The House Judiciary Committee approved a resolution Wednesday that brings the United States one step closer to approving the Equal Rights Amendment — which would guarantee equal legal protections regardless of sex. If approved by the full House and Senate, the resolution would change the deadline for the ERA’s ratification, which was initially set as 1982. The constitutional amendment was approved by Congress in 1972 and was ratified by 35 states over the next decade — three states short of the required total needed by the 1982 deadline. Nevada and Illinois have since ratified the amendment, and many Virginia Democrats — who retook the state Legislature earlier this month — have pledged to approve it, as well.