> The proposed congressional pay amendment was largely forgotten until 1982, when Gregory Watson, as a 19-year-old sophomore, wrote in his college term paper that the amendment could still be ratified. After his paper had been returned with a "C" grade by his professor Sharon Waite because she thought it couldn't be done, Watson was motivated to launch a nationwide campaign to complete its ratification. The amendment eventually became part of the United States Constitution, effective May 5, 1992, completing a record-setting ratification period of 202 years, 7 months, and 10 days.