PlainBillCongress, translated.Legislation. Context. Public interest.Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
Congressional Research Service
Version 00 · Introduced in Senate · Jan 4, 2019
Constitutional Amendment
This joint resolution proposes a constitutional amendment prohibiting total outlays for a fiscal year from exceeding total receipts for that fiscal year unless Congress authorizes the excess by a two-thirds vote of each chamber. The prohibition excludes outlays for repayment of debt principal and receipts derived from borrowing.
The amendment prohibits total outlays for any fiscal year from exceeding 18% of the gross domestic product of the United States, unless two-thirds of each house of Congress provides for a specific increase above this amount.
Showing the opening paragraphs of the official summary.
The amendment requires a two-thirds vote of each chamber of Congress to impose a new tax, increase the statutory rate of any tax, or increase the aggregate amount of revenue. It requires a three-fifths vote of each chamber to increase the limit on the debt of the United States.
The President must submit an annual budget in which total outlays do not exceed total receipts and 18% of the gross domestic product of the United States.
The amendment prohibits a court from ordering a revenue increase to enforce the requirements.
Congress may waive specified requirements when a declaration of war is in effect or the United States is engaged in a military conflict which causes an imminent and serious military threat to national security.
People & committees
Sen. Hyde-Smith, Cindy [R-MS] · R–MS
Legislative record
A procedural vote is different from passage. Passage in one chamber does not establish enactment. Explore the glossary.
Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
Introduced in Senate
Primary sources
Text links open the official source. We currently store references to these documents.
Source last updated: Aug 10, 2026. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
AI Conversation Starters
Choose a perspective, copy a prompt, and paste it into your preferred AI. Each prompt includes the bill version and available official source links, and asks for counterarguments as well as supporting evidence.
Analyze S.J.Res.3 as objectively as possible. Explain its main provisions, who would be affected, possible benefits and harms, implementation, exceptions, and uncertainties. Present the strongest arguments for and against it, and identify evidence needed to assess its public impact.
Examine S.J.Res.3 through a progressive lens, focusing on fairness, access, economic inequality, and effects on vulnerable communities. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and distinguish stated goals from demonstrated outcomes.
Examine S.J.Res.3 through a conservative lens, focusing on fiscal responsibility, institutional stability, federalism, and the scope of government. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and any provisions that challenge this perspective.
Examine S.J.Res.3 through a civil-liberties and limited-government lens. Consider individual rights, privacy, voluntary choice, accountability, and government power. Explain tradeoffs, possible safeguards, and the strongest counterarguments without assuming the proposal is beneficial or harmful.