While the focus of the national media and political junkies is understandably trained upon the 2024 presidential and congressional elections, Convention of States Action (COSA) activists know that the action is just as vibrant and significant in the state houses. And those activists have accomplished a great deal in this vital election year.
COS Resolutions
COS teams have organized or scheduled Surge Days in 33 states since the beginning of this year’s legislative sessions, including Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, and most recently in North Carolina.
Surge Days enable the grassroots to mobilize at their respective state capitols to hear from COSA leadership and engage with state representatives and senators in order to convince lawmakers to co-sponsor and/or support the COS resolution for calling an Article V convention.
As a result, over 370 state legislators across the country have co-sponsored the COS resolution, 20 states have filed a COS resolution during the current legislative session, and 21 different legislative chambers have assigned the COS resolution to various committees for consideration.
Committee Victories
COS resolutions have already been favorably reported out of committees in several states in 2024.
Despite loud claims to the contrary by opponents of COS, the effort to call an Article V convention is non-partisan. This has lately been evidenced by COS resolutions passing committees in the legislatures of two of the “bluest” states in the union: Hawaii and Massachusetts.
The resolution was approved by the Hawaii Senate Committee on Public Safety and Intergovernmental and Military Affairs with the unanimous support of the Democrats on the panel.
In the Bay State, the COS resolution passed the Joint Committee on Veterans and Federal Affairs, which included 13 Democratic committee members and three Republican members.
The Pennsylvania Senate State Government Committee approved the COS resolution in late April. The committee is chaired by Sen. Chris Dush, who said “I’m a firm believer that the federal government has overstepped the role our Founders envisioned. Any powers beyond the scope of the Constitution are reserved to the states and the people.”
In Iowa, the COS resolution passed a House subcommittee and the House State Government Committee, and the resolution was approved by the Idaho Senate Judiciary & Rules Committee–marking our first time passing a committee in Idaho.
North Carolina is on the verge of becoming the 20th state in the union to call for an Article V convention to limit the power, scope, and jurisdiction of the federal government. The North Carolina House passed the COS resolution last year, and the Senate now has the opportunity to do likewise before the current legislative session ends.
When the North Carolina Senate gives the nod, only 14 more state legislatures are needed to call a convention. And we’ll be ready.
34|Ready
COS activists have actively worked to urge their representatives to introduce and pass “34|Ready” model commissioner legislation in preparation for convention.
Such legislation frames the processes for selecting commissioners who will represent their states at an Article V convention, lays out penalties (fines and/or imprisonment) for commissioners who deviate from their instructions, and lays a groundwork for legislative support of the COS resolution in states that have not yet passed it, by clarifying procedural details.
Already this year, 34|Ready legislation has passed the Missouri Senate Committee on Rules, Joint Rules, Resolutions, and Ethics, as well as the Kansas House Committee on Federal and State Affairs.
34|Ready legislation was also introduced this year in the Mississippi and Kentucky legislatures, the latter of which has 16 COS resolution co-sponsors.
F3 Legislative Efforts in Passed States
The COS grassroots army does not lie dormant in states that have passed the COS resolution, working instead to maintain and extend relationships with state legislators by championing bills regarding issues such as election integrity, parental rights, and state sovereignty–issues that correspond with the principles of Federalism, Freedom, and Fundamental Rights. We refer to this as “F3 Legislation.”
In Georgia, grassroots lobbying efforts championed three separate election integrity bills in conjunction with The Heritage Foundation. The Georgia COS team made contact with Peach State legislators over 450 times in support of the bills. Two of the bills (HB 974 and HB 977) were approved by the legislature.
In addition, SB 233, the Georgia Scholarship Promise Act, passed the legislature and was signed into law.
The Louisiana COS team has made its presence well-known in Baton Rouge, and their work has yielded significant progress.
HB 763, another piece of election integrity legislation, passed the Louisiana House and is currently pending in the Senate. Also, HB 114, which establishes a clear process for updating the state’s voter rolls, passed the legislature and awaits the signature of Governor Jeff Landry.
Legislation that bans international government organizations such as the United Nations, the World Health Organization, and the World Economic Forum from asserting any jurisdiction in Louisiana was signed into law by Governor Landry on May 28.
In Tennessee, COS grassroots worked with Alliance Defending Freedom to move parental rights in education legislation through the legislature and to the desk of Tennessee Governor Bill Lee.
The Kansas COS team toiled diligently to shepherd land rights legislation in the form of SB 370 through the Senate Committee on Federal and State Affairs.
Legislation banning transgender surgery from being performed upon minors passed the South Carolina legislature and was signed into law by Governor Henry McMaster.
Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt signed HB 3156, which prohibits ranked-choice voting. The Sooner State grassroots worked to get this bill through the legislature, again working with The Heritage Foundation.
The Work Goes On
These significant accomplishments and milestones are the result of commitment to first principles, personal sacrifice, and perseverance by our grassroots activists.
The legislative process can be excruciating. Individual legislators must be convinced to introduce or co-sponsor bills, which must then clear subcommittees, full committees, and the whims of majority leaders and speakers before even being considered by the whole of one chamber or another. All of it takes a great deal of time, energy, and follow-through.
The COS grassroots army is not only steadfast in its work, but growing in influence and achievement. To be a part of one of the most consequential political movements in American history, sign the petition below and add your time and talent to his noble effort.
