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House committee advances Article V convention resolution after lengthy debate
Summary
Representatives debated a resolution applying to Congress to call an Article V constitutional convention. Supporters said the measure is a constitutional tool to restrain federal power; opponents raised concerns about timing, scope and the risk of an open-ended convention.
The Arizona House advanced House Concurrent Resolution 2,041 on Feb. 17, 2025, after an extended floor debate over the use and risks of an Article V convention to amend the U.S. Constitution.
Representative Montenegro, who sponsored the measure, said the Founders gave states Article V as a constitutional check when the federal government overreaches. "We have a runaway federal government," Montenegro said in closing remarks, urging members to "flex our constitutional muscle" and asserting that a convention would be unlikely to occur but that the threat of one compelled Congress to act.
Representative Powell rose to oppose the measure and listed a series of procedural and substantive questions, including who would select delegates, how delegates would be bound, whether deliberations would be public and whether a convention could be limited to specific subjects. Powell warned that an Article V convention could open the Constitution to wide change and quoted historical figures, saying the risks to constitutional protections were real.
Other members spoke for and against the resolution; Representative Fink urged that states use existing powers to resist federal encroachment, while supporters said the threat of an Article V application historically has led Congress to propose amendments. The Committee of the Whole recommended the resolution do pass; on the floor the matter received a voice vote in favor and was reported out for further processing.
