State constitution (United States)

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In the context of the United States of America, a state constitution is the governing document of a U.S. state, comparable to the U.S. Constitution which is the governing document of the United States. Some states have had multiple constitutions and since each state drafts its own, there is great diversity between them, though all have some basic concepts in common.

The average length of a state constitution is 26,000 words (compared to about 8,700 words for the U.S. constitution).^{[citation needed]} The longest state governing document is that of Alabama, which has over 172,000 words. That document is also the most amended state constitution in the Union, with over 770 amendments as of 2005 (the average state constitution has been amended about 115 times)^{[citation needed]}. The oldest state constitution still in effect is that of Massachusetts, which took effect in 1780. The newest is the Georgia Constitution, which was ratified in 1983 (Hammons, 1999).

1 list of U.S. state constitutions
2 U.S. Territory Constitutions
3 "Constitution" for Washington, D.C.
4 References
5 External links

[edit] list of U.S. state constitutions

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See category:state constitutions of the United States.

[edit] U.S. Territory Constitutions

The major populated island territories of the United States also have constitutions of their own. These constitutions are subject to Congressional approval and oversight, which is not the case with state constitutions, and do not qualify the territories for statehood. Upon an Enabling Act, the affected territory may draft a state constitution that will succeed upon statehood.

[edit] "Constitution" for Washington, D.C.

Washington, DC has a charter similar to charters of major cities, instead of having a constitution like the states and territories. The District of Columbia Home Rule Act establishes the Council of the District of Columbia which governs the entire district and has certain devolved powers similar to those of major cities. Congress has full authority over the district and may amend the charter and any legislation enacted by the Council. Attempts at statehood for the District of Columbia have included the drafting of two constitutions in 1982 [1] and 1987 [2] respectively referring to the district as the State of New Columbia.

[edit] References

Hammons, Christopher W. (1999). Was James Madison wrong? Rethinking the American preference for short, framework-oriented constitutions. American Political Science Review. Dec. 1999.
- The appendices to this article contain substantial data on state constitutions.