Tennessee lawmaker calls for Congressional term limits in new bill

JACKSON, Tenn. — A local lawmaker is proposing a bill that would affect his fellow members of Congress.

Rep. Chris Todd is proposing Congressional term limits, restricting how long members can stay in office.

“Some folks would consider this a Constitutional convention, and that’s not what the Constitution says. This is an Article Five in the Constitution and says Congress must set a time and place once 34 states ask them to,” Rep. Todd said.

This effort is part of a movement led by the non-profit U.S. Term Limits, an organization that enacts and defends term limits on elected offices.

Rep. Todd says, if passed, this bill would affect both members of the House and the Senate.

“We don’t have a set request as far as the number of years or number of terms. That would be up to the delegates side once the 34 states submit this to Congress,” he said.

If passed in both the House and Senate, Tennessee will join other states in a call to bring together the states for the exclusive purpose of proposing term limits on Congress.

Once the 34 state legislatures pass similar resolutions and approve the term limits amendment, it must be ratified by 38 states to become part of the U.S. Constitution.

Rep. Todd says he feels this bill is important for people in the community who are voters.