Constitutional Study Commission
Active dates:1971-1973
Function: The commission shall study the Minnesota Constitution, other revised state constitutions and studies and documents relating to constitutional revision, and propose such constitutional revisions and a revised format for a new Minnesota constitution as may appear necessary, in preparation for a constitutional convention if called or as a basis for making further amendments to the present constitution. It shall consider the constitution in relation to political, economic and social changes.
It shall report to the governor, the legislature and the chief justice on November 15, 1972, recommending such procedures as it may deem necessary and proper to effectuate its recommendations.
History:
Creation of a Constitutional Study Commission was recommended by Gov. Anderson in a special message to the Minnesota Legislature on March 3, 1971 (See: "Special Message: Ethics in State Government and Legislative Reform: To Meet the Challenge of a New Day").
The commission, among other things, recommended that the Constitution be made easier to amend by allowing amendments to be approved if they received 55 percent of the vote. This was proposed as an alternative to the more stringent extraordinary majority requirement. The question was put to voters in 1974, but it failed by a margin of less than 1 percent -- despite being approved by a 57.4-42.6 majority.
Membership:
A commission of 21 members is created consisting of six members of the house of representatives appointed by the speaker, six members of the senate appointed by the committee on committees, one person appointed by the chief justice of the supreme court and eight interested citizens, including the chairman, appointed by the governor.
Agency heads:
Chairman: former governor Elmer L. Andersen
Note: The Legislative Reference Library may have additional reports on or by this group available through our catalog.
Documents/Articles:
News clippings and documents. Agencies Notebook Collection, 1971-1972.
Record last updated:
12/11/2015
All information on this group from the Library’s collection of agency notebooks has been digitized. These
materials are incorporated into the “documents/articles” section of the record. Please contact a librarian with any questions. The Minnesota Agencies database is a work in progress.