By:  Chisum                                           H.C.R. No. 88
       73R6370 CCK-D
                                 CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
    1-1        WHEREAS, In recent years, Americans have shown support for
    1-2  limiting the number of terms that their lawmakers may serve, as
    1-3  evidenced by opinion polls showing as many as 70 percent of
    1-4  respondents in favor of such limitations; and
    1-5        WHEREAS, The wisdom of term limitations for holders of
    1-6  national office has been reflected since 1951 in the 22nd Amendment
    1-7  to the United States Constitution, which prohibits the president
    1-8  from being elected chief executive more than twice; and
    1-9        WHEREAS, Term limitations for members of the United States
   1-10  Congress would help to reduce unwarranted advantages of incumbency,
   1-11  restore greater balance to campaign financing, and give voters a
   1-12  better opportunity to weigh the relative merits of office seekers;
   1-13  and
   1-14        WHEREAS, Increased turnover in the congress also would ensure
   1-15  greater participation in the governance of our nation by replacing
   1-16  career politicians with citizen legislators who would bring to the
   1-17  corridors of public office the experience gained in other
   1-18  professions and occupations; and
   1-19        WHEREAS, Term limitations would reduce the preoccupation of
   1-20  incumbents with reelection, lessening their tendency toward risk
   1-21  avoidance and freeing them to more openly entertain and contemplate
   1-22  fresh views and ideas; and
   1-23        WHEREAS, Recognizing these virtues of term limitations, 16
   1-24  states since 1990 have passed measures or adopted initiatives to
    2-1  limit congressional terms of office, and the time is opportune to
    2-2  examine more fully whether such limitations should be extended to
    2-3  the members of the congress from all 50 states uniformly; now,
    2-4  therefore, be it
    2-5        RESOLVED, That the 73rd Legislature of the State of Texas
    2-6  hereby apply to the Congress of the United States to call a
    2-7  convention for the specific and exclusive purpose of proposing an
    2-8  amendment to the United States Constitution to limit the terms of
    2-9  office of members of the United States Senate and House of
   2-10  Representatives; and, be it further
   2-11        RESOLVED, That the Texas secretary of state forward official
   2-12  copies of this resolution to the speaker of the house of
   2-13  representatives and the president of the senate of the United
   2-14  States Congress, and to all members of the Texas delegation to the
   2-15  congress, with the request that this resolution be entered
   2-16  officially in the Congressional Record as an application to the
   2-17  Congress of the United States of America for a convention to
   2-18  propose a federal constitutional amendment to limit congressional
   2-19  terms of office.