Please oppose H.J.Res. 25, S.J.Res. 4, H.J.Res. 82, and S.J.Res. 39, which would retroactively remove the already-expired ratification deadline from the original 1972 Equal Rights Amendment legislation -- HJR 208 of the 92nd Congress. Congress must not be allowed to get away with disregarding one of the most basic operating principles of the legislative process by attempting to modify legislation from a previous Congress. In 2020, the Department of Justice's Office of Legal Counsel issued a report finding that "Congress may not revive a proposed amendment after a deadline for its ratification has expired. Should Congress wish to propose the amendment anew, it may do so through the same procedures required to propose an amendment in the first instance." Additionally, five states have since rescinded their ratifications of the ERA. H.J.Res. 25, S.J.Res. 4, H.J.Res. 82, and S.J.Res. 39 totally disregard the Constitution by ignoring these facts and the legal method for ratifying constitutional amendments. This is damaging for the rule of law. Please oppose and vote against H.J.Res. 25, S.J.Res. 4, H.J.Res. 82, and S.J.Res. 39, and any other measure to revive the 1972 ERA.

I urge you to reject and block the unconstitutional resolutions H.J.Res. 25, S.J.Res. 4, H.J.Res. 82, and S.J.Res. 39, which ignore the ERA's ratification deadline. In 1972, Congress passed the Equal Rights Amendment, attaching a 7-year deadline, and extending it for another three years. The deadline expired, but decades afterward, Congress is now proposing to illegally ignore it. Additionally, five states (Idaho, Kentucky, Nebraska, Tennessee, and South Dakota) rescinded their previous ratifications of the ERA, meaning that even without the deadline, it cannot be ratified. Scholars and judges, including the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg and Federal Judge Rudolph Contreras, acknowledge that Congress must start from scratch. Please heed their advice and follow the Constitution -- and reject H.J.Res. 25, S.J.Res. 4, H.J.Res. 82, and S.J.Res. 39.

I implore you to oppose H.J.Res. 25, S.J.Res. 4, H.J.Res. 82, and S.J.Res. 39. The 1972 Equal Rights Amendment is dead. Congress approved it on the explicit condition that the required number of states ratify it within the congressionally-imposed deadline. That deadline passed decades ago, and Congress will need to start over to ratify the amendment. To ignore this truth blatantly violates the Constitution. Also, five states -- Idaho, Kentucky, Nebraska, Tennessee, and South Dakota -- rescinded their prior ratifications of the ERA. Please stop the removal of the ERA deadline, and oppose H.J.Res. 25, S.J.Res. 4, H.J.Res. 82, and S.J.Res. 39.

I strongly request that you oppose H.J.Res. 25, S.J.Res. 4, H.J.Res. 82, and S.J.Res. 39. These resolutions seek to retroactively remove the expired deadline to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment from the original ERA bill passed by the 92nd Congress (H.J.R. 208). Congress cannot ignore one of the foundational principles of the legislative process, i.e. modifying an already-passed bill from an old Congress. In 2020, the DOJ's Office of Legal Counsel ruled that “Congress may not revive a proposed amendment after a deadline for its ratification has expired. Should Congress wish to propose the amendment anew, it may do so through the same procedures required to propose an amendment in the first instance.” H.J.Res. 25, S.J.Res. 4, H.J.Res. 82, and S.J.Res. 39 disregard this and circumvent the legislative process to ram through the ERA. The time for ratifying the ERA has already come and gone. Accordingly, please oppose H.J.Res. 25, S.J.Res. 4, H.J.Res. 82, and S.J.Res. 39.

I urge you to stop H.J.Res. 25, S.J.Res. 4, H.J.Res. 82, and S.J.Res. 39, which are unconstitutional attempts to illegally remove the deadline for ratifying the Equal Rights Amendment. The deadline for ratifying the 1972 ERA has long since passed. Despite this legislative fact, Congress is trying to ignore this deadline with H.J.Res. 25, S.J.Res. 4, H.J.Res. 82, and S.J.Res. 39. The late Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a long-time ERA supporter, agreed that Congress cannot extend the deadline. On January 10, 2020, Justice Ginsburg told an audience at Georgetown University Law Center, "I would like to see a new beginning." Adding, "I'd like it to start over." Furthermore, Judge Rudolph Contreras ruled against this effort in March 2021. Simply put, the 1972 ERA is dead and the resolutions H.J.Res. 25, S.J.Res. 4, H.J.Res. 82, and S.J.Res. 39 cannot change that fact. Therefore, please stop these resolutions, and instead, adhere to the Constitution.