Two measures have been filed in the Senate to ratify the proposed Equal Rights Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
The proposal to make Florida the 36th state to ratify the amendment – sent to the states in 1972 – has been filed for several years in Florida, but it’s unclear whether it would actually have any effect. The deadline for ratification of the amendment passed in 1982, though supporters argue it could still be done. There’s no precedent for Congress adopting an amendment based on post-deadline ratifications, of if the necessary 38 state ratifications were to be gained, the issue likely would be litigated.
The Florida House of Representatives voted in 1982 to ratify the amendment just a few days before the expiration date, but ratification failed in the Florida Senate that summer. The bills (SB 54, SB 68) are filed by Sen. Arthenia Joyner, D-Tampa, and Sen. Gwen Margolis, D-Miami.
Material from the News Service of Florida was used in this post.
