2001 Ron Paul 58:1
Mr. PAUL. Mr. Speaker, the year 2001
marks the quasquicentennial of the Constitution
of the great State of Texas.
2001 Ron Paul 58:2
The Lone Star State’s highest legal document
has served Texans since 1876 and — to
commemorate this important milestone in
Texas history — the recent Regular Session of
the 77th Texas Legislature adopted House
Concurrent Resolution No. 319, which the
Governor signed on June 15, 2001. I would
like to share with my colleagues the full text of
the Legislature’s H.C.R. No. 319 as follows:
Whereas, The year 2001 marks the
quasquicentennial of the Texas Constitution,
and the 125th anniversary of this foundation
document is indeed worthy of special recognition;
and
2001 Ron Paul 58:4
Whereas, On August 2, 1875, Texas voters
approved the calling of a convention to write
a new state constitution; the convention,
held in Austin, began on September 6, 1875,
and adjourned sine die on November 24, 1875;
then its draft was ratified in a statewide referendum
on February 15, 1876, by a vote of
136,606 to 56,652; and
2001 Ron Paul 58:5
Whereas, The more than 90 delegates to the
1875 Constitutional Convention were a diverse
group — most were farmers and lawyers;
some were merchants, editors, and physicians;
some were legislators and judges;
some had fought in the Civil War armies of
the South as well as of the North; at least
five were African-American; 75 were Democrats;
15 were Republicans; and 37 belonged
to the Grange, a non-partisan and agrarian
order of patrons of husbandry; one delegate
had even served nearly four decades earlier
as a delegate to the 1836 Constitutional Convention;
and
2001 Ron Paul 58:6
Whereas, The Constitution of 1876, a richly
detailed instrument, reflects several historical
influences; the Spanish and Mexican
heritage of the state was evident in such provisions
as those pertaining to land titles and
land law, as well as to water and mineral
law, and remains evident in judicial procedures,
legislative authority, and gubernatorial
powers; and
2001 Ron Paul 58:7
Whereas, Sections aimed at monied corporate
domination together with protection
of the rights of the individual and others
mandating strong restrictions upon the mission
of state government in general and upon
the role of specific state officials grew out of
the Jacksonian agrarianism and frontier philosophy
that first infused the thinking of
many Texans during the mid-1800’s; and
2001 Ron Paul 58:8
Whereas, Other sections, such as those providing
for low taxation and decreased state
spending, were aimed at creating a government
quite different from the centralized
and more expensive one that had existed
under the Constitution of 1869, which was
itself a product of the post-Civil War Reconstruction
Era in Texas; and
2001 Ron Paul 58:9
Whereas, Notwithstanding its age, Texas
voters have been reluctant to replace this
charter, which is the sixth Texas constitution
to have been adopted since independence
from Mexico was gained in 1836; and
2001 Ron Paul 58:10
Whereas, The Constitution of 1876 has been
the organic law of Texas for 125 years, and
this document, which still bears the imprint
of the region’s long and dramatic history,
has had — and continues to have — a profound
influence on the development of the Lone
Star State; now, therefore, be it
2001 Ron Paul 58:11
Resolved, That the 77th Legislature of the
State of Texas, Regular Session, 2001, hereby
commemorate the quasquicentennial of the
Texas constitution.
