PlainBillCongress, translated.Legislation. Context. Public interest.Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
Congressional Research Service
Version 00 · Introduced in House · Feb 6, 2025
This joint resolution proposes a constitutional amendment to require that the seats in the House of Representatives be divided among the states based on their share of U.S. citizens rather than their share of the total U.S. population.
People & committees
Rep. Davidson, Warren [R-OH-8] · R–OH
Legislative record
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Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Primary sources
Text links open the official source. We also preserved the text version used in the PlainBill explanation below.
No related bills are listed in this snapshot. This does not establish whether the proposal has appeared in earlier Congresses.
Source last updated: Sep 29, 2025. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
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Analyze H.J.Res.37 as objectively as possible. Explain its main provisions, who would be affected, possible benefits and harms, implementation, exceptions, and uncertainties. Present the strongest arguments for and against it, and identify evidence needed to assess its public impact.
Examine H.J.Res.37 through a progressive lens, focusing on fairness, access, economic inequality, and effects on vulnerable communities. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and distinguish stated goals from demonstrated outcomes.
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PlainBill explanation
Based on the full Introduced in House · 2025-02-06 text. This explanation has not received human editorial review. This overview describes the proposal’s major provisions; it does not establish what its real-world effects would be.
This resolution proposes a constitutional amendment that would base each state's share of U.S. House seats on its number of U.S. citizens. People who are not U.S. citizens would not count toward that allocation. The proposal requires ratification by three-fourths of state legislatures within seven years after submission for ratification.
Representatives shall be apportioned among the several States according to their respective numbers, which shall be determined by counting the number of persons in each State who are citizens of the United States.
when ratified by the legislatures of three-fourths of the several States within seven years after the date of its submission for ratification
The proposed rule would allocate House seats among states using citizen counts. It concerns how seats are distributed among states; it does not state a rule about who may vote.
Representatives shall be apportioned among the several States according to their respective numbers, which shall be determined by counting the number of persons in each State who are citizens of the United States.
This is a proposed constitutional amendment, not an ordinary statute. Its ratification condition requires approval by state legislatures in three-fourths of the states within seven years of submission for ratification. That deadline runs from submission, not introduction.
That the following article is proposed as an amendment to the Constitution of the United States, which shall be valid to all intents and purposes as part of the Constitution when ratified by the legislatures of three-fourths of the several States within seven years after the date of its submission for ratification
The supplied action snapshot, updated September 29, 2025, records introduction in the House and referral to the House Committee on the Judiciary on February 6, 2025.
Source snapshot updated 2025-09-29T14:13:34Z. 2025-02-06: Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary. 2025-02-06: Introduced in House
A closer look
Reviewed version: Introduced in House · 2025-02-06. These findings describe provisions and who may benefit; they are not judgments of waste, corruption, or motive.
This review covers the supplied bill text. “None identified” does not rule out provisions in later versions or accompanying reports and disclosures.
Provisions outside the bill’s main subject, or policy changes attached to appropriations.
None identified in the reviewed text
No unrelated provision was identified in the complete supplied introduced text. This conclusion is limited to that version and does not establish absence in other versions or accompanying materials.
Spending directed to particular recipients or places outside ordinary competitive or formula-based allocation.
None identified in the reviewed text
No congressionally directed spending for particular recipients or places was identified in the complete supplied introduced text. This conclusion is limited to that version; accompanying disclosure and report materials were not supplied.
Narrow exceptions, exemptions, or preferential treatment that warrant a closer look.
None identified in the reviewed text
No materially narrow carve-out, special exemption, or preferential treatment was identified in the complete supplied introduced text. This conclusion is limited to that version and does not establish absence in other versions or accompanying materials.
Full text preserved for this analysis. Legislative record snapshot: Sep 29, 2025. How PlainBill uses AI