MS SB2389

Mississippi enacts and agrees to be bound by the Compact for a Balanced Budget, a multi-state compact designed to apply to Congress for a constitutional convention limited to proposing a balanced budget amendment.

The compact becomes operative when at least 3/4 of the states join; member states then collectively apply to Congress for a convention to propose a balanced budget amendment and prospectively ratify it once Congress refers it to the states.

Each member state appoints one delegate (the state's chief executive officer on the enactment date) to the convention, limited to introducing and voting only on the Balanced Budget Amendment under specified convention rules; delegates must take an oath to comply with the compact and constitution.

The Balanced Budget Amendment requires federal outlays to not exceed receipts unless financed by debt, limits authorized debt to 105% of current levels (increasable only by state legislature approval), and requires a 2/3 congressional vote for new general revenue taxes.

The compact terminates automatically if not fully performed within 7 years of the first state's enactment; member states cannot withdraw once 3/4 of states have joined without unanimous consent; exclusive venue for legal actions is the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas.