Heartland Institute Experts Comment on Utah House’s Approval of Application for an Article V Convention

Published March 2, 2016

The Utah House of Representatives approved House Joint Resolution 8 – an application for an Article V convention – on Tuesday by a vote of 41 to 33. The application would call for a convention to enact a federal balanced budget amendment, impose term limits on members of Congress, and reduce federal regulations. HJR 8 now goes to the state Senate for approval. Convention of States is a project of Citizens for Self-Governance, an organization promoting citizen involvement in government.

Utah could become the seventh state to fully enact a resolution backed by Convention of States. Similar proposals are being considered in Indiana, Missouri, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Virginia, and West Virginia. Convention of States has recently earned endorsements from Republican Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas and former Florida governor Jeb Bush. The Heartland Institute’s Center on Constitutional Reform supports using Article V to amend the U.S. Constitution to rein in the power of the national government, but it endorses no single proposal.

The following statements from constitutional reform experts at The Heartland Institute – a free-market think tank – may be used for attribution. For more comments, refer to the contact information below. To book a Heartland guest on your program, please contact Donald Kendal, New Media Specialist, The Heartland Institute, at [email protected] or 312/377-4000.


“The Utah House of Representatives sent a message today to the Washington politicians that they are not waiting any longer to fix our national debt. Lawmakers in The Beehive State are embracing the call for a convention of states because there are amendments popular with Utahans like a balanced budget requirement for the national government and term limits.

“The Utah Senate’s approval of Convention of States would send a signal that the movement to fundamentally reform Washington through Article V is growing stronger than ever.”

Kyle Maichle
Project Manager, Constitutional Reform
The Heartland Institute
[email protected]
312/377-4000


“The Utah House of Representatives should be commended for taking action to rein in an out-of-control national government. Convention of States finally forces our national government to live up to the same balanced budget requirement in 49 states and imposes term limits on Congress.

“Utahans of various political persuasions support these amendments because these are the best policy prescriptions for getting our country back on track.”

David Guldenschuh
Policy Adviser for Constitutional Reform
The Heartland Institute
[email protected]
312/377-4000


“The national debt – a measure of all outstanding debt owed by Washington, DC, plus the interest on that debt – is more than $19 trillion, or about $159,034 per taxpayer.

“Lawmakers in the Utah House of Representatives have done what lawmakers in DC are unwilling to do: take a real step towards stopping the unethical practice of passing the buck and dumping responsibility for their wasteful spending onto future generations.

“By approving the Convention of States resolution, the Utah Legislature is leading the charge towards fiscal responsibility and real reform in our nation.”

Jesse Hathaway
Managing Editor, Budget & Tax News
Research Fellow, The Heartland Institute
[email protected]
312/377-4000


The Heartland Institute is a 32-year-old national nonprofit organization headquartered in Arlington Heights, Illinois. Its mission is to discover, develop, and promote free-market solutions to social and economic problems. For more information, visit our Web site or call 312/377-4000.