the Congress of
the United States, and within every subsequent Term of ten Years, in
such Manner as they shall
by Law direct. The Number of Representatives shall not exceed one for
every
thirty Thousand, but each State shall have at Least one Representative;
and
until such enumeration shall be made, the State of New Hampshire shall
be
entitled to chuse three, Massachusetts eight, Rhode-Island and
Providence
Plantations one, Connecticut five, New-York six, New Jersey four,
Pennsylvania
eight, Delaware one, Maryland six, Virginia ten, North Carolina five,
South
Carolina five, and Georgia three.
Clause 4: When vacancies
happen in the Representation from any State, the Executive Authority thereof
shall issue Writs of Election to fill such Vacancies.
Clause 5: The House of
Representatives shall chuse their Speaker and other Officers; and shall have
the sole Power of Impeachment.
Section. 3.
Clause 1: The Senate of
the United States shall be composed of two Senators from each State, chosen by
the Legislature thereof, (See Note 3) for six Years; and each Senator
shall have one Vote.
Clause 2: Immediately
after they shall be assembled in Consequence of the first Election, they shall
be divided as equally as may be into three Classes. The Seats of the Senators
of the first Class shall be vacated at the Expiration of the second Year, of
the second Class at the Expiration of the fourth Year, and of the third Class
at the Expiration of the sixth Year, so that one third may be chosen every
second Year; and if Vacancies happen by Resignation, or otherwise, during the
Recess of the Legislature of any State, the Executive thereof may make
temporary Appointments until the next Meeting of the Legislature, which shall
then fill such Vacancies. (See Note 4)
Clause 3: No Person shall
be a Senator who shall not have attained to the Age of thirty Years, and been
nine Years a Citizen of the United States, and who shall not, when elected, be
an Inhabitant of that State for which he shall be chosen.
Clause 4: The Vice
President of the United States shall be President of the Senate, but shall have
no Vote, unless they be equally divided.
Clause 5: The Senate
shall chuse their other Officers, and also a President pro tempore, in the
Absence of the Vice President, or when he shall exercise the Office of
President of the United States.
Clause 6: The
Senate
shall have the sole Power to try all Impeachments. When sitting for
that
Purpose, they shall be on Oath or Affirmation. When the President of
the United States is tried, the Chief Justice shall preside: And no
Person shall be convicted
without the Concurrence of two thirds of the Members present.
Clause 7: Judgment in
Cases of Impeachment shall not extend further than to removal from Office, and
disqualification to hold and enjoy any Office of honor, Trust or Profit under
the United States: but the Party convicted shall nevertheless be liable and
subject to Indictment, Trial, Judgment and Punishment, according to Law.
Section. 4.
Clause 1: The Times,
Places and Manner of holding Elections for Senators and Representatives, shall
be prescribed in each State by the Legislature thereof; but the Congress may at
any time by Law make or alter such Regulations, except as to the Places of
chusing Senators.
Clause 2: The Congress
shall assemble at least once in every Year, and such Meeting shall be on the
first Monday in December, (See Note 5) unless they shall by Law appoint
a different Day.
Section. 5.
Clause 1: Each House
shall be the Judge of the Elections, Returns and Qualifications of its own
Members, and a Majority of each shall constitute a Quorum to do Business; but a
smaller Number may adjourn from day to day, and may be authorized to compel the
Attendance of absent Members, in such Manner, and under such Penalties as each
House may provide.
Clause 2: Each House may
determine the Rules of its Proceedings, punish its Members for disorderly
Behaviour, and, with the Concurrence of two thirds, expel a Member.
Clause 3: Each House
shall keep a Journal of its Proceedings, and from time to time publish the
same, excepting such Parts as may in their Judgment require Secrecy; and the
Yeas and Nays of the Members of either House on any question shall, at the
Desire of one fifth of those Present, be entered on the Journal.
Clause 4: Neither House,
during the Session of Congress, shall, without the Consent of the other,
adjourn for more than three days, nor to any other Place than that in which the
two Houses shall be sitting.
Section. 6.
Clause 1: The Senators
and Representatives shall receive a Compensation for their Services, to be
ascertained by Law, and paid out of the Treasury of the United States. (See Note 6) They shall in all Cases, except Treason, Felony and
Breach of the Peace, beprivileged from Arrest during their Attendance at the
Session of their respective Houses, and in going to and returning from the
same; and for any Speech or Debate in either House, they shall not be
questioned in any other Place.
Clause 2: No Senator or
Representative shall, during the Time for which he was elected, be appointed to
any civil Office under the Authority of the United States, which shall have
been created, or the Emoluments whereof shall have been encreased during such
time; and no Person holding any Office under the United States, shall be a
Member of either House during his Continuance in Office.
Section. 7.
Clause 1: All Bills for
raising Revenue shall originate in the House of Representatives; but the Senate
may propose or concur with Amendments as on other Bills.
Clause 2: Every Bill
which shall have passed the House of Representatives and the Senate, shall,
before it become a Law, be presented to the President of the United States; If
he approve he shall sign it, but if not he shall return it, with his Objections
to that House in which it shall have originated, who shall enter the Objections
at large on their Journal, and proceed to reconsider it. If after such
Reconsideration two thirds of that House shall agree to pass the Bill, it shall
be sent, together with the Objections, to the other House, by which it shall
likewise be reconsidered, and if approved by two thirds of that House, it shall
become a Law. But in all such Cases the Votes of both Houses shall be
determined by yeas and Nays, and the Names of the Persons voting for and
against the Bill shall be entered on the Journal of each House respectively. If
any Bill shall not be returned by the President within ten Days (Sundays
excepted) after it shall have been presented to him, the Same shall be a Law,
in like Manner as if he had signed it, unless the Congress by their Adjournment
prevent its Return, in which Case it shall not be a Law.
Clause 3: Every Order,
Resolution, or Vote to which the Concurrence of the Senate and House of
Representatives may be necessary (except on a question of Adjournment) shall be
presented to the President of the United States; and before the Same shall take
Effect, shall be approved by him, or being disapproved by him, shall be
repassed by two thirds of the Senate and House of Representatives, according to
the Rules and Limitations prescribed in the Case of a Bill.
Section. 8.
Clause 1: The Congress
shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay
the Debts and provide for the common Defence and general Welfare of the United
States; but all Duties, Imposts and Excises shall be uniform throughout the
United States;
Clause 2: To borrow Money
on the credit of the United States;
Clause 3: To regulate
Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the
Indian Tribes;
Clause 4: To establish an
uniform Rule of Naturalization, and uniform Laws on the subject of Bankruptcies
throughout the United States;
Clause 5: To coin Money,
regulate the Value thereof, and of foreign Coin, and fix the Standard of
Weights and Measures;
Clause 6: To provide for
the Punishment of counterfeiting the Securities and current Coin of the United States;
Clause 7: To establish
Post Offices and post Roads;
Clause 8: To promote the
Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors
and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries;
Clause 9: To constitute
Tribunals inferior to the supreme Court;
Clause 10: To define and
punish Piracies and Felonies committed on the high Seas, and Offences against
the Law of Nations;
Clause 11: To declare
War, grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal, and make Rules concerning Captures
on Land and Water;
Clause 12: To raise and
support Armies, but no Appropriation of Money to that Use shall be for a longer
Term than two Years;
Clause 13: To provide and
maintain a Navy;
Clause 14: To make Rules
for the Government and Regulation of the land and naval Forces;
Clause 15: To provide for
calling forth the Militia to execute the Laws of the Union, suppress
Insurrections and repel Invasions;
Clause 16: To provide for
organizing, arming, and disciplining, the Militia, and for governing such Part
of them as may be employed in the Service of the United States, reserving to
the States respectively, the Appointment of the Officers, and the Authority of
training the Militia according to the discipline prescribed by Congress;
Clause 17: To exercise
exclusive Legislation in all Cases whatsoever, over such District (not
exceeding ten Miles square) as may, byCession of particular States, and the
Acceptance of Congress, become the Seat of the Government of the United States,
and to exercise like Authority over all Places purchased by the Consent of the
Legislature of the State in which the Same shall be, for the Erection of Forts,
Magazines, Arsenals, dock-Yards, and other needful Buildings;--And
Clause 18: To make all
Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution the
foregoing Powers, and all other Powers vested by this Constitution in the
Government of the United States, or in any Department or Officer thereof.
Section. 9.
Clause 1: The Migration
or Importation of such Persons as any of the States now existing shall think
proper to admit, shall not be prohibited by the Congress prior to the Year one
thousand eight hundred and eight, but a Tax or duty may be imposed on such
Importation, not exceeding ten dollars for each Person.
Clause 2: The Privilege
of the Writ of Habeas Corpus shall not be suspended, unless when in Cases of
Rebellion or Invasion the public Safety may require it.
Clause 3: No Bill of
Attainder or ex post facto Law shall be passed.
Clause 4: No Capitation,
or other direct, Tax shall be laid, unless in Proportion to the Census or
Enumeration herein before directed to be taken. (See Note 7)
Clause 5: No Tax or Duty
shall be laid on Articles exported from any State.
Clause 6: No Preference
shall be given by any Regulation of Commerce or Revenue to the Ports of one
State over those of another: nor shall Vessels bound to, or from, one State, be
obliged to enter, clear, or pay Duties in another.
Clause 7: No Money shall
be drawn from the Treasury, but in Consequence of Appropriations made by Law;
and a regular Statement and Account of the Receipts and Expenditures of all
public Money shall be published from time to time.
Clause 8: No Title of
Nobility shall be granted by the United States: And no Person holding any
Office of Profit or Trust under them, shall, without the Consent of the
Congress, accept of any present, Emolument, Office, or Title, of any kind
whatever, from any King, Prince, or foreign State.
Section. 10.
Clause 1: No State shall
enter into any Treaty, Alliance, or Confederation; grant Letters of Marque and
Reprisal; coin Money; emit Bills of Credit; make any Thing but gold and silver
Coin a Tender in Payment of Debts; pass any Bill of Attainder, ex post facto
Law, or Law impairing the Obligation of Contracts, or grant any Title of
Nobility.
Clause 2: No State shall,
without the Consent of the Congress, lay any Imposts or Duties on Imports or
Exports, except what may be absolutely necessary for executing it's inspection
Laws: and the net Produce of all Duties and Imposts, laid by any State on
Imports or Exports, shall be for the Use of the Treasury of the United States;
and all such Laws shall be subject to the Revision and Controul of the
Congress.
Clause 3: No State shall,
without the Consent of Congress, lay any Duty of Tonnage, keep Troops, or Ships
of War in time of Peace, enter into any Agreement or Compact with another
State, or with a foreign Power, or engage in War, unless actually invaded, or
in such imminent Danger as will not admit of delay.
Article. II.
Section. 1.
Clause 1: The executive
Power shall be vested in a President of the United States of America. He shall
hold his Office during the Term of four Years, and, together with the Vice
President, chosen for the same Term, be elected, as follows
Clause 2: Each State
shall appoint, in such Manner as the Legislature thereof may direct, a Number
of Electors, equal to the whole Number of Senators and Representatives to which
the State may be entitled in the Congress: but no Senator or Representative, or
Person holding an Office of Trust or Profit under the United States, shall be
appointed an Elector.
Clause 3: The Electors
shall meet in their respective States, and vote by Ballot for two Persons, of
whom one at least shall not be an Inhabitant of the same State with themselves.
And they shall make a List of all the Persons voted for, and of the Number of
Votes for each; which List they shall sign and certify, and transmit sealed to
the Seat of the Government of the United States, directed to the President of
the Senate. The President of the Senate shall, in the Presence of the Senate
and House of Representatives, open all the Certificates, and the Votes shall
then be counted. The Person having the greatest Number of Votes shall be the
President, if such Number be a Majority of the whole Number of Electors
appointed; and if there be more than one who have such Majority, and have an equal
Number of Votes, then the House of Representatives shall immediately chuse by
Ballot one of them for President; and if no Person have a Majority, then from
the five highest on the List the said House shall in like Manner chuse the
President. But in chusing the President, the Votes shall be taken by States,
the Representation from each State having one Vote; A quorum for this Purpose
shall consist of a Member or Members from two thirds of the States, and a
Majority of all the States shall be necessary to a Choice. In every Case, after
the Choice of the President, the Person having the greatest Number of Votes of
the Electors shall be the Vice President. But if there should remain two or
more who have equal Votes, the Senate shall chuse from them by Ballot the Vice
President. (See Note 8)
Clause 4: The Congress
may determine the Time of chusing the Electors, and the Day on which they shall
give their Votes; which Day shall be the same throughout the United States.
Clause 5: No Person
except a natural born Citizen, or a Citizen of the United States, at the time
of the Adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the Office of
President; neither shall any Person be eligible to that Office who shall not
have attained to the Age of thirty five Years, and been fourteen Years a
Resident within the United States.
Clause 6: In Case of the
Removal of the President from Office, or of his Death, Resignation, or
Inability to discharge the Powers and Duties of the said Office, (See Note
9) the Same shall devolve on the VicePresident, and the Congress may by Law
provide for the Case of Removal, Death, Resignation or Inability, both of the
President and Vice President, declaring what Officer shall then act as
President, and such Officer shall act accordingly, until the Disability be
removed, or a President shall be elected.
Clause 7: The President
shall, at stated Times, receive for his Services, a Compensation, which shall
neither be encreased nor diminished during the Period for which he shall have
been elected, and he shall not receive within that Period any other Emolument
from the United States, or any of them.
Clause 8: Before he enter
on the Execution of his Office, he shall take the following Oath or
Affirmation:--"I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully
execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of
my Ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United
States."
Section. 2.
Clause 1: The President
shall be Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States, and of
the Militia of the several States, when called into the actual Service of the
United States; he may require the Opinion, in writing, of the principal Officer
in each of the executive Departments, upon any Subject relating to the Duties
of their respective Offices, and he shall have Power to grant Reprieves and
Pardons for Offences against the United States, except in Cases of Impeachment.
Clause 2: He shall have
Power, by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, to make Treaties,
provided two thirds of the Senators present concur; and he shall nominate, and
by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, shall appoint Ambassadors,
other public Ministers and Consuls, Judges of the supreme Court, and all other
Officers of the United States, whose Appointments are not herein otherwise
provided for, and which shall be established by Law: but the Congress may by
Law vest the Appointment of such inferior Officers, as they think proper, in
the President alone, in the Courts of Law, or in the Heads of Departments.
Clause 3: The President
shall have Power to fill up all Vacancies that may happen during the Recess of
the Senate, by granting Commissions which shall expire at the End of their next
Session.
Section. 3.
He shall from time to
time give to the Congress Information of the State of the Union, and recommend
to their Consideration such Measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient;
he may, on extraordinary Occasions, convene both Houses, or either of them, and
in Case of Disagreement between them, with Respect to the Time of Adjournment,
he may adjourn them to such Time as he shall think proper; he shall receive
Ambassadors and other public Ministers; he shall take Care that the Laws be
faithfully executed, and shall Commission all the Officers of the United
States.
Section. 4.
The President, Vice
President and all civil Officers of the United States, shall be removed from
Office on Impeachment for, and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high
Crimes and Misdemeanors.
Article. III.
Section. 1.
The judicial Power of the
United States, shall be vested in one supreme Court, and in such inferior
Courts as the Congress may from time to time ordain and establish. The Judges,
both of the supreme and inferior Courts, shall hold their Offices during good
Behaviour, and shall, at stated Times, receive for their Services, a
Compensation, which shall not be diminished during their Continuance in Office.
Section. 2.
Clause 1: The judicial
Power shall extend to all Cases, in Law and Equity, arising under this
Constitution, the Laws of the United States, and Treaties made, or which shall
be made, under their Authority;--to all Cases affecting Ambassadors, other
public Ministers and Consuls;--to all Cases of admiralty and maritime
Jurisdiction;--to Controversies to which the United States shall be a
Party;--to Controversies between two or more States;--between a State and
Citizens of another State; (See Note 10)--between Citizens of different
States, --between Citizens of the same State claiming Lands under Grants of
different States, and between a State, or the Citizens thereof, and foreign
States, Citizens or Subjects.
Clause 2: In all Cases
affecting Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls, and those in which a
State shall be Party, the supreme Court shall have original Jurisdiction. In
all the other Cases before mentioned, the supreme Court shall have appellate
Jurisdiction, both as to Law and Fact, with such Exceptions, and under such
Regulations as the Congress shall make.
Clause 3: The Trial of
all Crimes, except in Cases of Impeachment, shall be by Jury; and such Trial
shall be held in the State where the said Crimes shall have been committed; but
when not committed within any State, the Trial shall be at such Place or Places
as the Congress may by Law have directed.
Section. 3.
Clause 1: Treason against
the United States, shall consist only in levying War against them, or in
adhering to their Enemies, giving them Aid and Comfort. No Person shall be
convicted of Treason unless on the Testimony of two Witnesses to the same overt
Act, or on Confession in open Court.
Clause 2: The Congress
shall have Power to declare the Punishment of Treason, but no Attainder of
Treason shall work Corruption of Blood, or Forfeiture except during the Life of
the Person attainted.
Article. IV.
Section. 1.
Full Faith and Credit
shall be given in each State to the public Acts, Records, and judicial
Proceedings of every other State. And the Congress may by general Laws
prescribe the Manner in which such Acts, Records and Proceedings shall be
proved, and the Effect thereof.
Section. 2.
Clause 1: The Citizens of
each State shall be entitled to all Privileges and Immunities of Citizens in
the several States.
Clause 2: A Person charged
in any State with Treason, Felony, or other Crime, who shall flee from Justice,
and be found in another State, shall on Demand of the executive Authority of
the State from which he fled, be delivered up, to be removed to the State
having Jurisdiction of the Crime.
Clause 3: No Person held
to Service or Labour in one State, under the Laws thereof, escaping into
another, shall, in Consequence of any Law or Regulation therein, be discharged
from such Service or Labour, but shall be delivered up on Claim of the Party to
whom such Service or Labour may be due. (See Note 11)
Section. 3.
Clause 1: New States may
be admitted by the Congress into this Union; but no new State shall be formed
or erected within the Jurisdiction of any other State; nor any State be formed
by the Junction of two or more States, or Parts of States, without the Consent
of the Legislatures of the States concerned as well as of the Congress.
Clause 2: The
Congress
shall have Power to dispose of and make all needful Rules and
Regulations
respecting the Territory or other Property belonging to the United
States; and nothing in this Constitution shall be so construed as to
Prejudice any Claims of
the United States, or of any particular State.
Section. 4.
The United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a Republican Form of Government, and
shall protect each of them against Invasion; and on Application of the
Legislature, or of the Executive (when the Legislature cannot be convened)
against domestic Violence.
Article. V.
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.
Article. VI.
Clause 1: All Debts
contracted and Engagements entered into, before the Adoption of this
Constitution, shall be as valid against the United States under this
Constitution, as under the Confederation.
Clause 2: This
Constitution, and the Laws of the United States which shall be made in
Pursuance thereof; and all Treaties made, or which shall be made, under the
Authority of the United States, shall be the supreme Law of the Land; and the
Judges in every State shall be bound thereby, any Thing in the Constitution or
Laws of any State to the Contrary notwithstanding.
Clause 3: The Senators
and Representatives before mentioned, and the Members of the several State
Legislatures, and all executive and judicial Officers, both of the United
States and of the several States, shall be bound by Oath or Affirmation, to
support this Constitution; but no religious Test shall ever be required as a
Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States.
Article. VII.
The
Ratification of the Conventions of nine States, shall be sufficient for the
Establishment of this Constitution between the States so ratifying the Same.
done in Convention by the
Unanimous Consent of the States present the Seventeenth Day of September in the
Year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and Eighty seven and of the
Independence of the United States of America the Twelfth In witness whereof We
have hereunto subscribed our Names,
GO WASHINGTON--Presidt.
and deputy from Virginia
[Signed also by the
deputies of twelve States.]
Delaware
Geo: Read
Gunning Bedford jun
John Dickinson
Richard Bassett
Jaco: Broom
Maryland
James MCHenry
Dan of ST ThoS. Jenifer
DanL Carroll.
Virginia
John Blair--
James Madison Jr.
North Carolina
WM Blount
RichD. Dobbs Spaight.
Hu Williamson
South Carolina
J. Rutledge
Charles 1ACotesworth Pinckney
Charles Pinckney
Pierce Butler.
Georgia
William Few
Abr Baldwin
New Hampshire
John Langdon
Nicholas Gilman
Massachusetts
Nathaniel Gorham
Rufus King
Connecticut
WM. SamL. Johnson
Roger Sherman
New York
Alexander Hamilton
New Jersey
Wil: Livingston
David Brearley.
WM. Paterson.
Jona: Dayton
Pennsylvania
B Franklin
Thomas Mifflin
RobT Morris
Geo. Clymer
ThoS. FitzSimons
Jared Ingersoll
James Wilson.
Gouv Morris
Attest William Jackson
Secretary
Article [I.]
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or
prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or
of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition
the Government for a redress of grievances.
Article [II.]
A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free
State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be
infringed.
Article [III.]
No Soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the
consent of the Owner, nor in time of war, but in a manner to be prescribed by law.
Article [IV.]
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and
effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and
no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation,
and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things
to be seized.
Article [V.]
No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime,
unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising
in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, when in actual service in time
of War or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offence
to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal
case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or
property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for
public use, without just compensation.
Article [VI.]
In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and
public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime
shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously
ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the
accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory
process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the Assistance of
Counsel for his defence.
Article [VII.]
In Suits at common law, where the value in controversy shall exceed twenty
dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved, and no fact tried by a
jury, shall be otherwise re-examined in any Court of the United States, than according to the rules of the common law.
Article
[VIII.]
Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel
and unusual punishments inflicted.
Article [IX.]
The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed
to deny or disparage others retained by the people.
Article [X.]
The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor
prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to
the people.
[Article XI.]
The Judicial power of the United States shall not be construed to
extend to any
suit in law or equity, commenced or prosecuted against one of the
United States by Citizens of another State, or by Citizens or Subjects
of any Foreign State.
Proposal and Ratification
The eleventh amendment to
the Constitution of the United States was proposed to the legislatures of the
several States by the Third Congress, on the 4th of March 1794; and was
declared in a message from the President to Congress, dated the 8th of January,
1798, to have been ratified by the legislatures of three-fourths of the States.
The dates of ratification were: New York, March 27, 1794; Rhode Island, March
31, 1794; Connecticut, May 8, 1794; New Hampshire, June 16, 1794;
Massachusetts, June 26, 1794; Vermont, between October 9, 1794 and November 9,
1794; Virginia, November 18, 1794; Georgia, November 29, 1794; Kentucky,
December 7, 1794; Maryland, December 26, 1794; Delaware, January 23, 1795;
North Carolina, February 7, 1795.
Ratification was
completed on February 7, 1795.
The amendment was
subsequently ratified by South Carolina on December 4, 1797. New Jersey and Pennsylvania did not take action on the amendment.
[Article
XII.]
The Electors shall meet in their respective states, and vote by ballot for
President and Vice-President, one of whom, at least, shall not be an inhabitant
of the same state with themselves; they shall name in their ballots the person
voted for as President, and in distinct ballots the person voted for as
Vice-President, and they shall make distinct lists of all persons voted for as
President, and of all persons voted for as Vice-President, and of the number of
votes for each, which lists they shall sign and certify, and transmit sealed to
the seat of the government of the United States, directed to the President of
the Senate;--The President of the Senate shall, in the presence of the Senate
and House of Representatives, open all the certificates and the votes shall
then be counted;--The person having the greatest number of votes for President,
shall be the President, if such number be a majority of the whole number of
Electors appointed; and if no person have such majority, then from the persons
having the highest numbers not exceeding three on the list of those voted for
as President, the House of Representatives shall choose immediately, by ballot,
the President. But in choosing the President, the votes shall be taken by
states, the representation from each state having one vote; a quorum for this
purpose shall consist of a member or members from two-thirds of the states, and
a majority of all the states shall be necessary to a choice. And if the House
of Representatives shall not choose a President whenever the right of choice
shall devolve upon them, before the fourth day of March next following, then
the Vice-President shall act as President, as in the case of the death or other
constitutional disability of the President. --The person having the greatest
number of votes as Vice-President, shall be the Vice-President, if such number
be a majority of the whole number of Electors appointed, and if no person have
a majority, then from the two highest numbers on the list, the Senate shall
choose the Vice-President; a quorum for the purpose shall consist of two-thirds
of the whole number of Senators, and a majority of the whole number shall be
necessary to a choice. But no person constitutionally ineligible to the office
of President shall be eligible to that of Vice-President of the United States.
Proposal and Ratification
The twelfth amendment to the Constitution of the United States was proposed to
the legislatures of the several States by the Eighth Congress, on the 9th of
December, 1803, in lieu of the original third paragraph of the first section of
the second article; and was declared in a proclamation of the Secretary of
State, dated the 25th of September, 1804, to have been ratified by the
legislatures of 13 of the 17 States. The dates of ratification were: North
Carolina, December 21, 1803; Maryland, December 24, 1803; Kentucky, December
27, 1803; Ohio, December 30, 1803; Pennsylvania, January 5, 1804; Vermont,
January 30, 1804; Virginia, February 3, 1804; New York, February 10, 1804; New
Jersey, February 22, 1804; Rhode Island, March 12, 1804; South Carolina, May
15, 1804; Georgia, May 19, 1804; New Hampshire, June 15, 1804.
Ratification was
completed on June 15, 1804.
The amendment was
subsequently ratified by Tennessee, July 27, 1804.
The amendment was
rejected by Delaware, January 18, 1804; Massachusetts, February 3, 1804; Connecticut, at its session begun May 10, 1804.
Article XIII.
Section 1. Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment
for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within
the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.
Section 2. Congress shall
have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.
Proposal and Ratification
The thirteenth amendment
to the Constitution of the United States was proposed to the legislatures of
the several States by the Thirty-eighth Congress, on the 31st day of January,
1865, and was declared, in a proclamation of the Secretary of State, dated the
18th of December, 1865, to have been ratified by the legislatures of
twenty-seven of the thirty-six States. The dates of ratification were:
Illinois, February 1, 1865; Rhode Island, February 2, 1865; Michigan, February
2, 1865; Maryland, February 3, 1865; New York, February 3, 1865; Pennsylvania,
February 3, 1865; West Virginia, February 3, 1865; Missouri, February 6, 1865;
Maine, February 7, 1865; Kansas, February 7, 1865; Massachusetts, February 7,
1865; Virginia, February 9, 1865; Ohio, February 10, 1865; Indiana, February
13, 1865; Nevada, February 16, 1865; Louisiana, February 17, 1865; Minnesota,
February 23, 1865; Wisconsin, February 24, 1865; Vermont, March 9, 1865;
Tennessee, April 7, 1865; Arkansas, April 14, 1865; Connecticut, May 4, 1865;
New Hampshire, July 1, 1865; South Carolina, November 13, 1865; Alabama,
December 2, 1865; North Carolina, December 4, 1865; Georgia, December 6, 1865.
Ratification was
completed on December 6, 1865.
The amendment was
subsequently ratified by Oregon, December 8, 1865; California, December 19,
1865; Florida, December 28, 1865 (Florida again ratified on June 9, 1868, upon
its adoption of a new constitution); Iowa, January 15, 1866; New Jersey,
January 23, 1866 (after having rejected the amendment on March 16, 1865);
Texas, February 18, 1870; Delaware, February 12, 1901 (after having rejected
the amendment on February 8, 1865); Kentucky, March 18, 1976 (after having rejected
it on February 24, 1865).
The amendment was
rejected (and not subsequently ratified) by Mississippi, December 4, 1865.
Article XIV.
Section 1. All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to
the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State
wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge
the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any
State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of
law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the
laws.
Section 2.
Representatives shall be apportioned among the several States according to
their respective numbers, counting the whole number of persons in each State,
excluding Indians not taxed. But when the right to vote at any election for the
choice of electors for President and Vice President of the United States,
Representatives in Congress, the Executive and Judicial officers of a State, or
the members of the Legislature thereof, is denied to any of the male
inhabitants of such State, being twenty-one years of age, and citizens of the
United States, or in any way abridged, except for participation in rebellion,
or other crime, the basis of representation therein shall be reduced in the
proportion which the number of such male citizens shall bear to the whole
number of male citizens twenty-one years of age in such State.
Section 3. No person
shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress, or elector of President and
Vice President, or hold any office, civil or military, under the United States,
or under any State, who, having previously taken an oath, as a member of
Congress, or as an officer of the United States, or as a member of any State
legislature, or as an executive or judicial officer of any State, to support
the Constitution of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or
rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof. But
Congress may by a vote of two-thirds of each House, remove such disability.
Section 4. The
validity
of the public debt of the United States, authorized by law, including
debts
incurred for payment of pensions and bounties for services in
suppressing
insurrection or rebellion, shall not be questioned. But neither the
United States nor any State shall assume or pay any debt or obligation
incurred in aid of
insurrection or rebellion against the United States, or any claim for
the loss
or emancipation of any slave; but all such debts, obligations and
claims shall
be held illegal and void.
Section 5. The Congress
shall have power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions of this
article.
Proposal and Ratification
The fourteenth amendment
to the Constitution of the United States was proposed to the legislatures of
the several States by the Thirty-ninth Congress, on the 13th of June, 1866. It
was declared, in a certificate of the Secretary of State dated July 28, 1868 to
have been ratified by the legislatures of 28 of the 37 States. The dates of
ratification were: Connecticut, June 25, 1866; New Hampshire, July 6, 1866;
Tennessee, July 19, 1866; New Jersey, September 11, 1866 (subsequently the
legislature rescinded its ratification, and on March 24, 1868, readopted its resolution
of rescission over the Governor's veto, and on Nov. 12, 1980, expressed support
for the amendment); Oregon, September 19, 1866 (and rescinded its ratification
on October 15, 1868); Vermont, October 30, 1866; Ohio, January 4, 1867 (and
rescinded its ratification on January 15, 1868); New York, January 10, 1867;
Kansas, January 11, 1867; Illinois, January 15, 1867; West Virginia, January
16, 1867; Michigan, January 16, 1867; Minnesota, January 16, 1867; Maine,
January 19, 1867; Nevada, January 22, 1867; Indiana, January 23, 1867;
Missouri, January 25, 1867; Rhode Island, February 7, 1867; Wisconsin, February
7, 1867; Pennsylvania, February 12, 1867; Massachusetts, March 20, 1867;
Nebraska, June 15, 1867; Iowa, March 16, 1868; Arkansas, April 6, 1868;
Florida, June 9, 1868; North Carolina, July 4, 1868 (after having rejected it
on December 14, 1866); Louisiana, July 9, 1868 (after having rejected it on
February 6, 1867); South Carolina, July 9, 1868 (after having rejected it on
December 20, 1866).
Ratification was
completed on July 9, 1868.
The amendment was
subsequently ratified by Alabama, July 13, 1868; Georgia, July 21, 1868 (after
having rejected it on November 9, 1866); Virginia, October 8, 1869 (after
having rejected it on January 9, 1867); Mississippi, January 17, 1870; Texas,
February 18, 1870 (after having rejected it on October 27, 1866); Delaware,
February 12, 1901 (after having rejected it on February 8, 1867); Maryland,
April 4, 1959 (after having rejected it on March 23, 1867); California, May 6,
1959; Kentucky, March 18, 1976 (after having rejected it on January 8, 1867).
Article XV.
Section 1. The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be
denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color,
or previous condition of servitude.
Section 2. The Congress
shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.
Proposal and Ratification
The fifteenth amendment
to the Constitution of the United States was proposed to the legislatures of
the several States by the Fortieth Congress, on the 26th of February, 1869, and
was declared, in a proclamation of the Secretary of State, dated March 30,
1870, to have been ratified by the legislatures of twenty-nine of the
thirty-seven States. The dates of ratification were: Nevada, March 1, 1869;
West Virginia, March 3, 1869; Illinois, March 5, 1869; Louisiana, March 5,
1869; North Carolina, March 5, 1869; Michigan, March 8, 1869; Wisconsin, March
9, 1869; Maine, March 11, 1869; Massachusetts, March 12, 1869; Arkansas, March
15, 1869; South Carolina, March 15, 1869; Pennsylvania, March 25, 1869; New
York, April 14, 1869 (and the legislature of the same State passed a resolution
January 5, 1870, to withdraw its consent to it, which action it rescinded on
March 30, 1970); Indiana, May 14, 1869; Connecticut, May 19, 1869; Florida,
June 14, 1869; New Hampshire, July 1, 1869; Virginia, October 8, 1869; Vermont,
October 20, 1869; Missouri, January 7, 1870; Minnesota, January 13, 1870;
Mississippi, January 17, 1870; Rhode Island, January 18, 1870; Kansas, January
19, 1870; Ohio, January 27, 1870 (after having rejected it on April 30, 1869);
Georgia, February 2, 1870; Iowa, February 3, 1870.
Ratification
was
completed on February 3, 1870, unless the withdrawal of ratification by
New York was effective; in which event ratification was completed on
February 17, 1870,
when Nebraska ratified.
The amendment was
subsequently ratified by Texas, February 18, 1870; New Jersey, February 15,
1871 (after having rejected it on February 7, 1870); Delaware, February 12,
1901 (after having rejected it on March 18, 1869); Oregon, February 24, 1959;
California, April 3, 1962 (after having rejected it on January 28, 1870);
Kentucky, March 18, 1976 (after having rejected it on March 12, 1869).
The amendment was
approved by the Governor of Maryland, May 7, 1973; Maryland having previously
rejected it on February 26, 1870.
The amendment was
rejected (and not subsequently ratified) by Tennessee, November 16, 1869.
Article XVI.
The Congress shall have power to lay and collect taxes on incomes, from
whatever source derived, without apportionment among the several States, and
without regard to any census or enumeration.
Proposal and Ratification
The sixteenth amendment
to the Constitution of the United States was proposed to the legislatures of
the several States by the Sixty-first Congress on the 12th of July, 1909, and
was declared, in a proclamation of the Secretary of State, dated the 25th of
February, 1913, to have been ratified by 36 of the 48 States. The dates of
ratification were: Alabama, August 10, 1909; Kentucky, February 8, 1910; South
Carolina, February 19, 1910; Illinois, March 1, 1910; Mississippi, March 7,
1910; Oklahoma, March 10, 1910; Maryland, April 8, 1910; Georgia, August 3,
1910; Texas, August 16, 1910; Ohio, January 19, 1911; Idaho, January 20, 1911;
Oregon, January 23, 1911; Washington, January 26, 1911; Montana, January 30,
1911; Indiana, January 30, 1911; California, January 31, 1911; Nevada, January
31, 1911; South Dakota, February 3, 1911; Nebraska, February 9, 1911; North
Carolina, February 11, 1911; Colorado, February 15, 1911; North Dakota,
February 17, 1911; Kansas, February 18, 1911; Michigan, February 23, 1911;
Iowa, February 24, 1911; Missouri, March 16, 1911; Maine, March 31, 1911;
Tennessee, April 7, 1911; Arkansas, April 22, 1911 (after having rejected it
earlier); Wisconsin, May 26, 1911; New York, July 12, 1911; Arizona, April 6,
1912; Minnesota, June 11, 1912; Louisiana, June 28, 1912; West Virginia,
January 31, 1913; New Mexico, February 3, 1913.
Ratification was
completed on February 3, 1913.
The amendment was
subsequently ratified by Massachusetts, March 4, 1913; New Hampshire, March 7,
1913 (after having rejected it on March 2, 1911).
The amendment was
rejected (and not subsequently ratified) by Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Utah.
[Article
XVII.]
The Senate of the United States shall be composed of two Senators from each
State, elected by the people thereof, for six years; and each Senator shall
have one vote. The electors in each State shall have the qualifications
requisite for electors of the most numerous branch of the State legislatures.
When vacancies happen in
the representation of any State in the Senate, the executive authority of such
State shall issue writs of election to fill such vacancies: Provided, That the
legislature of any State may empower the executive thereof to make temporary
appointments until the people fill the vacancies by election as the legislature
may direct.
This amendment shall not
be so construed as to affect the election or term of any Senator chosen before
it becomes valid as part of the Constitution.
Proposal and Ratification
The seventeenth amendment
to the Constitution of the United States was proposed to the legislatures of
the several States by the Sixty-second Congress on the 13th of May, 1912, and
was declared, in a proclamation of the Secretary of State, dated the 31st of
May, 1913, to have been ratified by the legislatures of 36 of the 48 States.
The dates of ratification were: Massachusetts, May 22, 1912; Arizona, June 3,
1912; Minnesota, June 10, 1912; New York, January 15, 1913; Kansas, January 17,
1913; Oregon, January 23, 1913; North Carolina, January 25, 1913; California,
January 28, 1913; Michigan, January 28, 1913; Iowa, January 30, 1913; Montana,
January 30, 1913; Idaho, January 31, 1913; West Virginia, February 4, 1913;
Colorado, February 5, 1913; Nevada, February 6, 1913; Texas, February 7, 1913;
Washington, February 7, 1913; Wyoming, February 8, 1913; Arkansas, February 11,
1913; Maine, February 11, 1913; Illinois, February 13, 1913; North Dakota,
February 14, 1913; Wisconsin, February 18, 1913; Indiana, February 19, 1913;
New Hampshire, February 19, 1913; Vermont, February 19, 1913; South Dakota,
February 19, 1913; Oklahoma, February 24, 1913; Ohio, February 25, 1913;
Missouri, March 7, 1913; New Mexico, March 13, 1913; Nebraska, March 14, 1913;
New Jersey, March 17, 1913; Tennessee, April 1, 1913; Pennsylvania, April 2, 1913;
Connecticut, April 8, 1913.
Ratification was
completed on April 8, 1913.
The amendment was
subsequently ratified by Louisiana, June 11, 1914.
The amendment was
rejected by Utah (and not subsequently ratified) on February 26, 1913.
Article
[XVIII].
Section 1. After one year from the ratification of this article the
manufacture, sale, or transportation of intoxicating liquors within,
the
importation thereof into, or the exportation thereof from the United
States and all territory subject to the jurisdiction thereof for
beverage purposes
is hereby prohibited.
Section. 2. The Congress
and the several States shall have concurrent power to enforce this article by
appropriate legislation.
Section. 3. This article
shall be inoperative unless it shall have been ratified as an amendment to the
Constitution by the legislatures of the several States, as provided in the
Constitution, within seven years from the date of the submission hereof to the
States by the Congress.
Proposal and Ratification
The eighteenth amendment
to the Constitution of the United States was proposed to the legislatures of
the several States by the Sixty-fifth Congress, on the 18th of December, 1917,
and was declared, in a proclamation of the Secretary of State, dated the 29th
of January, 1919, to have been ratified by the legislatures of 36 of the 48
States. The dates of ratification were: Mississippi, January 8, 1918; Virginia,
January 11, 1918; Kentucky, January 14, 1918; North Dakota, January 25, 1918;
South Carolina, January 29, 1918; Maryland, February 13, 1918; Montana,
February 19, 1918; Texas, March 4, 1918; Delaware, March 18, 1918; South
Dakota, March 20, 1918; Massachusetts, April 2, 1918; Arizona, May 24, 1918;
Georgia, June 26, 1918; Louisiana, August 3, 1918; Florida, December 3, 1918;
Michigan, January 2, 1919; Ohio, January 7, 1919; Oklahoma, January 7, 1919;
Idaho, January 8, 1919; Maine, January 8, 1919; West Virginia, January 9, 1919;
California, January 13, 1919; Tennessee, January 13, 1919; Washington, January
13, 1919; Arkansas, January 14, 1919; Kansas, January 14, 1919; Alabama,
January 15, 1919; Colorado, January 15, 1919; Iowa, January 15, 1919; New
Hampshire, January 15, 1919; Oregon, January 15, 1919; Nebraska, January 16,
1919; North Carolina, January 16, 1919; Utah, January 16, 1919; Missouri,
January 16, 1919; Wyoming, January 16, 1919.
Ratification was
completed on January 16, 1919. See Dillon v. Gloss, 256 U.S. 368, 376 (1921).
The amendment was
subsequently ratified by Minnesota on January 17, 1919; Wisconsin, January 17,
1919; New Mexico, January 20, 1919; Nevada, January 21, 1919; New York, January
29, 1919; Vermont, January 29, 1919; Pennsylvania, February 25, 1919;
Connecticut, May 6, 1919; and New Jersey, March 9, 1922.
The amendment was
rejected (and not subsequently ratified) by Rhode Island.
Article
[XIX].
The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or
abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.
Congress shall have power
to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.
Proposal and Ratification
The nineteenth amendment
to the Constitution of the United States was proposed to the legislatures of
the several States by the Sixty-sixth Congress, on the 4th of June, 1919, and
was declared, in a proclamation of the Secretary of State, dated the 26th of
August, 1920, to have been ratified by the legislatures of 36 of the 48 States.
The dates of ratification were: Illinois, June 10, 1919 (and that State
readopted its resolution of ratification June 17, 1919); Michigan, June 10,
1919; Wisconsin, June 10, 1919; Kansas, June 16, 1919; New York, June 16, 1919;
Ohio, June 16, 1919; Pennsylvania, June 24, 1919; Massachusetts, June 25, 1919;
Texas, June 28, 1919; Iowa, July 2, 1919; Missouri, July 3, 1919; Arkansas,
July 28, 1919; Montana, August 2, 1919; Nebraska, August 2, 1919; Minnesota,
September 8, 1919; New Hampshire, September 10, 1919; Utah, October 2, 1919;
California, November 1, 1919; Maine, November 5, 1919; North Dakota, December
1, 1919; South Dakota, December 4, 1919; Colorado, December 15, 1919; Kentucky,
January 6, 1920; Rhode Island, January 6, 1920; Oregon, January 13, 1920;
Indiana, January 16, 1920; Wyoming, January 27, 1920; Nevada, February 7, 1920;
New Jersey, February 9, 1920; Idaho, February 11, 1920; Arizona, February 12,
1920; New Mexico, February 21, 1920; Oklahoma, February 28, 1920; West
Virginia, March 10, 1920; Washington, March 22, 1920; Tennessee, August 18,
1920.
Ratification was
completed on August 18, 1920.
The amendment was
subsequently ratified by Connecticut on September 14, 1920 (and that State
reaffirmed on September 21, 1920); Vermont, February 8, 1921; Delaware, March
6, 1923 (after having rejected it on June 2, 1920); Maryland, March 29, 1941
(after having rejected it on February 24, 1920, ratification certified on
February 25, 1958); Virginia, February 21, 1952 (after having rejected it on
February 12, 1920); Alabama, September 8, 1953 (after having rejected it on
September 22, 1919); Florida, May 13, 1969; South Carolina, July 1, 1969 (after
having rejected it on January 28, 1920, ratification certified on August 22,
1973); Georgia, February 20, 1970 (after having rejected it on July 24, 1919);
Louisiana, June 11, 1970 (after having rejected it on July 1, 1920); North
Carolina, May 6, 1971; Mississippi, March 22, 1984 (after having rejected it on
March 29, 1920).
Article [XX.]
Section 1. The terms of the President and Vice President shall end at noon on
the 20th day of January, and the terms of Senators and Representatives at noon
on the 3d day of January, of the years in which such terms would have ended if
this article had not been ratified; and the terms of their successors shall
then begin.
Section. 2. The Congress
shall assemble at least once in every year, and such meeting shall begin at
noon on the 3d day of January, unless they shall by law appoint a different
day.
Section. 3. If, at the
time fixed for the beginning of the term of the President, the President elect
shall have died, the Vice President elect shall become President. If a
President shall not have been chosen before the time fixed for the beginning of
his term, or if the President elect shall have failed to qualify, then the Vice
President elect shall act as President until a President shall have qualified;
and the Congress may by law provide for the case wherein neither a President
elect nor a Vice President elect shall have qualified, declaring who shall then
act as President, or the manner in which one who is to act shall be selected,
and such person shall act accordingly until a President or Vice President shall
have qualified.
Section. 4. The Congress
may by law provide for the case of the death of any of the persons from whom
the House of Representatives may choose a President whenever the right of
choice shall have devolved upon them, and for the case of the death of any of
the persons from whom the Senate may choose a Vice President whenever the right
of choice shall have devolved upon them.
Section. 5. Sections 1
and 2 shall take effect on the 15th day of October following the ratification
of this article.
Section. 6. This article
shall be inoperative unless it shall have been ratified as an amendment to the
Constitution by the legislatures of three-fourths of the several States within
seven years from the date of its submission.
Proposal and Ratification
The twentieth amendment
to the Constitution was proposed to the legislatures of the several states by
the Seventy-Second Congress, on the 2d day of March, 1932, and was declared, in
a proclamation by the Secretary of State, dated on the 6th day of February,
1933, to have been ratified by the legislatures of 36 of the 48 States. The
dates of ratification were: Virginia, March 4, 1932; New York, March 11, 1932;
Mississippi, March 16, 1932; Arkansas, March 17, 1932; Kentucky, March 17,
1932; New Jersey, March 21, 1932; South Carolina, March 25, 1932; Michigan,
March 31, 1932; Maine, April 1, 1932; Rhode Island, April 14, 1932; Illinois,
April 21, 1932; Louisiana, June 22, 1932; West Virginia, July 30, 1932;
Pennsylvania, August 11, 1932; Indiana, August 15, 1932; Texas, September 7,
1932; Alabama, September 13, 1932; California, January 4, 1933; North Carolina,
January 5, 1933; North Dakota, January 9, 1933; Minnesota, January 12, 1933; Arizona,
January 13, 1933; Montana, January 13, 1933; Nebraska, January 13, 1933;
Oklahoma, January 13, 1933; Kansas, January 16, 1933; Oregon, January 16, 1933;
Delaware, January 19, 1933; Washington, January 19, 1933; Wyoming, January 19,
1933; Iowa, January 20, 1933; South Dakota, January 20, 1933; Tennessee,
January 20, 1933; Idaho, January 21, 1933; New Mexico, January 21, 1933;
Georgia, January 23, 1933; Missouri, January 23, 1933; Ohio, January 23, 1933;
Utah, January 23, 1933.
Ratification was completed
on January 23, 1933.
The amendment was
subsequently ratified by Massachusetts on January 24, 1933; Wisconsin, January
24, 1933; Colorado, January 24, 1933; Nevada, January 26, 1933; Connecticut,
January 27, 1933; New Hampshire, January 31, 1933; Vermont, February 2, 1933;
Maryland, March 24, 1933; Florida, April 26, 1933.
Article
[XXI.]
Section 1. The eighteenth article of amendment to the Constitution of the United States is hereby repealed.
Section 2. The
transportation or importation into any State, Territory, or possession
of the United States for delivery or use therein of intoxicating
liquors, in violation of the laws
thereof, is hereby prohibited.
Section 3. This article
shall be inoperative unless it shall have been ratified as an amendment to the
Constitution by conventions in the several States, as provided in the
Constitution, within seven years from the date of the submission hereof to the
States by the Congress.
Proposal and Ratification
The twenty-first
amendment to the Constitution was proposed to the several states by the
Seventy-Second Congress, on the 20th day of February, 1933, and was declared,
in a proclamation by the Secretary of State, dated on the 5th day of December,
1933, to have been ratified by 36 of the 48 States. The dates of ratification
were: Michigan, April 10, 1933; Wisconsin, April 25, 1933; Rhode Island, May 8,
1933; Wyoming, May 25, 1933; New Jersey, June 1, 1933; Delaware, June 24, 1933;
Indiana, June 26, 1933; Massachusetts, June 26, 1933; New York, June 27, 1933;
Illinois, July 10, 1933; Iowa, July
Amendment
XXII
Section 1. No person shall be elected to the office of the President more than
twice, and no person who has held the office of President, or acted as
President, for more than two years of a term to which some other person was
elected President shall be elected to the office of the President more than
once. But this article shall not apply to any person holding the office of
President when this article was proposed by the Congress, and shall not prevent
any person who may be holding the office of President, or acting as President,
during the term within which this article becomes operative from holding the
office of President or acting as President during the remainder of such term.
Section 2. This article
shall be inoperative unless it shall have been ratified as an amendment to the
Constitution by the legislatures of three-fourths of the several states within
seven years from the date of its submission to the states by the Congress.
Amendment XXIII
Section 1. The District constituting the seat of government of the
United States shall appoint in such manner as the Congress may direct:
A number of electors of
President and Vice President equal to the whole number of Senators and
Representatives in Congress to which the District would be entitled if it were
a state, but in no event more than the least populous state; they shall be in
addition to those appointed by the states, but they shall be considered, for
the purposes of the election of President and Vice President, to be electors
appointed by a state; and they shall meet in the District and perform such
duties as provided by the twelfth article of amendment.
Section 2. The Congress
shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.
Amendment
XXIV
Section 1. The right of citizens of the United States to vote in any primary or
other election for President or Vice President, for electors for President or
Vice President, or for Senator or Representative in Congress, shall not be
denied or abridged by the United States or any state by reason of failure to
pay any poll tax or other tax.
Section 2. The Congress
shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.
Amendment XXV
Section 1. In case of the removal of the President from office or of his death
or resignation, the Vice President shall become President.
Section 2. Whenever there
is a vacancy in the office of the Vice President, the President shall nominate
a Vice President who shall take office upon confirmation by a majority vote of
both Houses of Congress.
Section 3. Whenever the
President transmits to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker
of the House of Representatives his written declaration that he is unable to
discharge the powers and duties of his office, and until he transmits to them a
written declaration to the contrary, such powers and duties shall be discharged
by the Vice President as Acting President.
Section 4. Whenever the
Vice President and a majority of either the principal officers of the executive
departments or of such other body as Congress may by law provide, transmit to
the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of
Representatives their written declaration that the President is unable to
discharge the powers and duties of his office, the Vice President shall
immediately assume the powers and duties of the office as Acting President.
Thereafter, when the
President transmits to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker
of the House of Representatives his written declaration that no inability
exists, he shall resume the powers and duties of his office unless the Vice
President and a majority of either the principal officers of the executive
department or of such other body as Congress may by law provide, transmit
within four days to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of
the House of Representatives their written declaration that the President is
unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office. Thereupon Congress
shall decide the issue, assembling within forty-eight hours for that purpose if
not in session. If the Congress, within twenty-one days after receipt of the
latter written declaration, or, if Congress is not in session, within twenty-one
days after Congress is required to assemble, determines by two-thirds vote of
both Houses that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of
his office, the Vice President shall continue to discharge the same as Acting
President; otherwise, the President shall resume the powers and duties of his
office.
Amendment
XXVI
Section 1. The right of citizens of the United States, who are 18 years of age
or older, to vote, shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any
state on account of age.
Section 2. The Congress
shall have the power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.
Amendment
XXVII
No law varying the compensation for the services of the Senators and
Representatives shall take effect until an election of Representatives shall
have intervened.
Discuss this article on the forums. (0 posts)
GETALONGS
link:http://www.wholesalejerseysmall...
It's not if we are i...
answer - You should not be very shy t...
71% of us didn't vot...
Louis Vuttion Speedy - We are authori...
71% of us didn't vot...
http://www.lvbagclassic.com/ - link:...
It's not if we are i...
Louis Vuttion Speedy - We are authori...