I 
115TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1742 
To require the Archivist of the United States to compile all applications, 
and rescissions of applications, made to the Congress to call a convention, 
pursuant to article V of the Constitution, and certain related materials, 
and to transmit them to Congress, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MARCH 27, 2017 
Mr. MESSER introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com-
mittee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committees on Oversight 
and Government Reform, and Rules, for a period to be subsequently de-
termined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions 
as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To require the Archivist of the United States to compile 
all applications, and rescissions of applications, made 
to the Congress to call a convention, pursuant to article 
V of the Constitution, and certain related materials, and 
to transmit them to Congress, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Article V Records 
Transparency Act of 2017’’. 
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SEC. 2. COMPILATION AND TRANSMISSION TO CONGRESS 
OF APPLICATIONS AND RESCISSIONS OF AP-
PLICATIONS TO CALL A CONVENTION FOR 
PROPOSING 
AMENDMENTS 
TO 
THE 
CON-
STITUTION AND RESCISSIONS OF THOSE AP-
PLICATIONS. 
(a) COMPILATION AND TRANSMISSION.—The Archi-
vist of the United States (hereinafter in this Act referred 
to as the ‘‘Archivist’’) shall, in accordance with this Act— 
(1) make an organized compilation, to the ex-
tent feasible, of all applications and rescissions of 
applications, ever made by States under article V of 
the Constitution, to call a convention for proposing 
amendments to the Constitution; and 
(2) transmit to Congress and transmit to the 
chairmen of the Committees on the Judiciary of the 
House of Representatives and Senate that compila-
tion, together with both physical and electronic cop-
ies of each such application and rescission. 
(b) SOURCES FOR COMPILATION.—In complying with 
subsection (a) the Archivist shall use the records contained 
in the National Archive and Records Administration, and 
take other appropriate action, including using outside re-
sources, to obtain an official copy of any application or 
rescission that may not be in such records. 
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source or designation of valid state applications and rescis-
sions under article V of the Constitution. 
SEC. 3. DUTIES OF THE COMMITTEES ON THE JUDICIARY. 
(a) DESIGNATION OF APPLICATIONS AND RESCIS-
SIONS.—Upon receipt by Congress of the compilation de-
scribed in section 2(a), the respective committees on the 
judiciary in each House of Congress shall designate the 
applications and rescissions contained in such compilation 
for public availability on a publicly accessible website not 
later than 6 months after receiving such compilation as 
required under section 2(c). 
(b) CONTINUING DESIGNATIONS OF APPLICATIONS 
AND RESCISSIONS.—The respective committees on the ju-
diciary in each House of Congress shall update the com-
pilation in the public websites maintained by them under 
subsection (a) by designating the receipt of any applica-
tion or rescission submitted under article V of the Con-
stitution to call a convention for proposing amendments 
to the Constitution that— 
(1) was not included in the initial compilation 
as transmitted under section 2; and 
(2) is a new application or rescission or other-
wise comes to the attention of the committee. 
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SEC. 4. RECOMMENDED PROCEDURES FOR TRANSMISSION 
OF APPLICATIONS AND RESCISSIONS. 
The Congress recommends the following procedures 
to make uniform and simplify the process by which State 
legislatures make an application, or a rescission of an ap-
plication, under article V of the Constitution to call a con-
vention for proposing amendments to the Constitution: 
(1) OFFICERS TO TRANSMIT AND RECEIVE AP-
PLICATIONS.—After the adoption by the legislature 
of a State of an application or rescission, the sec-
retary of state of the State, or if there be no such 
officer, the person who is charged by the State law 
with such function, should submit to Congress at 
least two copies of the resolution or other measure 
containing the application or rescission, one copy ad-
dressed to the President of the Senate, and one copy 
to the Speaker of the House of Representatives. 
(2) CONTENTS OF RESOLUTION OR MEASURE.— 
Each copy of the resolution or measure should con-
tain— 
(A) its exact text, with the authenticating 
signature of the relevant officer of the legisla-
ture; and 
(B) the date on which the legislature 
adopted the resolution or measure. 
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(3) OTHER FORMS OF APPLICATION OR RECI-
SION.—If a State submits an application or rescis-
sion in a manner that is inconsistent with this sec-
tion, and the application or rescission does not have 
an authenticating signature of a member of the re-
spective states legislature, the Clerk of the House or 
the Secretary of the Senate shall confirm the au-
thenticity of the application or rescission through a 
search of public records. If unable to confirm 
through a public records search, the Clerk of the 
House or Secretary of the Senate shall notify the ap-
propriate State official and request a letter from 
that State official, with the authenticating signature 
of that State official, confirming the application or 
rescission’s authenticity. 
(4) NONCOMPLIANCE WITH THE RECOMMENDA-
TIONS OF THIS SECTION NOT A BASIS FOR CON-
GRESS TO REFUSE TO ACCEPT AN APPLICATION OR 
RESCISSION.—The failure of a State legislature to 
comply with any of the procedures recommended in 
this section is not a basis for a refusal by Congress 
to accept or count an application or rescission. 
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SEC. 5. SAVINGS CLAUSE. 
Nothing in this Act shall be interpreted to expand 
in any way the specific, limited duties assigned to Con-
gress under article V of the Constitution. 
SEC. 6. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act— 
(1) the terms ‘‘transmit to Congress’’ and ‘‘sub-
mit to Congress’’ mean transmission or submission, 
as the case may be, to the Speaker of the House of 
Representatives, the President of the Senate; 
(2) the term ‘‘application’’ means any resolu-
tion or other measure, agreed upon by a State legis-
lature, that purports to be a request to Congress to 
call a convention pursuant to article V of the Con-
stitution; and 
(3) the term ‘‘rescission’’ means any resolution 
or other measure, agreed upon by a State legisla-
ture, that purports to make null and void an appli-
cation previously submitted by the State legislature. 
SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.. 
(a) FOR CARRYING OUT THIS ACT.—There are au-
thorized to be appropriated to the National Historical 
Publications and Records Commission $2,000,000 for the 
purposes of carrying out this act for each of the fiscal 
years 2018 through 2023. 
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(b) HISTORICAL RECORD GRANT PROGRAM.—Sec-
tion 2504(g)(1) of title 44, United States Code, is amend-
ed by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(T) $3,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 
2018 through 2023.’’. 
Æ 
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