SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) – Illinois is again at the center of a national movement involving the Equal Rights Amendment, 35 years after the state failed to ratify it.

Evolving legal theories have led to a resurgence of the proposed constitutional amendment and claims that it’s still viable.
An Illinois Senate committee approved it this month. That sets up a floor vote that hasn’t yet been scheduled. The Illinois Capitol was the scene of high-profile civil disobedience when ratification was sought in 1982.

Congress passed ERA in 1972 and set a 10-year deadline for 38 states to ratify. But supporters say it’s still in play and that Congress could change the deadline. Nevada ratified it in March, so the ERA is now two states short.