No law, varying the compensation for the services of the Senators and Representatives, shall take effect, until an election of Representatives shall have intervened.
Proposed 1789. Adopted 1992. Go figure.
The 27th Amendment was originally proposed on September 25, 1789, as an article in the original Bill of Rights. It did not pass the required number of states with the articles we now know as the first ten amendments. It sat, unratified and with no expiration date, in constitutional limbo, for more than 80 years when Ohio ratified it to protest a congressional pay hike; no other states followed Ohio’s lead, however. Again it languished, for more than 100 years.
In 1978, Wyoming ratified the amendment, but there was again, no follow-up by the remaining states. Then, in the early 1980’s, Gregory Watson, an aide to a Texas legislator, took up the proposed amendment’s cause. From 1983 to 1992, the requisite number of states ratified the amendment, and it was declared ratified on May 7, 1992 (74,003 days).
source
I can think of a number of good ideas for constitutional amendments – limiting the rights of corporations, equal rights amendment, an amendment to protect nature, like France recently adopted, universal health care…
Unfortunately, all we keep hearing about is an “anti-flag-burning” amendment, with even Hillary signing on, or anti-gay-marriage.
Sigh…
I know.
give us another 200 years and maybe we can get somewhere.
Here’s my suggestion:
Section 1. Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of disability.
bullet Section 2. The Congress shall have the power to enforce, by more than adequate funding appropriations, the provisions of this article.
bullet Section 3. This amendment shall take effect immediately!
based on the text of the Equal Rights Amendment.
a democratic ‘commons’ in the sphere of information.
It’s absolutely insane that we have no public square, that the economy constrains us to debating information-age policy in 2-word slogans once ever 2 years.
Here’s another one: Repeal that goddamn Patriot, oops, I mean FACIST Act!