OF / BY / FOR Center

Proposed Constitution

The following is our proposal for a Constitution that is designed to address the problems with the current Constitution and in keeping with the principles we believe are integral to the prosperity of the United States.

We the People of the United States reaffirm that all people are created equal, that they are endowed with certain unalienable rights, and that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness; that to secure these rights, governments are instituted, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed; that it is the right of the People to institute a government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness; and that the People have an indubitable, unalienable, and indefeasible right to reform or change their government, whenever it be found adverse or inadequate to the purposes of its institution. 

In reliance on, and in acknowledgement of the unfinished work in realizing, those principles; in order to form a more perfect union founded on liberty, democracy, and equality; to seek truth and establish justice; to achieve a lasting peace among ourselves and with all nations; to promote the general welfare and to secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, we the People of the United States do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.

Article I – Congress

Section 1: Organization of Congress

All legislative powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States, which shall consist of a House of Representatives and a Senate.

Section 2: The House of Representatives

The House of Representatives shall be composed of members chosen every third year by the people of the several States.  Their terms shall end at noon on the 3rd day of November following the national election day, and the terms of their successors shall then begin.

Representatives shall be at least 25, and no more than 75, years of age; have been seven years a citizen of the United States; and two years a resident of the State in which they are elected. 

Representatives shall be apportioned among the several States and territories according to their respective numbers, counting the whole number of persons in each State or territory.  The actual enumeration shall be made every ten years, in such manner as Congress shall by law direct.  The total number of Representatives shall be such that the proportion of Representatives to persons represented is no less than that of the least populous State, provided that each State and territory shall have at least one Representative.  If a State is entitled to five or fewer Representatives under an apportionment, the State shall elect all such Representatives at large using a method of ranked choice voting. If a State is entitled to six or more Representatives under an apportionment, the State shall establish districts represented by such Representatives so that the number of Representatives to be elected from any district may not be fewer than three or greater than five.  Such Representatives shall be elected in the same election using a method of ranked choice voting.  When vacancies happen in the representation from any State, the executive authority thereof shall issue Writs of Election to fill such vacancies.

The House of Representatives shall choose its Speaker and other officers.

Section 3: The Senate

The Senate of the United States shall be composed of two Senators from each State.  Senators shall be chosen by the people of the several States for nine years, and each Senator shall have one vote.  Their terms shall end at noon on the 3rd day of November following the national election day, and the terms of their successors shall then begin.

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 third year, of the second class at the expiration of the sixth year, and of the third class at the expiration of the ninth year, such that one-third may be elected every three years.  Both Senators representing a State shall be elected at large in the same election using a method of ranked choice voting.  If 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.

Senators shall be at least 30, and no more than 75, years of age; have been nine years a citizen of the United States; have served in the legislature of their State or in the House of Representatives; and have been six years a resident of the State in which they were elected.  No person shall serve as a Senator for more than two terms. 

The Vice President of the United States, who is part of the executive branch, shall be President of the Senate, but shall vote only when the Senators are equally divided.

The Senate shall choose its other officers, and a President pro tempore, in the absence of the Vice President, or when the Vice President shall exercise the Office of President of the United States and no successor has been chosen.

Section 4:  Elections

Except as to the creation and redrawing of legislative district boundaries, the times, places, and manners of holding elections for Representatives and Senators of a State shall be prescribed by the legislature thereof, but Congress may at any time by law make or alter such regulations.

Districts represented by Representatives, or by members of any State legislature, shall be compact and composed of contiguous territory.  Such districts shall be as nearly equal in whole number of persons per Representative or per member of the State legislature, as the case may be, as is practical.  The State shall have the burden of justifying any departures from these requirements by reference to neutral criteria such as natural or historical boundaries or demographic changes.  An interest in enhancing or preserving the political power of any party is not such a neutral criterion.

For purposes of creating, maintaining, and redrawing districts represented by Representatives or members of any State legislature, each State shall establish a commission.  No member of such commission may be a member of the State legislature, a representative or official of any party, or otherwise be unable to carry out their duties in a neutral manner.

No elected official shall carry out the administration of any election if such official is a candidate in such election or is otherwise unable to conduct the administration of such election in a neutral manner.  The State shall have the burden of justifying any law, method or procedure of election administration and certification as not having a purpose of enhancing or preserving the political power of any party.

Congress shall by law establish a tribunal that shall supervise, in an impartial and neutral manner, all tasks necessary with respect to federal elections, including ensuring voting rights, voter information and civic education, registration of all eligible voters, maintenance of voter lists, ballot design and integrity, ballot access, requirements for candidacy, election administration and security, and certification of election results.  The tribunal shall consist of seven members, of which four members shall be elected using a method of ranked choice voting by and among the officials in the several States charged with the administration of that State’s elections, and of which three members shall be chosen by unanimous vote of the four elected members.  Congress shall provide by law for equitable resolution of disputes involving two or more candidates for office.  The tribunal shall apply the law in effect at the time and place the dispute arose and shall not have the authority to change or create laws, but it may recommend prospective changes of law to Congress.  The decisions of this tribunal with respect to disputes shall be final, except that any such decision may be overturned by a vote of three-fifths of both chambers of Congress.  Congress shall designate a day in the first full week of October as the national election day, which shall be a national holiday.

The raising and spending of money by candidates for public office and their supporters to influence elections shall be publicly disclosed.  Congress and the State legislatures shall have power to implement this provision by appropriate legislation.

Section 5: Rules for Proceedings

Each chamber of Congress shall assemble at least once in every year, and such meeting shall begin at noon on the 3rd day of November, unless they shall by law appoint a different day.

A majority of each chamber 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 which manner and under such penalties as each chamber may provide.

Each chamber may determine the rules of its proceedings, provided that any change to rules shall take effect three years after adoption, unless repealed in the interim; punish its members for disorderly behavior or unwarranted absence; and, with the concurrence of two-thirds, expel a member.  Congress may by law determine the rules of proceeding for both chambers.

Unless otherwise specified in this Constitution, each chamber shall approve of resolutions or bills by majority vote of those present.  On any question, each Senator shall have at least one opportunity to speak, but the rules of each chamber shall provide an effectual means for preventing any dilatory tactic from precluding a vote on any resolution or bill for more than ten days after a member has called for the question.

Except for good cause shown, every member shall be present during the sittings of the House of Representatives or Senate, respectively, and shall vote for or against each question, unless the member has a direct or pecuniary interest in the determination of such question.

Each chamber shall keep a journal of its proceedings, and regularly publish the same, excepting such parts as may in their judgment require secrecy; and the yeas and nays of the members of either chamber on any question shall, at the desire of one-fifth of those present, be entered on the journal.

Neither chamber, 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 chambers shall be sitting.

Section 6:  Compensation and Privileges of Members

The Representatives and Senators shall receive a compensation for their services, to be ascertained by law, and paid out of the Treasury of the United States.  No law, varying the compensation for the services of the Representatives and Senators, shall take effect until after the next election of Representatives.  All investments made, or sources of income received, by any Representative or Senator from any source other than the Treasury of the United States shall be publicly disclosed. 

Representatives and Senators shall in all cases, except treason, felony and breach of the peace, be privileged from arrest during their attendance at the session of their respective chambers, and in going to and returning from the same; and for any speech or debate in either chamber, they shall not be questioned in any other place.

No person holding any office under the United States shall be a Representative or Senator during their continuance in office.

Section 7: Passage of Bills

All bills shall originate in the House of Representatives; but the President and any Senator may introduce bills into the House for its consideration.

Each bill or resolution that is introduced in the House of Representatives or the Senate shall be assigned to a committee of reference, and the committee shall consider the bill or resolution on its merits and take a vote on the bill or resolution.  A motion to report the bill or resolution favorably out of the committee, with or without amendments, is always in order within appropriate deadlines.  Any bill, resolution, nomination or treaty that has been favorably reported by committee or for which support by a majority of the chamber has been established by petition shall be presented to the full chamber for consideration on the merits and a vote.

Every bill which shall have passed the House of Representatives by two-thirds shall be presented to the President of the United States for their signature.  Every bill which shall have passed by the House of Representatives by a majority but by less than two-thirds shall be introduced into the Senate.  If the Senate approves a bill presented to it by the House within 180 days, it shall be presented to the President of the United States for their signature; if the Senate fails to vote on the bill within the same period, disapproves the bill by less than two-thirds, or amends the bill, it shall be returned to the House of Representatives for further consideration.  If, upon return by the Senate, a bill repasses the House of Representatives by a majority of all members without amendment, it shall be presented to the President for their signature. 

Every bill passed under the foregoing procedure shall, before it becomes law, be presented to the President of the United States; if the President disapproves, it shall be returned, with explanation, to the House of Representatives, who shall enter the objections at large on its journal, and proceed to reconsider it. If after such reconsideration two-thirds of the House of Representatives shall agree to pass the bill, it shall be sent, together with the objections to the Senate, by which it shall likewise be reconsidered, and if approved by two-thirds of the Senate, it shall become a law.  But in all such cases the names of the persons voting for and against the bill shall be entered on the journal of each chamber, respectively.  If any bill shall not be returned by the President within ten days after it shall have been presented, the same shall be a law, in like manner as if the President had signed it.

Every order, resolution, or vote to which the concurrence of House of Representatives and the Senate 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, or being disapproved by the President shall be repassed by two-thirds of the House of Representatives and the Senate, according to the rules and limitations prescribed in the case of a bill.

Every rule or regulation duly promulgated by the executive branch must be presented to Congress and may be disapproved by a majority vote of both chambers of Congress without presentment to the President.  Such rules and regulations shall take effect 90 days after presentment to Congress unless designated by the Cabinet as a measure taken to mitigate a state of emergency. 

Section 8: Powers of Congress

Congress shall have power:

  • To investigate all matters and conditions relating to or in furtherance of its constitutional powers, and to investigate the workings of all branches and agencies of government;
  • To lay and collect taxes, duties, imposts and excises, including taxes on income or wealth, from whatever source derived, without apportionment among the several states and without regard to any census or enumeration; but all duties, imposts and excises shall be uniform throughout the United States;
  • To pay debts and spend money for the common defense and general welfare of the United States;
  • To borrow money on the credit of the United States, provided that Congress cannot fail to authorize such borrowing to the extent needed for amounts previously appropriated and not funded by receipts, and provided further that Congress must maintain a plan of retiring such public debt of the United States to the extent needed to ensure such debt does not unduly burden posterity;
  • To regulate commerce with foreign nations, and among the several States, and with the indigenous nations, and to regulate the production and sale of goods and services in national markets;
  • To legislate with respect to the indigenous nations, subject to a trust responsibility to use such power for the welfare of those nations, and subject to their express and voluntary consent, reserving to those nations all powers of self-governance consistent with the national welfare;
  • To recognize foreign and indigenous nations;
  • To establish uniform rules of naturalization and immigration;
  • To enact uniform bankruptcy laws for individuals, corporate and other private entities, States, and municipalities, provided, however, that no State or municipality within a State shall be subject to such bankruptcy laws without the consent of the legislature thereof;
  • To coin money, regulate the value thereof, and of foreign coin, and fix the standard of weights and measures;
  • To provide for the punishment of counterfeiting the securities and coin or currency of the United States;
  • To establish a system for prompt and efficient postal service;
  • To regulate methods of transportation and communication with foreign and indigenous nations and among the several States;
  • To promote the progress of science and useful arts, by securing for no more than 28 years to authors and inventors the exclusive right to their respective writings and discoveries;
  • To constitute tribunals inferior to the Supreme Court, subject to such rights of appeal to the courts of the United States as Congress may direct;
  • To define and punish piracies and felonies committed on the high seas and other acts of violence by non-state actors, and offenses against the law of nations;
  • To declare war or authorize lesser military measures upon request from the President; to grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal; to make rules concerning captures; and to rescind any declaration of war or authorization of military action;
  • To raise and support military forces, and to make rules for their government and regulation;
  • To provide for calling forth the national guard to execute the laws of the Republic, suppress insurrections and repel invasions;
  • To provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining the national guard, 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 national guard according to the discipline prescribed by Congress;
  • To exercise exclusive legislation in all cases whatsoever, over such nonresidential district (not exceeding ten miles square) as may be the seat of the government of the United States, and to exercise like authority over all places purchased with the consent of the legislature of the State in which the same shall be, for the military bases, national parks, and other federal enclaves;
  • To conserve clean air and water, the public natural resources of the United States, and a safe and healthy environment for all residents and posterity;
  • To legislate for the general welfare, but only insofar as such action is necessary to address issues that are of national concern and that Congress reasonably determines cannot be adequately addressed by State and local governments, provided that, if the legislatures of States representing a majority of the people of the United States (as determined by the preceding census) disapprove by resolution such determination of Congress within one year of enactment, such law shall be rescinded; and
  • To make all laws and organize any agencies 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: Limitations on Congress

Neither the United States nor any State shall suspend the privilege of the Writ of Habeas Corpus, nor shall they pass bills of attainder or ex post facto laws.

No tax or duty shall be laid on articles exported from any State or indigenous nation to any other State or indigenous nation.

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 or other modes of transportation bound to, or from, one State or indigenous nation, be obliged to enter, clear, or pay duties in another.

No title of nobility shall be granted by any State or the United States; and no person holding any office of profit or trust under them shall accept any gift, thing of value, payment for services, office or title, of any kind whatsoever, from any foreign state.

Congress must endeavor to secure sustainable budgets and fiscal prudence in the conduct of the long-term economic affairs of the United States, taking into account the favorable and adverse phases of the economic cycle and extraordinary emergencies that significantly impair either the financial situation or the economic or social sustainability of the Republic.  Within 60 days of the beginning of a term of Congress, the House of Representatives shall have the duty to adopt a budget resolution by a majority of all members determining the amounts of total expenditures for that term of Congress.  To the extent that such total exceeds a reasonable estimate of receipts for such period prepared by the Treasury, the budget resolution shall propose legislation raising revenue or borrowing money in an amount sufficient to cover the excess of expenditures over anticipated revenues.  Bills raising revenue and borrowing money in accordance with the budget resolution shall enjoy legislative priority and shall be enacted before any appropriation for that term of Congress may be enacted.  No subsequent increase in appropriations may be enacted without a corresponding increase in revenue or borrowing.  No money shall be drawn from the Treasury but in consequence of appropriations made by law, provided that the funding of the government shall not lapse.  A regular statement and account of the receipts and expenditures of all public money shall be published regularly, as shall an analysis of the consequence of such receipts, expenditures and public debt on current and future generations as prepared by impartial and independent experts appointed by the Treasury. 

Section 10: Impeachment

The President and Vice President, the judges of the Supreme and inferior courts, and all officers of the United States shall be subject to impeachment and removal for treason, bribery, obstruction of justice, and other serious criminal acts or gross abuse of the public trust.

The House of Representatives, upon passage of a resolution initiating an impeachment inquiry by a majority, and the Senate, upon passage of articles of impeachment by the House of Representatives, or a committee of the House or Senate thereafter authorized by the House or Senate, respectively, shall have power to summon witnesses and call for papers, subject to privileges grounded in common law.  Any refusal to comply with such summons may be prosecuted without undue delay in federal court as prescribed by law, and a legal officer designated by the House of Representatives shall have standing to bring such prosecution without involvement by the executive branch.

The House of Representatives shall have the sole power to impeach, by a vote of three-fifths of the members present, and shall set forth the specific grounds in articles of impeachment, which shall be presented to the Senate immediately upon passage.

The Senate shall have the sole power to try all impeachments and shall convict on the votes of three-fifths of the members present.  When sitting for that purpose, they shall be on oath or affirmation. When the President or Vice President is tried, the Chief Justice shall preside over the public proceedings, but deliberation and voting of the Senate shall be conducted in closed session.

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.  The President shall be immune from criminal prosecution by the United States or any State during their term of office; provided that any statute of limitations shall be correspondingly extended, and the factual basis for any such prosecutions shall be reported to the Speaker of the House of Representatives for potential impeachment proceedings.

Article II – The Executive

Section 1: Organization of the Executive

The power to execute the laws shall be vested in the Cabinet, which shall consist of the President, the Vice President and, as established by law, the principal officers of the executive departments.  The President shall supervise and direct the principal officers of the executive departments or agencies; but notwithstanding such supervisory authority, Congress may establish by law commissions not subject to the President’s control for specific regulatory purposes. 

Section 2: Presidential Election and Installation

The President and Vice President shall be elected as a single ticket for a term of six years by a national popular vote conducted using a method of ranked choice voting. 

Congress may determine the rules for nomination to the presidency through one or more primary elections or by petition, provided that any such primary election or petition processes are reasonably designed to ensure that candidates have broad and diverse support.  Each qualifying candidate for President shall select a candidate for Vice President to be joined with their name on the ballot as a ticket.  Names of candidates for President and Vice President shall not be joined on the ballot as a ticket unless both candidates have consented, and no candidate shall consent to being joined with more than one other person. 

On the national election day of the last year of a presidential term, the States and territories shall conduct a national popular vote with respect to the tickets of qualifying candidates.  The ticket that obtains the majority of popular votes by method of ranked choice voting shall be elected President and Vice President.  Congress may determine the rules and procedures for ranked choice voting and the times, places, and manner of holding such elections provided that such rules are uniform throughout the United States.  Congress shall prescribe by law the time, place, and manner in which the results of such elections shall be ascertained and declared.  Congress may by law provide for the case of the death or withdrawal of any candidate for President or Vice President before a President and Vice President have been elected, and for the case of the death of either the President-Elect or the Vice-President-Elect.

The President shall be at least 35, and no more than 75, years of age; have been a citizen and resident of the United States for 15 years; and have served at least four years in Congress or as an executive of a State.  No person shall be elected to the office of President more than twice, and no person who has held the office of President, or acted as President, for more than four years of a term to which another person was elected President shall be eligible to be elected to the office of the President.  No person ineligible for the office of President shall be eligible to that of Vice President of the United States. 

The President and Vice President shall each at regular intervals receive a compensation, the real value of which shall neither be increased nor diminished during the period for which the President and Vice President shall have been elected, and shall not receive within that period any other gift, thing of value, payment for services, office or title, of any kind whatsoever, from the United States, any State, any foreign nation, or any other source. 

The terms of the President and the Vice President shall end at noon on the 15th day of November, and the terms of their successors shall then begin.

Before entering on the execution of the office, the President-Elect 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 3: Presidential Succession

In the case of the removal of the President from office or of their death or resignation, the Vice President shall become President.  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 of both chambers of Congress.

Whenever the President transmits to the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate their written declaration that they are unable to discharge the powers and duties of their office, and until the President transmits to the Speaker and the President pro tempore a written declaration to the contrary, such powers and duties shall be discharged by the Vice President as Acting President.

Whenever the Vice President and either a majority of the Cabinet, exclusive of the President, or of such other body as Congress may by law provide, transmit to the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate their written declaration that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of their office, the Vice President shall immediately assume the powers and duties of the office as Acting President.

Thereafter, if the President transmits to the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate a written declaration that no inability exists, Congress shall decide the issue, convening within 48 hours for that purpose if not in session. If Congress, within 21 days after receipt of such written declaration, determines by three-fifths vote of both chambers that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of their office, the Vice President shall continue to discharge the same as Acting President; otherwise, the President shall resume the powers and duties of their office.

Section 4: Executive Power

Subject to the oversight and direction of Congress, the Cabinet shall have the power:

  • To conduct the relations of the United States with foreign nations and international organizations;
  • By and with the consent of a majority of the Senate, to make treaties with indigenous and foreign nations;
  • To deliberate general policies of the executive departments and promote the general coherence thereof;
  • To effect the general administration of the government;
  • To promulgate regulations pursuant to delegations enacted by law; and
  • To appoint officers other than those appointments reserved to the President.

Matters of business of the Cabinet may be decided by voting, where in the event of the votes being equal, the President, or in their absence the highest-ranking Cabinet member who is present, shall have two votes.

The President shall have the power:

  • To be the civilian in charge of commanding and supervising the military forces of the United States, and of the national guard of the several States, when called into the actual service of the United States;
  • To require the written opinion of the principal officer in each of the executive departments and agencies upon any subject relating to the duties of their respective offices and to direct such officers in the execution of such duties, subject to such reasonable limitations prescribed by law;
  • To issue executive orders carrying into effect the powers vested in the President by the Constitution and laws of the United States and to enter into executive agreements with foreign nations and international organizations, provided that no executive order or agreement shall have the force and effect of law, or bind future executives, unless authorized by act of Congress;
  • To grant reprieves and pardons for offenses against the United States, except in cases of impeachment;
  • To convene both chambers of Congress or either of them, on extraordinary occasions, and in case of disagreement between them with respect to the time of adjournment, the President may adjourn them to such time as the President shall think proper;
  • To nominate and, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, shall appoint ambassadors;
  • To nominate and, by and with the advice and consent of the House of Representatives, shall appoint all principal officers of the executive department; provided that the appointment of the Attorney General of the United States, however, shall require a three-fifths concurrence for confirmation;
  • To remove officers, ambassadors, public ministers and consuls of the United States, subject to such reasonable conditions prescribed by law; and
  • To nominate and, by and with the advice and consent of the House of Representatives, shall appoint judges of the Supreme Court and any inferior court as provided in Article III of this Constitution.

Except with respect to nomination of the Attorney General and nominations provided in Article III, nominations shall be deemed to have received the advice and consent of the House of Representatives or the Senate, as the case may be, unless disapproved by majority vote within 120 days of the nomination; but any Representative or Senator, as the case may be, shall have the right to bring any nomination to the floor for debate and vote prior to the expiration of that time.  Congress shall by law provide for the designation of persons currently holding an executive branch office as interim officers in vacant positions.

Section 5: Executive Limitations

Notwithstanding section 4 of this Article, no person shall exercise executive power:

  • To command military force unless pursuant to a declaration of war or authorization by Congress; when the nation or territories are actually invaded or are in such imminent danger of invasion as will not admit of delay; or when necessary for the defense of the nation, its territories, its enclaves, and its instrumentalities, provided that any military action that is not authorized by Congress shall cease within 30 days unless Congress declares war or authorizes military action as provided in Article I of this Constitution;
  • With respect to the President, to grant any reprieve or pardon for their self, any member of their family, any person who has conspired with the President to commit a criminal act, any person from whom the President has received a thing of value, or any other person for which there would be a personal conflict of interest;
  • To remove the Attorney General from office other than for good cause or by impeachment and conviction;
  • With respect to the President or Vice President, to direct the criminal prosecution or non-prosecution of any person in a specific matter; and
  • To evade, by virtue of their office, criminal or civil liability in their personal capacity.

No member of the armed forces 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; nor shall the armed forces be used within the United States for the enforcement of criminal law except when ordinary means of law enforcement, supplemented by the national guard, are manifestly incapable of keeping order, and any such use may be disapproved by either chamber of Congress by majority vote.

Congress shall have the power to reinforce the limitations set forth in this section by appropriate legislation.

Section 6: Executive Duties 

The President and every other person exercising executive power shall have the duty to take care that the laws be faithfully executed.

The President shall have the duty:

  • From time to time, to give to Congress written information of the state of the union, and recommend to its consideration such measures as they shall judge necessary and expedient;
  • To receive ambassadors and other public ministers;
  • To represent the nation with dignity and impartiality on ceremonial occasions; and
  • To commission all officers of the United States.

Each person holding an office of profit or trust under the United States or any of the States or territories shall have the duty to exercise the powers of such office for the common welfare of the people of the United States and not for any personal benefit or special interest, and the courts of the United States shall not recognize immunity from criminal liability for violations of this provision.

If any person, in the exercise of the power of a public office entrusted to them, violates their official duty with respect to another person, liability shall rest principally with the government that employs such officer.  But in the event of intentional wrongdoing or gross negligence, the right of recourse against the individual officer shall be preserved.  

Article III – The Judiciary

Section 1:  Organization of the Judiciary

The judicial power of the United States shall be vested in one Supreme Court and in such inferior courts as Congress may establish.  The justices of the Supreme Court and the judges of the inferior courts shall hold their offices during good behavior for terms of 18 years.  

The Supreme Court of the United States shall have nine seats for nine justices, including one justice who shall serve as Chief Justice of the United States.  The seats shall correspond to staggered terms, two years apart, such that one term expires at noon on July 1 of each odd-numbered year.  

Section 2: Appointment

A judicial commission shall be established of no fewer than 15 persons selected by and from judges of the courts of the United States.  Congress may prescribe the rules of such commission by appropriate legislation.  The judicial commission shall be charged with determining candidates qualified for nomination and appointment to the courts of the United States and ensuring the impartiality, integrity and independence of such courts. No person shall be eligible for nomination or appointment to the Supreme Court or any inferior court unless such person has been unanimously determined to be qualified for such office by the judicial commission.  Qualification shall be primarily upon the basis of the person’s impartiality, integrity, and independence.

No person shall be eligible for nomination or appointment as a justice to the Supreme Court if that person has previously served as a justice; is not a citizen; or has not for at least 12 years been a member of the bar of a State, a territory, or a court of the United States. 

On the third day of March immediately preceding the expiration of a Supreme Court justice’s term, the President shall transmit to the House of Representatives a qualified nominee for the term commencing on July 1 of that year.  Upon a justice’s death, resignation, or removal, and to the extent that no senior justice is available to sit by designation for the unexpired potion of that justice’s term, the President shall transmit to the House of Representatives a qualified nominee for the unexpired portion of that justice’s term. 

The House of Representatives shall be required to provide its advice and consent, by giving due consideration to, and conducting a vote with respect to, each nomination to the Supreme Court or any inferior court within 120 days of transmission of such nomination to the House of Representatives unless such period has been extended by a three-fifths concurrence of the Representatives present.  Such appointments to the Supreme Court or any inferior court will become effective upon the concurrence of three-fifths of the Representatives present in approving the nomination.

Whenever there is a vacancy in the office of the Chief Justice, the sitting justices shall, by majority vote, choose a sitting justice to serve as Chief Justice.  In the event such a vote is tied, the most junior justice’s vote shall be discarded.  A Chief Justice’s service in that office shall continue for the remainder of that justice’s term.

A justice who occupies a seat on the Supreme Court at the expiration of a term may become a senior justice. A senior justice may serve on any inferior court of the United States, as Congress may provide by law.  Each sitting justice of the Supreme Court may transmit to Congress a list of senior justices in descending order of preference who may fill that justice’s seat by designation if available in the event of recusal, disability, death, resignation, or removal.  A justice may not amend such list more than once per calendar year.  In the absence of transmission of such list to Congress, a justice will be deemed to have transmitted a list of the current senior justices in reverse chronological order of attaining designation as a senior justice.

A judge who occupies a seat on an inferior court at the expiration of a term may become a senior judge, as Congress may provide by law.

Both the justices of the Supreme Court and the judges of the inferior courts shall at regular intervals receive for their services a compensation, the real value of which shall not be diminished during their continuance in office.

Section 3: Judicial Power

The Supreme Court shall have the duty to determine whether any law, order, regulation or official act conforms to the provisions, principles and purposes of this Constitution when at issue in a case or controversy before it.

The judicial power shall extend to all cases, in law and equity, arising under the Constitution, treaties, and laws of the United States; to 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; 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.

In cases in which an ambassador or other public minister, an indigenous nation, or the United States is a party, the federal courts shall have exclusive jurisdiction.  In controversies between two or more States, the Supreme Court shall have exclusive jurisdiction.  In all the other cases and controversies to which the federal judicial power extends, Congress may regulate the respective jurisdictions of the State and federal courts.  The Supreme Court shall have appellate jurisdiction in all cases from the inferior courts of the United States, and in cases from the State courts involving this Constitution, the laws made in pursuance thereof, and the treaties made or which shall be made under the authority of the United States.  Neither the United States nor any State shall enjoy immunity from suit in the courts of the United States.

Section 4: Treason

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.

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 – The States

Section 1: Interstate Relations

Full faith and credit shall be given in each State to the public acts, records and proceedings of every other State.  And Congress may by general laws prescribe the manner in which such acts, records and proceedings shall be proved, and the effect thereof.

The citizens of each State and each territory of the United States shall be entitled to all privileges and immunities of citizens in the several States.

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 they fled, be delivered up, to be removed to the State having jurisdiction of the crime, and Congress shall have the power to validate this provision by appropriate legislation.

Section 2: Limitations on States and Territories

No State or territory shall enter into any treaty, alliance or confederation; grant letters of marque and reprisal; coin money; emit bills of credit; make any thing other money created under the authority of the United States 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.

No State or territory shall, without the consent of Congress, lay any imposts or duties on imports or exports, except what may be absolutely necessary for executing its inspection laws; and the net produce of all duties and imposts, laid by any State or territory 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 control of Congress.

No State or territory shall, without the consent of Congress, lay any duty of tonnage, keep troops or ships or other military equipment 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.

No State or territory shall abridge the right of citizens to freely move within the United States and choose their place of residence.

No State or territory shall select judges of its courts through popular election.

Section 3: Admission of States and Territories

New States may be admitted by 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 Congress.

Residents of any territory belonging to the United States shall, within an initial term of four years, and again at intervals of no greater than ten years, be granted the opportunity to vote to require the United States either to relinquish its claim on such territory or to admit such territory into the United States as a new State.  The portion of the District of Columbia existing as of ratification of this Constitution and that does not house the federal government or other federal lands shall be admitted as a State.

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, provided that it guarantees to any territory all of the federal constitutional rights of persons enjoyed by citizens of the several States; nothing in this Constitution shall be so construed as to prejudice any claims of the United States, or of any particular State.

Section 4: Guarantees to States and Territories

The United States shall maintain a republican and democratic form of government and it shall guarantee to every State and territory a republican and democratic form of government, with appropriate separation of powers; it shall protect each of them against invasion; and on application of the legislature, or of the executive (when the legislature cannot be convened) against public disorder and terrorism.  Congress shall have the power to defend these guarantees by appropriate legislation, and the federal courts shall have jurisdiction to determine whether a State or territory has denied its people a republican and democratic form of government.

Section 5: Constitutional Supremacy

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 and other public officials in every State and territory shall be bound thereby, anything in the constitution or laws of any State to the contrary notwithstanding.

The Representatives and Senators, 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.  No person shall serve as a Representative or Senator, a member of a State legislature, or an executive or judicial officer of the United States or any State who, having previously taken an oath 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 chamber remove such disability.

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 prior Constitution.  The validity of the public debt of the United States authorized by law shall not be questioned.

Article V – Amendments

Whenever an absolute majority of each chamber of Congress, or a majority of the legislatures of the several States, shall deem it necessary, they may propose amendments to this Constitution, which, in either case, shall be valid to all intents and purposes as part of this Constitution when:

  • Ratified by legislatures of States representing at least two-thirds of the people of the United States;
  • Ratified by two-thirds of the qualified electors of the several States voting in an election of the entire House of Representatives, provided that the number of such electors ratifying such amendment is certified to be equal to or greater than a majority of all qualified electors; or
  • Ratified by two-thirds of each chamber of Congress;

As the mode of ratification may be proposed by Congress, or by the legislatures of the several States, as the case may be.

Article VI – The Bill of Rights

Section 1: Freedom of Conscience, Religion, Speech, Press, Assembly, Petition

The United States and each State shall guarantee freedom of conscience and free exercise of religion, and neither the United States nor any State shall establish any religion or promote, favor or fund any religious organization.  Freedom to manifest one’s conscience or religion may be subject only to such limitations as are prescribed by neutral laws of general applicability that are reasonably necessary to protect public safety, order or health, or the rights and freedoms of others. 

The United States and each State shall guarantee freedom of thought, belief, opinion, and expression, including freedom of the press and other media of communication without prior restraint; freedom of peaceful assembly and association; and freedom to petition the government for a redress of grievances. No provision of this Constitution shall be construed to equate the raising or spending of money to an expression of speech, nor shall it be construed to prohibit Congress or any State from imposing limits on the amount of money that candidates for public office, or their supporters, may spend to influence elections, provided that such limits are reasonably aimed at ensuring that all citizens are able to participate in elections meaningfully and on equal terms; nor shall any provision of this Constitution be construed to abridge the right of children to be protected from abuse, nor the right of persons to seek redress in good faith for an injury-in-fact caused by statements that, by a preponderance of the evidence, the publisher knew to be false or made with reckless disregard for the truth.

Section 2: Right to Equal Protection

All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to its jurisdiction, and the children of a citizen of the United States wherever born, are citizens of the United States and of the State in which they reside, with all of the rights of citizenship.  Every person has the right to equal protection of the laws, and no law that has the effect of violating such right shall be respected.  No person shall be subjected to unjust discrimination on account of race, color, national origin, ethnicity, religion, disability, sex, sexual orientation, gender, or any other nongermane characteristic.  Governmental measures reasonably designed to rectify past discrimination are permitted.

Section 3: Abolition of Slavery and Cruel or Inhumane Punishments

Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to its jurisdiction.  Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel or inhumane punishments inflicted, nor sentences disproportionate to the offense of which the defendant is convicted.  Capital punishment is prohibited.

Section 4: Right to Privacy

Neither the United States nor any State shall unreasonably intrude upon the privacy of the home, personal relationships, or reproductive freedom.

No person shall be disturbed in their private affairs, nor shall their home, papers, communications, movements, or effects be subjected to search or seizure, without a warrant, except where circumstances will not admit of delay.  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.

Section 5: Right to Due Process in Criminal Matters

No person shall be held to answer for any felony, unless on a presentment or indictment of a grand jury, except in cases arising in the military forces or national guard, when in actual service in time of war or public danger.  

In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury representative of the community wherein the alleged crime shall have been committed or, in the case of crimes alleged to have been committed outside the United States, at such place or places directed by law; to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against them; to be provided access to all inculpatory and exculpatory material possessed by the government; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in their favor; and to have the effective assistance of counsel for their defense at all stages of proceedings.  Where the accused is unable to afford counsel, competent counsel shall be provided, and reasonable costs of such counsel paid, by the United States in the case of a federal crime, or by the State, county or local government wherein the defendant has been accused.  No verdict shall be rendered except by unanimous vote of the jury.  The government shall bear the burden of demonstrating, by clear and convincing evidence, that any waiver of any right is knowing, intelligent, and voluntary.

No person may be subject for the same offense to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against one’s self, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law.

Section 6: Right to Due Process in Civil Matters

In the determination of civil rights and obligations, where the value in controversy shall exceed one thousand dollars, as adjusted for inflation every ten years after ratification, all persons are entitled to the right of trial by jury.  No fact tried by a jury shall be otherwise re-examined in any court than according to the rules of the common law.

No person shall be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law.  Private property may not be taken by the United States or by any State except for a public use, and any such property taken for a public use shall be for just compensation within a reasonable time period. A public use exists only if the property is transferred to government ownership and control, if the general public has a legal right to access or utilize the property, or as necessary to eliminate a substantial threat to public health or safety.

Corporations and other artificial entities created by law shall have only those rights that are germane to their purpose.

Section 7: Right to Vote

In all elections for federal and State office, all citizens of the United States who are 18 years of age or older shall have the fundamental right to vote.  It is the duty of the United States and each State to protect the right of all qualified voters to cast a secure and secret ballot.  Neither the United States nor any State shall impose any test or device that has the purpose or effect of denying or abridging the right to vote on account of the race, color, national origin, ethnicity, religion, disability, sex, sexual orientation, gender, age, economic status or political affiliation of the voter or on account of failure to pay any poll tax or any other tax, fee, or fine.  It shall be the duty of the United States and each State to protect all qualified voters from violence, threats of violence, intimidation, or the granting or withholding of any valuable right or benefit in connection with an attempt to influence voting.

Section 8: Right to Education

The United States and every State shall guarantee the right of residents to a basic education sufficient to fully participate in the polity and pursue decent work and livelihoods.  Education shall, among other things, be designed to further respect for democracy, rule of law and human rights.  Educational disparities and segregation of students due to the resources of their families shall be minimized.

Section 9: Enforcement of Rights

Any person subject to the jurisdiction of the United States who has suffered the deprivation of any rights or freedoms guaranteed by this Constitution may petition a court of competent jurisdiction to obtain such remedy as the court considers appropriate and just in the circumstances.  Congress shall have the power to safeguard the rights guaranteed by this Article with appropriate legislation.

Section 10: Unenumerated and Reserved Rights

This Constitution guarantees the rights and freedoms set out herein subject only to such reasonable limits as can be demonstrably justified in a free and democratic society.  The enumeration in this Constitution of certain rights shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people, or make those enumerated rights superior to or more enforceable than unenumerated rights.  The powers not delegated to the United States by this Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.

Article VII – Ratification

The ratification of the conventions of 35 States or of States representing three-fourths of the population of the United States shall be sufficient for the establishment of this Constitution between the States.