Congressional Reform Act of 2011

[Soapweed]

We should all do our best to spread the word and try to get this passed. It would certainly be an improvement on the present system.



Congressional Reform Act of 2011



1. Term Limits - 12 years max, some possible options are below.

A. Two Six-year Senate terms

B. Six Two-year House terms

C. One Six-year Senate term and three Two-Year House terms



2. No Tenure / No Pension

Members of Congress receive a salary while in office, that salary ends when they leave office.



3. Congress members (past, present & future) are to participate in Social Security.

All funds in the Congressional retirement fund move to the Social Security system immediately.

All future funds flow into the Social Security system, and Congress participates with all Americans.



4. Congress can purchase their own retirement plan just as all Americans do.



5. Congress will no longer vote themselves a pay raise. Congressional pay will rise by the lower of CPI or 3%.



6. Congress loses their current health care system and participates in the same health care system as the American people.



7. Members of Congress must equally abide by all laws they impose on the American people.



8. All contracts with past and present members of Congress are void effective 1/1/12.



The American people did not make the contract members of Congress enjoy, Congress made all these contracts for themselves.

Serving in Congress is an honor, not a career.

The Founding Fathers envisioned citizen legislators, so ours should serve their term(s), then go home and back to work.





THIS IS HOW YOU FIX CONGRESS ! ! ! ! !

 

[tumbleweed_texn]

What exactly is involved in getting something on the national ballot and bypassing congress? It would have to be a grassroots movement by the people. No way is congress going to kill that goose.

 

[Steve]

Could this amendment be passed without Congress voting on it?

Yes and no. Article 5 of the U.S. Constitution specifies two procedures for amendments. One method is for two-thirds of states legislatures to call for a constitutional convention at which new amendments may be proposed, subject to ratification by three-fourths of the states. The constitutional convention method allows for the Constitution to be amended by the actions of states alone and cuts Congress out of the equation — no Congressional vote or approval is required. However, not once in the history of the United States have the states ever called a convention for the purpose of proposing new constitutional amendments.

The other method for amending the Constitution (the one employed with every amendment so far proposed or enacted) requires that the proposed amendment be approved by both houses of Congress (i.e., the Senate and the House of Representatives) by a two-thirds majority in each, and then ratified by three-fourths of the states. It's probably safe to speculate that the odds that a supermajority of both houses of Congress would pass an amendment which placed such restrictions upon them are very low indeed.

it would take a bunch of career politicians either way to do the right thing... and I don't see that happening without a total uprising from both parties.. we can force change.