SJR502 applies to Congress to call an Article V convention to propose amendments that would impose fiscal restraints on the federal government, limit its power and jurisdiction, and establish term limits for Congress and other federal officials.
The South Dakota State House of Representatives rejected SJR502 on February 4, 2025 by a vote of 29 to 38. We have assigned pluses to the nays because a so-called “Convention of the States” would not be of “limited” purpose. The vague and contradictory text contained in this joint resolution dangerously permits what Article V of the U.S. Constitution describes as a “Convention for proposing Amendments” or second constitutional convention. Article V was designed to correct structural deficiencies in the federal government, not the behavior of its elected officials. SJR502 should be opposed in favor of less risky, more precise, and immediate solutions that would restore power to the states and the people, such as clear-cut proposals in Congress to repeal bad amendments or state nullification of unconstitutional federal laws.
