By Wentworth S.R. No. 286
77R4505 CCK-D
R E S O L U T I O N
1-1 WHEREAS, In 1990, the United States Supreme Court, in the
1-2 case of Missouri, et al. v. Jenkins, et al. (495 U.S. 33), chose to
1-3 disregard Article I, Section 8, of the United States Constitution,
1-4 which reserves exclusively to the legislative branch of government
1-5 the power to tax the citizenry; and
1-6 WHEREAS, In drafting that constitutional section and
1-7 allocating the power of taxation, the founding fathers drew upon
1-8 the Petition of Right, an English law initiated by Sir Edward Coke,
1-9 then approved by the British House of Commons and accepted by King
1-10 Charles I on June 7, 1628, which states in pertinent part that
1-11 "...no man hereafter (may) be compelled to make or yield
1-12 any...tax...without common consent by Act of Parliament..."; and
1-13 WHEREAS, In 1787, the framers of the United States
1-14 Constitution reiterated that time-tested principle of limited
1-15 taxation, specifically vesting with the legislative branch the
1-16 "...Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and
1-17 Excises..."; and
1-18 WHEREAS, Their intent is unambiguous, made clear by the
1-19 analysis of James Madison, who observed in The Federalist No. 48
1-20 that "...the legislative department alone has access to the pockets
1-21 of the people..."; and
1-22 WHEREAS, The same view is expressed by Alexander Hamilton,
1-23 who asked rhetorically in The Federalist No. 33, "(w)hat is the
1-24 power of laying and collecting taxes but a legislative power...?,"
2-1 and follows consistently in The Federalist No. 78, in which he
2-2 argued that the judiciary should be the least dangerous branch of
2-3 government inasmuch as judges would have "...no influence over
2-4 either the sword or the purse..."; and
2-5 WHEREAS, Yet today, Hamilton's argument no longer rings true;
2-6 through legal orders and the exercise of judicial threat and
2-7 intimidation, federal courts have usurped the power of the
2-8 legislative branch and have gone so far as to apply it even to
2-9 non-federal levels of government, mandating state and local
2-10 requirements that have the direct, or indirect, effect of imposing
2-11 judicial taxes upon the states and their political subdivisions;
2-12 and
2-13 WHEREAS, In so vesting itself by fiat with control of the
2-14 public purse strings, the federal judiciary has contravened and
2-15 overridden the constitutional separation of powers between the
2-16 different branches and levels of government, threatening creation
2-17 of a fiscal oligarchy unbeholden to influence by the electorate;
2-18 and
2-19 WHEREAS, The states and Congress have too long ignored this
2-20 self-proclamation and seizure of taxation powers, and it behooves
2-21 all Americans to preserve their rights by the adoption of an
2-22 amendment to the Constitution of the United States, re-establishing
2-23 the fundamental link between taxation and representation; and
2-24 WHEREAS, Seeking to reverse the aforementioned Jenkins
2-25 decision of 1990, lawmakers in 21 other states, beginning in 1993,
2-26 have already adopted and transmitted to Congress memorials
2-27 requesting that Congress propose an amendment to the United States
3-1 Constitution, and those memorials have been entered in the
3-2 Congressional Record as follows:
3-3 the Missouri General Assembly in 1993 (Senate Concurrent Resolution
3-4 No. 9) designated as POM-175 in Volume 139 of the Congressional
3-5 Record at page 14565;
3-6 the Colorado General Assembly in 1994 (Senate Joint Memorial No.
3-7 94-2) designated as POM-569 in Volume 140 of the Congressional
3-8 Record at page 15070;
3-9 the New York Senate in 1994 (Senate No. 3352) designated as POM-578
3-10 in Volume 140 of the Congressional Record at page 15073;
3-11 the Tennessee General Assembly in 1994 (Senate Joint Resolution No.
3-12 372) designated as POM-580 in Volume 140 of the Congressional
3-13 Record at page 15074;
3-14 the Arizona Legislature in 1995 (Senate Concurrent Resolution No.
3-15 1014) designated as POM-523 in Volume 142 of the Congressional
3-16 Record at pages 6586 and 6587;
3-17 the Louisiana Legislature in 1995 (Senate Concurrent Resolution No.
3-18 11) designated as POM-525 in Volume 142 of the Congressional Record
3-19 at page 6587;
3-20 the Massachusetts Senate in 1995 (unnumbered resolution) designated
3-21 as POM-625 in Volume 142 of the Congressional Record at pages 14940
3-22 and 14941 and designated as POM-638 at page 15486;
3-23 the Nevada Legislature in 1995 (Senate Joint Resolution No. 2)
3-24 designated as POM-287 in Volume 141 of the Congressional Record at
3-25 page 22422;
3-26 the Alaska Legislature in both 1996 and 1998 (House Joint
3-27 Resolution No. 30 in 1996) designated as POM-622 in Volume 142 of
4-1 the Congressional Record at pages 14939 and 14940; (House Joint
4-2 Resolution No. 57 in 1998) designated as POM-515 in Volume 144 of
4-3 the Congressional Record at page S9042;
4-4 the Michigan Legislature in 1996 (Senate Concurrent Resolution No.
4-5 278) designated as POM-444 in Volume 144 of the Congressional
4-6 Record at page S5515;
4-7 the South Dakota Legislature in 1996 (House Concurrent Resolution
4-8 No. 1010) designated as POM-526 in Volume 142 of the Congressional
4-9 Record at page 6587;
4-10 the Delaware General Assembly in 1997 (House Concurrent Resolution
4-11 No. 6) designated as POM-120 in Volume 143 of the Congressional
4-12 Record at page S5252;
4-13 the Alabama Legislature in 1998 (House Joint Resolution No. 261)
4-14 designated as POM-416 in Volume 144 of the Congressional Record at
4-15 page S9405;
4-16 the Oklahoma Legislature in 1998 (Senate Concurrent Resolution No.
4-17 50) designated as POM-479 in Volume 144 of the Congressional Record
4-18 at pages S6404 and S6405;
4-19 the Illinois Senate in 1999 (Senate Resolution No. 216) designated
4-20 as POM-449 in Volume 146 of the Congressional Record at page S1814
4-21 and designated as POM-512 at page S3611;
4-22 the Utah Legislature in 1999 (House Joint Resolution No. 5)
4-23 designated as POM-285 in Volume 145 of the Congressional Record at
4-24 page S9945;
4-25 the Kansas Legislature in 2000 (House Concurrent Resolution No.
4-26 5059) designated as POM-527 in Volume 146 of the Congressional
4-27 Record at page S4378;
5-1 the New Hampshire General Court in 2000 (House Concurrent
5-2 Resolution No. 27) designated as POM-531 in Volume 146 of the
5-3 Congressional Record at page S6469;
5-4 the Pennsylvania General Assembly in 2000 (Senate Resolution No.
5-5 47) designated as POM-642 in Volume 146 of the Congressional Record
5-6 at pages S11788 and S11789;
5-7 the South Carolina General Assembly in 2000 (House Concurrent
5-8 Resolution No. 4434) designated as POM-641 in Volume 146 of the
5-9 Congressional Record at page S11575; and
5-10 the West Virginia Legislature in 2000 (House Concurrent Resolution
5-11 No. 5) designated as POM-442 in Volume 146 of the Congressional
5-12 Record at page S1669; now, therefore, be it
5-13 RESOLVED, That the Senate of the 77th Legislature of the
5-14 State of Texas, Regular Session, 2001, hereby memorialize the
5-15 United States Congress to propose and submit to the states for
5-16 ratification an amendment to the United States Constitution to
5-17 prohibit all federal courts from ordering or instructing any state
5-18 or political subdivision thereof, or an official of any state or
5-19 political subdivision, to levy or increase taxes; and, be it
5-20 further
5-21 RESOLVED, That the Congress be respectfully requested to
5-22 entertain the following suggested text for an amendment:
5-23 "ARTICLE ______
5-24 "Neither the Supreme Court nor any inferior court of
5-25 the United States shall have the power to instruct or
5-26 order a state or political subdivision thereof, or an
5-27 official of such state or political subdivision, to
6-1 levy or increase taxes"; and, be it further
6-2 RESOLVED, That the secretary of the Texas Senate forward
6-3 official copies of this resolution to the vice-president of the
6-4 United States, to the speaker of the United States House of
6-5 Representatives, and to all members of the Texas delegation to the
6-6 Congress, with the request that this resolution be entered
6-7 officially in the Congressional Record as a memorial to the
6-8 Congress of the United States of America to propose for
6-9 ratification a federal constitutional amendment to prohibit
6-10 judicially-imposed taxes.