Why does TL4USC think 12 Years Max?

82% of Americans agree an Amendment needs to be added to the US Constitution limiting how long a person can spend as a member of the US Congress.
 
The question then becomes, “What should the limit be?”

Everyone has their own opinion as to the answer for the above question, including our PAC.  Before I tell you what we would like to see, you need to understand some important information impacting the decision.  You also need to understand why we are not placing our suggested Amendment on the Term Limits Petition we are asking everyone to sign.

First, why isn’t our suggested Amendment on the petition?
 
Right now, the goal is to get everyone to stand together and let the State Legislatures know we want them to apply for an Article 5 Convention for Term Limits. Major groups across the nation each have their own preference for the Amendment. Adding a definitive number of years to our petition would keep the groups from working together.
 
Once an Article 5 Convention for Term Limits is called, THAT is when we will all voice our opinions as to what we want in the Amendment.
 
Before we talk about our suggested Amendment, it is necessary to have a firm understanding of what the current terms are and why.  A great deal of thought and intent by some brilliant minds went into the original design and we would be foolish to not take their efforts into consideration.
 
The original intent, prior to the 17th Amendment (ratified in 1913), was that the Senate would represent the will of the State Governments and the House of Representatives would represent the will of the people.
 
The 17th Amendment changed that intent.  Rather than Senators being appointed by the State Governments, they now receive the position by popular election.  This is an ongoing point of contention, with the State Governments feeling they no longer have any voice in the governing of the country, or the laws being made that impact the governing of their own sovereign States.
 
The decision to make a term in the Senate six years was come to for several reasons.
 
Many do not realize that the Senate is divided into three groups and the two senators from a state are not in the same group.  Every two years, the members of one of the groups are up for election.  This ensures that at any given time, 2/3’s of the Senate has a minimum of two years experience and every state has at least one senator beyond the learning curve.
 
This is especially important when you consider times of war or national disaster where decisions and actions cannot be delayed by too many people not knowing how to do their jobs.
 
A second reason for the 6-year Senate term was the accepted belief that fluctuations in opinions and needs at a State level of government do not occur nearly as often or as quickly as public opinions and needs at district levels.
 
And finally, the 6-year Senate term created an intentional overlap in terms between the two Senators with offset election cycles and the State Governors, who usually serve a 4-year term.
 
The House of Representatives on the other hand was given a 2-year term to create a more dynamic environment, where the fluctuation in the opinions of the people would be reflected more quickly.  If a Representative was not reflecting the will of the people in his/her district, they never had to put up with him/her for more than two years.
 
Between a Representative serving 2 years, a Governor serving 4 years, and two Senators serving 6 years with offset election cycles, you create a well-meshed system that maintains a level of experience for the States at all times.
 
I am pointing this out because if we throw a stick in the gears by deciding on a term limit length that does not blend well with the existing system, we put at risk the entire well thought out construction.  And, we greatly reduce the possibility of States supporting us if they feel that our numbers reduce the efficiency of the system.
 
 
The above is why I came up with the idea of 12 years max in Congress, which is equal to two Senate terms or six House terms.  This is the TOTAL number of years combined in the House and Senate.  It can be 12 in the House OR 12 in the Senate OR any combination, but NO ONE gets to spend more than 12 years max in Congress in his or her lifetime. 
 
This allows the limit to blend well with the existing 2-year House term, 4-year Governor term, and the offset 6-year Senate terms.  12 years is a great deal of experience, but not long enough to be a career.
 
By using a blanket of 12 YEARS MAX in Congress we also avoid the pitfall that some States have discovered by making different limits for their House of Representatives and their Senate.  A common state level Term Limit package has been 3 two-year terms in the House and 2 six-year terms in the Senate.  The problem with this is that the turnover rate in the house is so fast that you always have 33% of the House not knowing what they are doing and 33% getting ready to be term limited out.  The confusion this causes leads to the unelected bureaucrats running the show.
 
12 YEARS MAX(equal to 2 six-year Senate terms) in Congress allows for both the House and the Senate to have the same amount of experience and the same turnover rate so you don’t create a lopsided environment where one has more power and experience than the other.
 
I hope this helps.  The first big hurdle of course is getting the Article 5 Convention called for Term Limits, but this should give you something to think about after we get there.
 
Bob Reid
Founder/Executive Director
Term Limits for US Congress- PAC

Once we have all come together and succeeded in convincing the State Legislatures to apply for an Article 5 Convention for Term Limits, here is the Amendment we wish to see presented:
 
“No person shall be elected or appointed as a member of the United States Congress if the duration of the term for which the person is elected or appointed, in its entirety as defined within Article 1 of the United States Constitution, would result in the person serving more than 12 years of his or her life in the United States Congress.
 
Upon ratification of this amendment, a current member of the United States Congress, whose total number of years in the United States Congress exceeds 12, shall be allowed to complete the existing term for which he or she has been previously elected.  Said allowance for completion of the existing term shall not justify exclusion for the member from actions beyond the scope of this Amendment that lead to termination from the United States Congress prior to the completion of the existing term.”
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