This marks the first national convention of the states assembled since 1861. Delegates are meeting to prepare for an anticipated convention brought together under Article V of the U.S. Constitution to propose a balanced budget amendment and recommend a set of rules under which the convention would be governed.
“For the past decade, Indiana has led the nation in responsible spending. I believe we need to take this approach nationwide,” Bassler said. “With national debt around the $20 trillion mark, we need accountability in Washington D.C. through a balanced budget amendment. It’s important that the government spends responsibly, because every dollar spent by the government is a dollar that was first earned by a hardworking American.”
Senate Joint Resolution 14, which Bassler co-authored, was passed by the General Assembly in 2016 and called for an Article V Convention of the States.
As outlined in Article V of the U.S. Constitution, a state-led “convention for proposing amendments” will take place whenever two-thirds of the states (34 states) apply to Congress to call such a convention. Any amendments approved by the convention would then require ratification by three-fourths of the states (38 states) to be added to the Constitution.
Bassler was appointed as a delegate for this convention by State Sen. David Long (R-Fort Wayne). Other Indiana delegates include State Sen. Travis Holdman (R-Markle), State Rep. Ben Smaltz (R-Auburn) and State Rep. Jim Lucas (R-Seymour).
For more information about the Balanced Budget Amendment Planning Convention, visit bbaplanningconvention.org.
