Proposing a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution requiring that each agency and department's funding is justified.
Referred to the Subcommittee on the Constitution And Civil Justice.
Congressional Research Service
Official summary
Version 00 · Introduced in House · Mar 14, 2013
Constitutional Amendment - Prohibits total outlays for a fiscal year (except those for repayment of debt principal) from exceeding total receipts for that fiscal year (except those derived from borrowing) unless Congress, by a three-fifths rollcall vote of each chamber, authorizes a specific excess of outlays over receipts.
Prohibits total outlays for any fiscal year from exceeding the following:
for the first fiscal year for which this Amendment takes effect, 20% of the estimated gross domestic product (GDP) of the United States for that year, and
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for each subsequent fiscal year, a percentage of the estimated GDP equal to the applicable percentage for the preceding fiscal year reduced by .1%.
States, however, that spending for any fiscal year is not required to be less than 16% of the estimated GDP.
Requires a three-fifths rollcall vote of each chamber to increase the public debt limit. Directs the President to submit a balanced budget (budget plan) to Congress annually. Prohibits any bill to increase revenue from becoming law unless approved by a three-fifths majority of the whole number of each chamber by rollcall vote. Requires the budget plan to include a justification by each federal department or agency for any funding proposed in that plan. Authorizes waivers of these requirements: (1) when a declaration of war is in effect or under other specified circumstances involving military conflict, or (2) during declaration of a natural disaster.
Source last updated: Jan 3, 2025. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
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