March 1, 1932

Mr. JEFFERS. Mr. Speaker, I call up a conference report on the joint resolution CS. J. Res. 14) proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States :fixing the commencement of the terms of President and Vice President and Members of Congress and fixing the time of the assembling of Congress, and I ask unanimous consent that the statement on the part of the managers of the House be read in lieu of the report.

The SPEAKER. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from Alabama?

There was no objection.

The Clerk read the statement.

The conference report and statement are as follows:

CONFERENCE REPORT

The committee of conference on the disagreeing votes of the two Houses on the amendments of the House to the Joint resolution (S. J. Res. 14) proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States fixing the commencement of the terms of President and Vice President and Members of Congress and fixing the time of the assembling of Congress, having met, after full and free conference, have agreed to recommend and do recommend to their respective Houses as follows:

That the Senate recede from its disagreement to the amendment of the House and agree to the same with an amendment as follows: In lieu of the matter proposed to be inserted by the House amendment insert the following:

"That the following amendment to the Constitution be, and hereby is, proposed to the States, to become valid as a part of said Constitution when ratified by the legislatures of the several States as provided in the Constitution:

" 'Article -

"'SECTION 1. The terms of the President and Vice President shall end at noon on the 20th day of January, and the terms of Senators and Representatives at noon on the 3d day of January of the years in which such terms would have ended if this article had not been ratified; and the terms of their successors shall then begin.

" ' SEc. 2. The Congress shall assemble at least once in every year, and such meeting shall begin at noon on the 3d day of January, unless they shall by la'Y appoint a different ' SEC. 3. If, at the time fixed for the beginning of the term of the President, the President elect shall have died, the Vice President elect shall become President. If a President shall not have been chosen before the time fixed for the beginning of his term, or if the President elect shall have failed to qualify, then the Vice President elect shall act as President until a President shall have qualified; and the Congress may by law provide for the case wherein neither a President elect nor a Vice President elect shall have qualified, declaring who shall then act as President, or the manner in which one who is to act shall be selected, and such person shall act accordingly until a President or Vice President shall have qualified.

" ' SEc. 4. The Congress may by law provide for the case of the death of any of the persons from whom the House of Representatives may choose a President whenever the right of choice shall have devolved upon them, and for the case of the death of any of the persons from whom the Senate may choose a Vice President whenever the right of choice shall have devolved upon them.

" ' SEc. 5. Sections 1 and 2 shall take effect on the 15th day of October following the ratification of this article.

"'SEc. 6. This article shall be inoperative unless it shall have been ratified as an amendment to the Constitution by the legislatures of three-fourths of the several States within seven years from the date of its submission.'"

And the House agree to the same.

LAMAR JEFFERS,

RALPH F. LoZIER,

CHAS. L. GIFFORD,

Managers on the part of the House.

G. W. NORRIS, WM. E. BoRAH, THos. J. WALSH,

Managers on the part of the Senate.

STATEMENT

The managers on the part of the House at the conference on the disagreeing votes of the two Houses on the joint resolution (S. J. Res. 14) proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States fixing the commencement of the terms of President and Vice President and Members of Congress and fixing the time of the assembling of Congress submit the following statement in explanation of the effect of the action agreed upon by the conferees and recommended in the accompanying conference report:

The Senate resolution provides that the terms of the President and Vice President shall end at noon on January 15 and the terms of Senators and Representatives at noon on January 2. Under the House amendment the terms of President and Vice President end at noon on January 24 and those of Senators and Representatives at noon on January 4. The conference agreement provides that the terms of the President and Vice President shall end at noon on January 20 and the terms of Senators and Representatives at noon on January 3.

The Senate resolution provides that the regular sessions of Congress shall begin at noon on January 2. Under the House amendment January 4 is fixed as the day of meeting instead of January 2. The conference agreement fixes the time for meeting at noon on January 3.

The first sentence of section 3 of the Senate resolution provides that whenever the right to choose a President has devolved upon the House, and the House has not chosen a President before the time fixed for the beginning of his term, then the Vice President shall act as President, " as in the case of the death or other constitutional disability of the President." Under the corresponding provision of the House amendment (the first clause of the second sentence of section 3) the Vice President elect acts as President not only when the House has failed to choose a President before the time fixed for the beginning of his term, but also in any case where, at that time, the President has failed to qualify for any reason. Under the House amendment it is made clear that in such a case the Vice President will act only until the House has chosen a President and he has qualified or until the President elect chosen by the Electoral College has qualified. The conference agreement retains the substance of the House provision with changes in phraseology. The second sentence of section 3 of the Senate resolution gives Congress the power by law to declare what officer shall act as President in a case where the election of the President has devolved upon the House and that of the Vice President has devolved upon the Senate and neither the President nor the Vice President has been chosen before the time fixed for the beginning of their terms. The officer who acts as President in such a case will act only until the House has chosen a President or the Senate has chosen a Vice President. . The corresponding provision of the House amendment (the last clause of the second sentence of section 3) provides for the case wherein both the President elect and Vice President elect have, for any reason, failed to qualify at the time fixed for the beginning of their terms by giving Congress the power by law to declare who shall act as President in such case or to provide the manner in which a qualified person shall be selected. In such case the person who acts as President is to act only until a President or a Vice President has qualified. If, in such case, the Vice President elect should have qualified before a President has qualified, then, although he would act in place of the person acting under the law of Congress, he would act only until the House has chosen a President and he has qualified or until the President elect chosen by the Electoral College has qualified. The conference agreement retains the substance of the House provision . with changes in phraseology.

The House amendment-first sentence of section 3-provides that if the President elect is dead at the time fixed for the beginning of his term, the Vice President elect becomes President. There is no corresponding provision in the Senate resolution. The conference agreement carries out the policy of the House resolution, with changes to make it clear that the Vice President elect becomes President only at the time fixed for the beginning of the term.

The House amendment-section 4---gives Congress the power by law to provide means by which a President or a Vice President may be selected, when the right of choice has devolved upon either body, if any of the persons from whom the Ho~ may choose a President or the Senate may choose a Vice President, as the case may be, has died. There is no corresponding provision in the Senate resolution. The House provision has been retained under the conference agreement, with minor changes in phraseology. Under the Senate resolution the provisions relating to the contingencies with respect to the filling of the office of President take effect on the 15th of October following ratification, whereas under the House amendment such provisions take effect upon ratification. The conference agreement adopts the House provision. Under the Senate resolution the provisions relating to the terms of President, Vice President, Senators, and Representatives and the provisions relating to the meeting day of Congress take effect on the 15th of October next following ratification, whereas under the House amendment such provisions take effect on the 30th of November of the year following the year of ratification. The conference agreement adopts the Senate provision.

Section 6 of the House amendment provides that the amendment shall be inoperative unless ratified within seven years from the date of submission of the proposed amendment to the States, and unless ratific.ation is by legislatures the entire membership of at least one branch of which has been elected subsequent to the date of submission of the amendment to the States. There is no corresponding provision in the Senate resolution. The conference agreement retains the provision that the amendment shall be inoperative unless ratified within seven years from the date of submission to the States, but omits the provision relating to ratification by legislatures the membership of one branch of which has been elected subsequent to submission.

LAMAR JEFFERS,

RALPH F. LoZIER,

CHARLES L. GIFFORD,

Managers on the part ot the House.

The SPEAKER. The question is on agreeing to the conference report.

The question was taken; and two-thirds having voted in favor thereof, the conference report was agreed to.