Governors press for a Balanced Budget Amendment
- Sam Cardwell
- 6 days ago
- 4 min read
Tired of waiting for federal action on the nation’s $36 trillion national debt, Governors are banding together to press for state action. Florida Governor DeSantis met with Idaho Governor Little on March 24 to discuss adding a balanced budget amendment to the U. S. Constitution. From the beginning, the Governors were clear that they are asking states to urge lawmakers to vote for a constitutional convention. The main focus of the convention would be federal fiscal accountability.
DeSantis told reporters during the joint Idaho press conference:
“I am convinced that you are not going to have Congress all of a sudden change its behavior for the long term. I think the reason we’ve gotten into this with respect to fiscal is because there are certain incentives for the people that are in Washington to behave the way they do. And we need to change those incentives.”
He continued:
“If Idaho and Montana join the fight, that gets us to 29 there's a couple other states that are on the precipice as well. You need 34 states to trigger Article Five, where you would actually write an amendment and then eventually send it to the states for ratification."
Governor Little posted on X:
“The freight train of federal spending has to stop. Under Donald Trump’s leadership the size of the federal government is being reduced, now it’s time for Congress to put an end to the ever-growing debt. Grateful to Ron DeSantis for his efforts promoting a balanced budget!”
DeSantis acknowledged the federal fiscal problem has bipartisan blame:
“As a proud conservative and as a proud Republican, I have no problem pointing out the truth that this is both parties in Washington that have created this mess. As much as I'd like to come up here and blame the Democrats, the fact of the matter is it's happened under both parties.”
During the 2025 Legislative Session, Idaho lawmakers rejected 3 different applications for a constitutional convention. They were for the purposes of balancing the budget and imposing fiscal restraints on the federal government, limiting the power and jurisdiction of the federal government, and limiting the terms of office for the federal government’s officials and members of Congress.
Gov. DeSantis continued his balanced budget tour on March 24 by visiting with Governor Gianforte in Montana to promote the same initiative. Montana also proposed an application for a convention with SJ4, but it too was rejected.
Governor Gianforte stated:
“In Washington, they’ve been spending like drunken sailors – that is not what our Founders envisioned, we need a change, and fast, to prevent our children and grandchildren from inheriting this mess and we can’t expect Washington to impose permanent fiscal restraints on itself. That’s why we need a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution.”
According to a recent poll, 68% of Americans are in favor of a constitutional convention to propose amendments that would establish term limits, impose spending ceilings, and curb the power of the federal government. The federal government’s $36 trillion in federal debt equates to roughly $106,000 per person in the country. In 2024, the United States spent more on interest costs than on any federal program except Social Security.
There are numerous reasons why this problem must be addressed quickly. A large and growing national debt puts the U.S. at a greater risk for a fiscal crisis, being vulnerable to foreign creditors, and reducing public and private investment. Another massive reason is that funds spent on interest payments for the federal debt are not available for infrastructure, defense, or other important national priorities.
In 2020, the average interest rate on America’s debt was 2.344%, and it has grown to 3.211% as of this year. In April 2024, U.S. Bank estimated that the federal government was on pace to acquire $1 trillion in new debt every 100 days. If a national emergency were to happen, the government wouldn’t have any other choice but to borrow or print new money. This is why balancing a federal budget is a must. If 49 out of 50 states have to balance their own respective budgets, why shouldn’t the federal government be required too?
On March 26, Moody's Investor Service also published a study on U.S. debt. It originally changed its rating from “stable” to “negative” when looking at the U. S. credit score in November of 2023, and the findings of this recent study reached the same conclusion. It found that federal policy decisions could lead to worsening debt and higher interest rates for the U.S. The study said:
”The potential negative credit impact of sustained high tariffs, unfunded tax cuts and significant tail risks to the economy have diminished prospects that these formidable strengths will continue to offset widening fiscal deficits and declining debt affordability.”
Critics claim that the vehicle of a constitutional convention will result in a “runaway convention” that will meddle with the entire constitution. But there is a high threshold of a 3/4 vote, or 38 states needed in order to ratify an amendment to the Constitution to ensure order and stability. Supporters of a constitutional convention acknowledge that there is a strong possibility that a constitutional convention won’t happen. If there are enough applications, one stream of thought is that Congress will propose appropriate ratification to send to the states, rather than having the state legislatures call the shots.
The last time the federal budget was balanced was in 2001. Spending has gotten so out of control that states must step up to act. This push by Governors Little, Gianforte and DeSantis shows that there is a real desire and momentum for a constitutional convention. Lawmakers in Idaho, Montana, and around the country should seriously consider moving forward with their applications to impose fiscal restraints on the federal government.