Making an Amendment

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  Propose the amendment. According to Article V of the Bill of Rights, the power to add amendments to the Constitution is given only to our legislative bodies. There are two ways an amendment can be proposed. One way is to have it proposed by Congress. The second way--and this has never been used--is to have an amendment proposed by an individual state.
  
  
• 2
  Waiting for the ERA to pass
  
  Bring the proposed amendment to a vote. In the case of the first process, proposal to the legislative houses, for an amendment to be approved for further action, it must be accepted by two-thirds of the members of each house, both Senate and the House of Representatives; this action is referred to as "calling for a resolution" asking for ratification. In the case of the second process, the amendment must be called for by two-thirds of the states. This direction of the process is the states asking for a convention so that constitutional amendments can be proposed. Neither of these processes require the President's signature. This is the lengthiest part of the procedure and can take months or years.
  
  
• 3
  Governor's Mansion Williamsburg, VA
  
  Ratify the amendment. In order to become a Constitutional Amendment, the proposed amendment must be "ratified" or approved by either three-fourths of both houses or three-fourths of the state's legislatures, depending from which direction the proposal has come.
  
  
• 4
  Certifying a document
  
  Certify the amendment. Once an amendment has been ratified, is it must be certified by the Archivist of the United States, with a declaration that an amendment has been legally ratified. Whether the Office of the Federal Registry has received State Actions from all 50 states or not, the moment they receive 38, the Federal Registry will notify the Archivist via a formal declaration that the amendment has passed and it becomes part of the Constitution.
  
  
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  An announcement
  
  Formally announcing the amendment. Now that the certification process has passed, the new amendment is published in the Federal Registry, thereby being the formal announcement to Congress and Senate, it becomes the law of the land, subject to interpretation only by the Supreme Court. However, an amendment can be rescinded, as was the case of the 18th Amendment, which created Prohibition, declaring alcohol of any kind illegal, in 1919, having been approved by 36 of the 48 states. In 1933, this amendment was repealed by the 21st Amendment. Repealing an amendment can only be done with the proposition of a new amendment. To date, the only amendment that has ever been repealed is the 18th Amendment.
  
  
• 6
  
  
  Celebrate the signing of the Certification. This has become a largely ceremonial event in recent decades. While the President's signature is not required for the passage of a Constitutional amendment, the President has been asked to take part in this ceremony by signing as a witness to the passage. Other dignitaries and common citizens have been asked to be witnesses as well. This is known as a reward for notable contribution to our political system.