HR 1861: United States Congress; call a convention under Article V of the Constitution of the United States limited to proposing amendments to limit the influence of money in political elections and on government officials

Article V of the U.S. Constitution lets Congress call a convention to propose constitutional amendments if two-thirds of state legislatures apply for one on the same subject. This resolution has the Georgia General Assembly join that effort, applying for a convention limited strictly to proposing amendments addressing the influence of money in politics and on government officials. The resolution says Georgia's application should count toward the two-thirds threshold alongside similar applications from other states, but only for this specific subject, not any other convention topic. It calls for the convention to be strictly limited to this subject and asks Congress to impose severe criminal penalties on anyone who tries to expand the convention beyond that scope. The application stays in effect continuously until enough states join to require Congress to act, and copies would be sent to congressional leaders and other state legislatures.

• Applies to the U.S. Congress on behalf of Georgia to call an Article V convention limited to amendments about money's influence in elections and on officials.
• States that Georgia's application should be combined with other states' applications on the same subject to reach the two-thirds threshold needed to force a convention.
• Specifies the application will not be aggregated with applications on any other subject.
• Calls on Congress to enact severe criminal penalties for anyone who violates the convention's limited scope.
• Declares the application a continuing one that stays active until two-thirds of state legislatures have applied on this same subject.
• Directs the Clerk of the House to send copies of the resolution to congressional leaders and other states' legislatures.

This resolution primarily concerns the U.S. Congress and other state legislatures, since it is part of a multi-state push for a constitutional convention. It also affects Georgia voters and candidates broadly, since any resulting constitutional amendment could change campaign finance and election law nationwide.

If enough states pass similar applications, Congress could be required to call a constitutional convention focused on campaign finance and political money, potentially leading to a new constitutional amendment affecting how elections are funded and regulated across the country, including in Georgia.

• The resolution applies to Congress to call a convention limited solely to amendments addressing money's influence in political elections and on government officials.
• It allows for consideration of related limits on the U.S. Supreme Court's power to review Congressional legislation authorized by such amendments.
• It directs that Georgia's application be aggregated only with other states' applications on this same subject to reach the two-thirds threshold.
• It calls for Congress to enact severe criminal penalties for violating the convention's limited scope.
• It establishes the application as continuing until two-thirds of state legislatures apply on the same subject.
• It directs the Clerk of the House to distribute copies to congressional officers and other states' legislative leaders.

1. 2026-03-27House Second Readers (House)
2. 2026-03-25House First Readers (House)
3. 2026-03-23House Hopper (House)

• Gabriel Sanchez (D, HD-042)Primary sponsor
• Spencer Frye (D, HD-122)
• Eric Bell (D, HD-075)

• campaign finance
• constitutional convention
• Article V
• election law
• money in politics