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By Emma Marsden
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A proposed constitutional amendment would give Congress and state legislatures greater authority to regulate campaign contributions and political spending, potentially changing the rules governing money in U.S. elections.
House Joint Resolution 221, introduced by Representative Hillary Scholten, a Michigan Democrat, on November 2, seeks to give lawmakers constitutional authority to restrict money donated to political candidates and spending on advertisements intended to influence election outcomes.
The proposal comes amid longstanding debate over the influence of wealthy donors, corporations and special-interest groups in American politics.
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However, changing the Constitution is an exceptionally difficult process, and it remains unclear whether the measure could attract the support needed to become law.
Newsweek contacted Scholten via email and the House Judiciary Committee via online form on Tuesday for comment.
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What Would The Amendment Do?
The proposed amendment would give Congress the power to "prohibit, limit, and otherwise regulate" financial contributions to candidates running for federal office.
It would also allow lawmakers to regulate spending on media advertisements intended to influence the outcome of federal elections, including donations made in non-cash forms.
States would receive similar authority over contributions to candidates running for state office and spending on advertisements intended to influence state elections and public votes.
The resolution also includes a provision prohibiting non-U.S. citizens, foreign governments and their agents from contributing money or making in-kind donations to candidates, or spending money intended to influence elections or public votes in the United States.
Any restrictions imposed by Congress would have to apply equally and uniformly to individual U.S. citizens and associations of citizens. The same requirement would apply to state-level restrictions.
The proposed amendment would also limit the powers it establishes to content-neutral regulation of political contributions and expenditures, while giving Congress authority to enforce its provisions through legislation.
Why Scholten Says Campaign Finance Rules Need to Change
Scholten said the proposal was intended to address the effects of continuous campaigning on the work of lawmakers.
In an October 30 statement announcing the legislation, she said: "Nonstop campaign cycles are killing progress in Congress, and the American people are paying the price."
She added: "My proposed constitutional amendment would restore Congress's and the states' authority to set reasonable limits on when campaigns can advertise, as well as how much they can spend and fundraise."
The resolution's actual text focuses on contributions and spending on political advertisements, rather than explicitly establishing limits on the length of campaign periods.
In a video posted to her Facebook page on Monday, Scholten argued that the amount of money spent on elections was taking attention away from lawmakers' responsibilities.
"This year, more than $15 billion was spent on political campaigns and yet we saw one of the least productive sessions of Congress in American History," she said.
"Try to wrap your mind around that: billions of dollars spent on just getting elected, while the work of actually serving the people who elected us gets pushed aside."
Scholten blamed Supreme Court decisions, including Citizens United, for limiting Congress's ability to regulate campaign spending.
"That's why today I'm introducing legislation to amend our Constitution and restore Congress's ability to set reasonable limits on when campaigns can advertise, how much they can spend, and how much they can fundraise," she said.
She called the proposal the "Let's Get Down To Business Bill," adding that voters sent lawmakers to Washington to make progress rather than engage in nonstop campaigning.
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Which Democrats Could Support The Proposal?
Scholten's resolution is part of a wider Democratic push to give lawmakers more control over political spending.
In September 2025, Senator Adam Schiff of California introduced the Citizens Over Corporations Amendment alongside Representatives Joe Neguse of Colorado, Jim McGovern of Massachusetts and Summer Lee of Pennsylvania.
Their proposal would allow Congress and states to impose reasonable, viewpoint-neutral restrictions on money raised and spent to influence elections. It would also allow governments to distinguish between individuals and corporations or other artificial entities, potentially prohibiting the latter from spending money on elections.
The proposal would also permit states to introduce public campaign financing systems.
Separately, in July 2026, Representative Jamie Raskin of Maryland and Senator Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island introduced the Get Foreign Money Out of U.S. Elections Act.
The legislation targets political spending by U.S. companies with significant foreign ownership or influence. It attracted more than 69 Democratic House cosponsors and 12 Senate cosponsors when introduced, according to the lawmakers' announcements.
How Could The Amendment Become Law?
The resolution has been referred to the House Judiciary Committee, but it faces a lengthy process before it could become part of the Constitution.
Under Article V of the Constitution, Congress can propose an amendment if it receives approval from two-thirds of both the House of Representatives and the Senate.
If approved by Congress, the proposal would then go to the states for ratification.
At least three-fourths of the states, currently 38 out of 50, would have to approve it before it could take effect.
Scholten's resolution specifies that ratification must take place within seven years of its submission to the states.
Thousands of constitutional amendments have been proposed by members of Congress and others since 1787. Only 27 amendments have been ratified by the states, the most recent in 1992. Congress has also approved six proposed amendments that failed to secure ratification by the required number of states.
With the resolution only recently introduced and no indication yet that it has the necessary congressional support, its prospects remain uncertain.
Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Matthew Cannon and Emma Lee-Sang
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