House committee passes resolution calling for convention on national term limits
TALLAHASSEE, Fla.- The Florida House State Affairs Committee passed a resolution Tuesday that calls for a constitutional convention to implement congressional term limits.
The bill, HCR 693, was introduced by Rep. David Borrero, R-Sweetwater.
“The concurrent resolution is an application to the United States Congress to call a convention for the sole purpose [of] proposing an amendment to the United States Constitution to impose term limits on members of the US Congress,” Borrero said.
The bill analysis explained that although many states, including Florida, passed congressional term limits in the early 1990s, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the only way to impose term limits would be nationally, through the U.S. Constitution.
“We cannot fix a broken D.C. with the same people who created the problems in the first place,” Borrero said.
Rep. Robin Bartleman, D-Weston, expressed concerns about the resolution potentially being used to amend the constitution in alternative ways that were not for the purpose of term limits.
“In this case, it is limited specifically and only to term limits,” Borrero responded. “And if additional subject matters were to be added to a convention, the language of this concurrent resolution would revoke it.”
Rep. Spencer Roach, R-North Fort Myers, spoke favorably of the bill during the committee meeting.
“I think if the president should have a term limit, then the Congress should have a term limit,” he said. “Either all should have term limits or none.”
He also emphasized how amending the constitution would not be dangerous or potentially undemocratic.
“I would remind everyone that any proposed amendment has to be ratified by three-fourths of the states,” Roach said. “That’s 38 out of 50 states in the union.”
“That to me is the ultimate check on power here,” he said. “If the voters don’t like it, they do not have to vote for it.”
Florida has had term limits for various elected officials, including the governor, the governor’s cabinet and state representatives. The limits were implemented in 1992 after the citizens of the state voted overwhelmingly in support, with nearly 77%.
Last month, Gov. Ron DeSantis outlined his support and plan to implement congressional term limits through the states if he were elected president.
“We have people like [Nancy] Pelosi who have been there for decade after decade,” he said. “They’re more interested in advancing themselves than they are delivering results for you.”
“The problem is, Congress is never going to enact this,” DeSantis said. “As president, I’ll lead the efforts to bring about term limits through the states.”
