What Makes the Compact Uniquely Effective?

Here is what makes the Compact for a Balanced Budget different from all other state-originated constitutional amendment efforts and uniquely effective:

The Compact's federal Balanced Budget Amendment is already drafted and included in its agreement among the states, its policy merits can be verified as powerful and politically plausible. The same is not true of any other significant Article V effort, all of which must first organize a convention to find out what it might propose.

The Compact is in the lead among Article V movements. It is only 36 state enactments (because Georgia and Alaska are already on board), one 24-hour-long convention, and 1 congressional resolution away from the proposal and ratification of a powerful Balanced Budget Amendment; the other Article V efforts, including the 40 year old BBA task force effort, are at least 70 state enactments, one indefinitely long convention, and 2 congressional resolutions away from an amendment.

The Compact Commission is soon to be formed; as a unifying platform for the member states it will be uniquely impactful among all other Article V efforts in advancing the ball across the nation.

The Compact approach affords total tactical flexibility in dealing with Congress. The Compact Commission gives the member states an institutional presence to parley with Congress; the effort is not just a stack of paper shuffled by interest groups. We can approach Congress early, when we present no political threat. We can approach Congress later, when we do. We can seek Congress' engagement voluntarily, if the opportunity for buy-in looks real or if negotiations towards a consensus approach looks fruitful. We can also deploy a litigation strategy to compel the convention call as well. In fact, we are preparing for the possibility of an early Congressional push. The Congressional resolution is already drafted by legislative counsel.

The Compact has 17 Safeguards most of which were incorporated based on Andy Schlafly's (Phyllis' son) peer review. The Compact itself was designed to answer concretely Phyllis Schlafly's (Eagle Forum's) famous 20 questions. This renders any fear about the compact-organized convention "running away" implausible.

The Compact's Balanced Budget Amendment is pre-ratified and its ratification can be activated even if a differently-organized Article V convention proposes it. That ensures that the Compact's Balanced Budget Amendment can be advanced even by the success of other Article V efforts!

Numerous experts have vetted the Compact and every substantial legal issue associated with its innovative ability to consolidate the state origination of a powerful Balanced Budget Amendment into 60% fewer moving legislative parts than the non-compact Article V approach. They have concluded that it is, indeed, fully constitutional.