IA 
118TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. J. RES. 118 
Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States to tempo-
rarily fill vacancies in the House of Representatives to further the con-
tinuity of Congress. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MARCH 7, 2024 
Mr. KILMER (for himself, Mr. WENSTRUP, Mr. TIMMONS, and Mr. CLEAVER) 
submitted the following joint resolution; which was referred to the Com-
mittee on the Judiciary 
JOINT RESOLUTION 
Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United 
States to temporarily fill vacancies in the House of Rep-
resentatives to further the continuity of Congress. 
Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives 
of the United States of America in Congress assembled
(two-thirds of each House concurring therein), That the fol-
lowing article is proposed as an amendment to the Con-
stitution of the United States, which shall be valid to all 
intents and purposes as part of the Constitution when 
ratified by the legislatures of three-fourths of the several 
States within seven years after the date of its submission 
for ratification: 
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‘‘ARTICLE — 
‘‘SECTION 1. Immediately after taking the oath of of-
fice, an individual who is elected to serve as a Representa-
tive in the House of Representatives shall provide the 
House of Representatives with a list of at least five des-
ignees to take the individual’s place in the event the indi-
vidual dies prior to the expiration of the individual’s term 
of office. The individual shall ensure that the list only con-
tains the names of designees who meet the qualifications 
for service as a Representative in the House of Represent-
atives. 
‘‘SECTION 2. In the event of the death of a Rep-
resentative, the chief executive of the State involved shall, 
not later than 10 days after the date of the death of the 
Representative, select an individual from the most recent 
list of designees provided by the Representative whose seat 
is now vacant, as provided by section 1, and the Speaker 
of the House shall immediately fill the vacancy with the 
individual selected. An individual designated to take the 
place of a Representative shall serve until another Member 
is elected to fill the vacancy pursuant to a special election. 
‘‘SECTION 3. During the period of an individual’s 
service under section 2, the individual shall be treated as 
a Representative in the House of Representatives for pur-
poses of all laws, rules, and regulations, including for pur-
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poses of section 1. In the event of the death of an indi-
vidual designated under section 2, the chief executive of 
the State involved shall select an individual from the most 
recent list of designees provided by the individual des-
ignated under section 2, as provided by section 1, and the 
Speaker of the House shall immediately fill the vacancy 
with the individual selected.’’. 
Æ 
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