Legal Definitions - killer amendment

A killer amendment is a proposed change to a bill, motion, or resolution that is intentionally designed to make the original proposal unacceptable to its supporters, thereby ensuring its defeat. Rather than genuinely improving the original text, a killer amendment aims to undermine its core purpose, make it politically unpalatable, or render it so extreme or costly that even its proponents will vote against it.

• Imagine a state legislature is debating a bill aimed at providing funding for public schools to upgrade their technology. A group of opposing lawmakers, unable to defeat the bill outright, proposes a "killer amendment" that would require all new school computers to be custom-built using components sourced exclusively from a single, obscure, and extremely expensive manufacturer. This amendment, while technically related to technology upgrades, is designed to make the bill astronomically expensive and politically unfeasible, forcing even the bill's original supporters to vote against it due to the absurd cost and impracticality.

• Consider a company's annual shareholder meeting where a proposal is put forth to increase the company's investment in renewable energy projects. A faction of the board, wishing to defeat this proposal without directly opposing environmental initiatives, might introduce a "killer amendment" requiring the company to divest *all* its existing fossil fuel assets within six months, regardless of market conditions or contractual obligations. This amendment would be so financially disruptive and unrealistic that it would likely cause the original renewable energy proposal to fail, as most shareholders would reject the amended version due to its extreme and damaging requirements.

• A local city council is considering an ordinance to establish a new community garden in an underutilized park space. Opponents, who don't want the garden but lack the votes to defeat the original ordinance, might propose a "killer amendment" that mandates the garden must be enclosed by a 20-foot-high solid gold fence and include a full-time, round-the-clock security detail. This amendment would inflate the project's cost to an unmanageable level, effectively "killing" the original community garden proposal by making it financially impossible for the city to implement.