I was listening to “Ask the Governor” on 101.5 Tuesday evening when Christie started talking about the Supreme Court decision to ignore how much money we actually have and appoint a “special master” from the land of the sugarplum fairies to determine how much we spend on education and on whom to lavish it. I decided to call in and see if the big man had heard about New Hampshire’s move to remove mandatory education funding from their state constitution and return education funding issues to their elected leaders. I could see him nodding in approval at my question on the station’s webcast but he didn’t sound very optimistic about New Jersey taking the same sensible step.
Although constitutions that guarantee “stuff” like education, health care and housing only belong in communist societies I can understand, given the level of vitriol directed at him already, that he might be a little gun shy about trying to do that here. So I hereby offer a compromise that might actually work.
State support of public education is a fact of life but it’s the phrase “thorough and efficient” (education) that gives our court jesters justices the excuse to insert themselves into the issue.
How hard would it be to excise these three nettlesome little words?
Here is how to amend the New Jersey Constitution:
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ARTICLE IX
AMENDMENTS
1. Any specific amendment or amendments to this Constitution may be proposed in the Senate or General Assembly. At least twenty calendar days prior to the first vote thereon in the house in which such amendment or amendments are first introduced, the same shall be printed and placed on the desks of the members of each house. Thereafter and prior to such vote a public hearing shall be held thereon. If the proposed amendment or amendments or any of them shall be agreed to by three-fifths of all the members of each of the respective houses, the same shall be submitted to the people. If the same or any of them shall be agreed to by less than three-fifths but nevertheless by a majority of all the members of each of the respective houses, such proposed amendment or amendments shall be referred to the Legislature in the next legislative year; and if in that year the same or any of them shall be agreed to by a majority of all the members of each of the respective houses, then such amendment or amendments shall be submitted to the people.2. The proposed amendment or amendments shall be entered on the journal of each house with the yeas and nays of the members voting thereon.
3. The Legislature shall cause the proposed amendment or amendments to be published at least once in one or more newspapers of each county, if any be published therein, not less than three months prior to submission to the people.
4. The proposed amendment or amendments shall then be submitted to the people at the next general election in the manner and form provided by the Legislature.
5. If more than one amendment be submitted, they shall be submitted in such manner and form that the people may vote for or against each amendment separately and distinctly.
6. If the proposed amendment or amendments or any of them shall be approved by a majority of the legally qualified voters of the State voting thereon, the same shall become part of the Constitution on the thirtieth day after the election, unless otherwise provided in the amendment or amendments.
7. If at the election a proposed amendment shall not be approved, neither such proposed amendment nor one to effect the same or substantially the same change in the Constitution shall be submitted to the people before the third general election thereafter.
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So it takes a 3/5 vote in both houses and voter approval or a simple majority in both houses two consecutive years and voter approval. It seems doable considering that in surveys about three quarters of the voters think we are spending too much on education. C’mon Guv, stop bitching about the court and take a positive step to remove them from the equation. Make our constitution three little words shorter.
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