H-0014.3  _______________________________________________

                     HOUSE JOINT MEMORIAL 4001

          _______________________________________________

State of Washington      54th Legislature     1995 Regular Session

By Representatives Campbell, B. Thomas, Chappell, Schoesler, Talcott, Dyer, Mastin, Chandler, Casada, Kremen, Sheahan, Backlund, Beeksma, Pennington, Lambert, Smith, Delvin, Robertson, Buck, Elliot, Mulliken, Blanton, Benton, McMahan, Hargrove, Radcliff, Koster, Scott, Cooke, Johnson, Thompson, Goldsmith, Crouse, Brumsickle, G. Fisher, Basich, Grant, Sehlin, Van Luven, Hankins, McMorris, Fuhrman, Sheldon, Huff, Silver and Hymes

Prefiled 12/27/94.  Read first time 01/09/95.  Referred to Committee on Government Operations.

Petitioning the federal government to cease and desist mandates that are beyond the scope of its powers.

    TO THE HONORABLE BILL CLINTON, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES, AND TO THE PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE AND THE SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, AND TO THE SENATE AND HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE UNITED STATES, IN CONGRESS ASSEMBLED:

    We, the Senate and House of Representatives of the State of Washington, in legislative session assembled, respectfully represent and petition as follows:

    WHEREAS, the 10th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States reads as follows:

    "The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the states respectively, or to the people"; and

    WHEREAS, the 10th Amendment defines the total scope of federal power as being that specifically granted by the United States Constitution and no more; and

    WHEREAS, The scope of power defined by the 10th Amendment means that the federal government was created by the states specifically to be an agent of the states; and

    WHEREAS, Today, in the mid-1990's, the states are demonstrably treated as agents of the federal government; and

    WHEREAS, Numerous resolutions have been forwarded to the federal government by the Washington legislature without any response or result from Congress or the federal government; and

    WHEREAS, Many federal mandates are directly in violation of the 10th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States; and

    WHEREAS, The United States Supreme Court has ruled in New York v. United States, 112 S. Ct. 2408 (1992), that Congress may not simply commandeer the legislative and regulatory processes of the states; and

    WHEREAS, A number of proposals from previous federal administrations and some now pending from the present administration and from Congress may further violate the United States Constitution;

    NOW, THEREFORE, Be it resolved by the House of Representatives and the Senate:

    (1) That the State of Washington hereby claims sovereignty under the 10th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States over all powers not otherwise enumerated and granted to the federal government by the United States Constitution.

    (2) That this serve as Notice and Demand to the federal government, as our agent, to cease and desist, effective immediately, mandates that are beyond the scope of its constitutionally delegated powers.

    BE IT RESOLVED, That copies of this Memorial be immediately transmitted to the Honorable Bill Clinton, President of the United States, the President of the United States Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and each member of Congress from the State of Washington.

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