List of amendments to the United States Constitution
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This is a complete list of all the ratified and unratified amendments to the United States Constitution which have received the approval of the Congress. The procedure for amending the Constitution is governed by Article V of the original text. There have been many other proposals for amendments to the United States Constitution introduced in Congress, but not submitted to the states.
The first ten amendments to the United States Constitution are collectively known as the Bill of Rights
.
| # | Amendments | Proposal date | Enactment date | Full text |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Freedom of religion, speech, the press, assembly, and petition. | September 25, 1789 | December 15, 1791 | Full text |
| 2nd | Enumerates the right to keep and bear arms | September 25, 1789 | December 15, 1791 | Full text |
| 3rd | Bans forced quartering of soldiers. | September 25, 1789 | December 15, 1791 | Full text |
| 4th | Interdiction of unreasonable searches and seizures; a search warrant is required to search persons or property. | September 25, 1789 | December 15, 1791 | Full text |
| 5th | Indictments; due process; self-incrimination; double jeopardy; rules for eminent domain. | September 25, 1789 | December 15, 1791 | Full text |
| 6th | Rights to a fair and speedy public trial, to a notice of accusations, to confront the accuser, to subpoenas, and to counsel. | September 25, 1789 | December 15, 1791 | Full text |
| 7th | Provides for the right to trial by jury in civil cases. | September 25, 1789 | December 15, 1791 | Full text |
| 8th | Bans cruel and unusual punishment, and excessive fines or bail | September 25, 1789 | December 15, 1791 | Full text |
| 9th | Unenumerated rights | September 25, 1789 | December 15, 1791 | Full text |
| 10th | Limits the powers of the federal government to only those specifically granted by the constitution. | September 25, 1789 | December 15, 1791 | Full text |
| 11th | Immunity of states from suits from out-of-state citizens and foreigners not living within the state borders. Lays the foundation for sovereign immunity. | March 4, 1794 | February 7, 1795 | Full text |
| 12th | Revises presidential election procedures. | December 9, 1803 | June 15, 1804 | Full text |
| 13th | Abolishes slavery and involuntary servitude, except as punishment for a crime. | January 31, 1865 | December 6, 1865 | Full text |
| 14th | Defines citizenship and deals with post–Civil War issues. | June 13, 1866 | July 9, 1868 | Full text |
| 15th | Prohibits the denial of suffrage based on race, color, or previous condition of servitude. | February 26, 1869 | February 3, 1870 | Full text |
| 16th | Allows the federal government to collect income tax. | July 12, 1909 | February 3, 1913 | Full text |
| 17th | Allows senators to be directly elected. | May 13, 1912 | April 8, 1913 | Full text |
| 18th | Prohibition of alcohol (Repealed by Twenty-first Amendment) | December 18, 1917 | January 16, 1919 | Full text |
| 19th | Allows for women's suffrage. | June 4, 1919 | August 18, 1920 | Full text |
| 20th | Fixes the dates of term commencements for Congress (January 3) and the President (January 20); known as the "lame duck amendment". | March 2, 1932 | January 23, 1933 | Full text |
| 21st | Repeals the Eighteenth Amendment. | February 20, 1933 | December 5, 1933 | Full text |
| 22nd | Limits the president to two terms, or a maximum of 10 years (i.e., if a Vice President serves not more than one half of a President's term, he can be elected to a further two terms). | March 24, 1947 | February 27, 1951 | Full text |
| 23rd | Provides for representation of Washington, D.C. in the Electoral College. | June 16, 1960 | March 29, 1961 | Full text |
| 24th | Prohibits the revocation of voting rights due to the non-payment of poll taxes. | September 14, 1962 | January 23, 1964 | Full text |
| 25th | Codifies the Tyler Precedent; defines the process of presidential succession. | July 6, 1965 | February 10, 1967 | Full text |
| 26th | Establishes 18 as the national voting age. | March 23, 1971 | July 1, 1971 | Full text |
| 27th | Prevents laws affecting Congressional salary from taking effect until the beginning of the next session of Congress. | September 25, 1789 | May 7, 1992 | Full text |
Before an amendment can take effect, it must be proposed to the states by a two-thirds vote of both houses of Congress or by a convention called by two-thirds of the states, and ratified by three-fourths of the states or by three-fourths of conventions thereof, the method of ratification being determined by Congress at the time of proposal. To date, no convention for proposing amendments has been called by the states, and only once has the convention method of ratification been employed.
Six amendments proposed by Congress have failed to be ratified by the appropriate number of states' legislatures. Four of these amendments are still technically pending before state lawmakers—the other two have expired by their own terms.
| Amendment | Date Proposed | Status | Subject |
|---|---|---|---|
| Congressional Apportionment Amendment | September 25, 1789 | Still pending before state lawmakers | Apportionment of U.S. Representatives |
| Titles of Nobility Amendment | May 1, 1810 | Still pending before state lawmakers | Prohibition of titles of nobility |
| Corwin Amendment | March 2, 1861 | Still pending before state lawmakers, but rendered moot by the 13th Amendment | Preservation of slavery |
| Child Labor Amendment | June 2, 1924 | Still pending before state lawmakers | Congressional power to regulate child labor |
| Equal Rights Amendment | March 22, 1972 | Expired 1979 or 1982 (some scholars disagree -- see main article), though possibly still able to be ratified as deadline has previously been extended and deadline was not placed in the Amendment's text. | Prohibition of inequality of men and women |
| District of Columbia Voting Rights Amendment | August 22, 1978 | Expired 1985 | D.C. voting rights |
See also
- List of unsuccessful attempts to amend the U.S. Constitution
- Conventions within the states to ratify an amendment to U.S. Constitution
- Convention to propose amendment to U.S. Constitution
References
- Congressional Research Service. (1992). The Constitution of the United States of America: Analysis and Interpretation. (Senate Document No. 103–6). (Johnny H. Killian and George A. Costello, Eds.). Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office.
External links
- The Constitution of the United States of America: Analysis and Interpretation is available at:
- GPO Access - Official version of the document at the U.S. Government Printing Office.
- FindLaw – FindLaw's version of the official document; incorporates 1996 and 1998 supplements into text, but does not include prefatory material included in official version.
- [1] - Other source for the u.s constitution with all the parts.
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