The Tenth Amendment to the United States Constitution reads:
The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.
This Amendment, one of the most important in the Bill of Rights, has for generations served to protect the states and the people from overzealous federal encroachment. Recent decades, however, have seen federal power grow to enormous proportions. As a result, all across America states have been working to reassert their rights and the rights of their citizens under the Tenth Amendment.
The John Birch Society believes strongly in the principles of federalism built into the Constitution by the Founding Fathers and is working to support the movement to reassert the importance of the entire Bill of Rights, including the Tenth Amendment.
To find details regarding the status of Tenth Amendment initiatives we are supporting in the various states, as well as to find other information about the movement in those states in general, click on the markers on the map above.
"Support a Tenth Amendment Resolution in Your State Legislature." Use this pre-written, editable email to contact your state legislators in support of passage of a Tenth Amendment resolution in your state legislature.
"Model Tenth Amendment Resolution for State Legislatures" ( PDF | Word ). Provide this model resolution (based on Oklahoma's resolution, HJR1003) to your state legislators if a Tenth Amendment resolution hasn't already been introduced in your state.
"Tenth Amendment Movement: Taking On the Feds," by James Perloff, The New American, March 16, 2009.
"Good News and Bad News for the Tenth Amendment Movement," March 4, 2009.
"Oklahoma House Votes 83 to 13 to Restore Sovereignty Under the 10th Amendment Over All Powers Not Granted to the Federal Government," February 19, 2009. Includes link to state-by-state status chart with links to full-text of state resolutions (see this chart below).
"Oklahoma House Passes Sovereignty Bill," WND, February 24, 2009.
"Lawmakers in 20 States Move to Reclaim Sovereignty," WND, February 6, 2009.
"Pre-emption preempted by Justice Thomas." Justice Clarence Thomas bases an important concurring opinion regarding the balance of power between the states and federal government squarely on the Tenth Amendment. March 5, 2009.