SJRCA4 is legally before the Illinois General Assembly
1. Legal Precedent
2. Historical Precedent
3. Current Precedent
- Congress may determine the rules for ratification beyond those established in Article V of the U.S. Constitution. Coleman v. Miller, 307 US 433 (1939) and Dillion v. Gloss, 256 US 368 (1921). The Supreme Court overruled a lower court’s attempt to invalidate ongoing ratification efforts after the original deadline Idaho v. Freeman 455 US 918 (1982).
- The seven-year deadline is in the resolution’s preamble, and not in the proposed amendment passed by Congress in 1972, or the text ratified by 36 states.
- Time limits are a new custom. The first deadline was used in 1933 for the 21th Amendment (repeal of prohibition).
2. Historical Precedent
- In 1992, Congress declared the 27th Amendment ratified, despite a 203-year ratification process.
- In 1870, Congress declared the 15th Amendment ratified, despite the New York state’s rescission. The 15th Amendment extended the vote to all citizens (except women).
- In 1978, Congress voted to extend the ERA deadline to 1982. Therefore, it can again.
3. Current Precedent
- States continue to take steps toward ratification. In 2017 alone, legislators in Arizona, Florida, North Carolina and Utah introduced resolutions to approve the ERA.
- Nevada ratified on March 22, 2017.
- In 2014, resolutions passed in the Virginia Senate and Illinois Senate.
- Pending in Congress, S.J.Res. 5 and H.J.Res. 53 would remove the deadline.