Doyle Votes to Remove Ratification Deadline for Equal Rights Amendment

Statement

U.S. Representative Mike Doyle (PA-18) voted in favor of H.J.Res. 79, legislation to remove the deadline to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) and enact a federal protection against sex discrimination.

"It's past time we took this vote to affirm the equal rights of women under the law," said Congressman Doyle. "As women still face the wage gap, pregnancy discrimination, sexual harassment, and gender violence, the Equal Rights Amendment is just as important today as it was in 1972. The ERA would work alongside existing federal protections for women, building on the progress we've made to achieve equality for all Americans."

H.J.Res. 79 would facilitate the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment as the 28th Amendment to the Constitution. Originally introduced in 1923, the ERA reads, "Equality of Rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on the account of sex."

Congress passed the ERA in 1972 and attached an arbitrary 7 year deadline for ratification. While it later extended that deadline to 1982, only 35 of the required 38 states voted to ratify the amendment by then. Recently, the ERA has passed in Nevada, Illinois, and Virginia, creating pressure to eliminate the deadline for ratification, as H.J.Res. 79 would do.

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