Amendment XVIII · Progressive Era Amendment
Eighteenth Amendment: Prohibition of alcohol
About 10 min total: 5 min reading + 5 min for its 4 practice questions
Banned making, selling, or transporting intoxicating liquors. Repealed by the 21st.
- Proposed by Congress
- December 18, 1917
- Ratified
- January 16, 1919
- Group
- Progressive Era Amendment
The text
Section 1.
After one year from the ratification of this article the manufacture, sale, or transportation of intoxicating liquors within, the importation thereof into, or the exportation thereof from the United States and all territory subject to the jurisdiction thereof for beverage purposes is hereby prohibited.
Section 2.
The Congress and the several States shall have concurrent power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.
Section 3.
This article shall be inoperative unless it shall have been ratified as an amendment to the Constitution by the legislatures of the several States, as provided in the Constitution, within seven years from the date of the submission hereof to the States by the Congress.
Repealed. The entire 18th Amendment was repealed by Section 1 of the 21st Amendment (1933).
What it means
- One year after ratification, the manufacture, sale, or transportation of intoxicating liquors for drinking was banned nationwide (it took effect January 17, 1920).
- Congress passed the Volstead Act to enforce it.
- Repealed in 1933 by the 21st Amendment.
Who proposed it
Senator Morris Sheppard of Texas introduced the resolution (S.J. Res. 17) in 1917. The Anti-Saloon League and the Woman's Christian Temperance Union led the national campaign.
When it was proposed and ratified
- Proposed by Congress: December 18, 1917. House December 17, Senate December 18, 1917 (final passage).
- Ratified: January 16, 1919. Acting Secretary of State Frank Polk certified it January 29, 1919. Repealed December 5, 1933.
Amendments are not signed into law. Congress proposes them by a two-thirds vote of both houses, and they become part of the Constitution when three-fourths of the states ratify. The President has no formal role (Article V).
Why it was made
The temperance movement blamed alcohol for poverty, crime, and family violence. By 1917 many states were already "dry," and World War I added arguments about saving grain and suspicion of German-American brewers. It was the first amendment with a ratification deadline (seven years).
Key Supreme Court cases
None of the FCLE landmark cases centers on this amendment. See all landmark cases.
FCLE tips
- Only amendment ever repealed.
- First amendment with a ratification time limit.
| This | With this |
|---|---|
| 18th: Prohibition begins (1919) | 21st: Prohibition repealed (1933) |
Sources: National Archives (text and dates); Constitution Annotated (Congress.gov) (proposal and ratification history); U.S. Senate Historical Office and Library of Congress (sponsors).