I
111th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 4479
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
January 20, 2010
Mr. Forbes introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Budget
A BILL
To enforce discretionary spending limits to rein in spending, reduce the deficit, and regain control of the Federal budget process.
Short title
This Act may be cited as the
Tighten Washington’s Belt Act of
2010
.
Definitions
As used in this Act:
Account
The term account means—
for discretionary budget authority, an item for which appropriations are made in any appropriation Act; and
for items not provided for in appropriation Acts, direct spending and outlays therefrom identified in the program and finance schedules contained in the appendix to the Budget of the United States for the current year.
Breach
The term breach means, for any fiscal year, the amount by which discretionary budget authority enacted for that year exceeds the spending limit for budget authority for that year.
Budget authority; new budget authority; and outlays
The terms budget authority, new budget authority, and outlays have the meanings given to such terms in section 3 of the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 (2 U.S.C. 622).
Budget year
The term budget year means, with respect to a session of Congress, the fiscal year of the Government that starts on October 1 of the calendar year in which that session begins.
CBO
The term CBO means the Director of the Congressional Budget Office.
Current
The term current means—
with respect to the Office of Management and Budget estimates included with a budget submission under section 1105(a) of title 31, United States Code, the estimates consistent with the economic and technical assumptions underlying that budget;
with respect to estimates made after that budget submission that are not included with it, the estimates consistent with the economic and technical assumptions underlying the most recently submitted President’s budget; and
with respect to the Congressional Budget Office, estimates consistent with the economic and technical assumptions as required by section 202(e)(1) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974.
Current year
The term current year means, with respect to a budget year, the fiscal year that immediately precedes that budget year.
Discretionary budget authority
The term discretionary budget authority means budgetary authority (except to fund mandatory programs) provided in appropriation Acts.
Discretionary spending limit
The term discretionary spending limit shall mean the amounts specified in section 6.
OMB
The term OMB means the Director of the Office of Management and Budget.
Sequestration
The term sequestration with respect to discretionary budget authority, means the cancellation or reduction of budget authority (except budget authority to fund mandatory programs) provided in appropriation Acts.
Administration and effect of sequestration
Presidential order
In general
Fifteen days after the end of session, OMB shall issue a discretionary sequestration report. If in its Sequestration Report, OMB estimates that any sequestration is required, the President shall issue an order fully implementing without change all sequestrations required by the OMB calculations set forth in that report. This order shall be effective on issuance.
CBO
Ten days after the end of session, CBO shall issue a discretionary sequestration report.
Special rule
If the date specified for the submission of a Presidential order under paragraph (1) falls on a Sunday or legal holiday, such order shall be issued on the following day.
Effects of sequestration
The effects of sequestration shall be as follows:
Budgetary resources sequestered from any account shall be permanently cancelled, except as provided in paragraph (5).
Except as otherwise provided, the same percentage sequestration shall apply to all programs, projects, and activities within a budget account (with programs, projects, and activities as delineated in the appropriation Act or accompanying report for the relevant fiscal year covering that account).
Administrative regulations or similar actions implementing a sequestration shall be made within 120 days of the sequestration order. To the extent that formula allocations differ at different levels of budgetary resources within an account, program, project, or activity, the sequestration shall be interpreted as producing a lower total appropriation, with the remaining amount of the appropriation being obligated in a manner consistent with program allocation formulas in substantive law.
Except as otherwise provided, obligations or budgetary resources in sequestered accounts shall be reduced only in the fiscal year in which a sequester occurs.
Budgetary resources sequestered in special fund accounts and offsetting collections sequestered in appropriation accounts shall not be available for obligation during the fiscal year in which the sequestration occurs, but shall be available in subsequent years to the extent otherwise provided in law.
Submission and availability of reports
Each report required by this section shall be submitted, in the case of CBO, to the House of Representatives, the Senate, and OMB and, in the case of OMB, to the House of Representatives, the Senate, and the President on the day it is issued. On the following day a notice of the report shall be printed in the Federal Register.
GAO Compliance Report
Upon request of the Committee on the Budget of the House of Representatives or the Senate, the Comptroller General shall submit to the Congress and the President a report on—
the extent to which each order issued by the President under this Act complies with all of the requirements contained in this Act, either certifying that the order fully and accurately complies with such requirements or indicating the respects in which it does not; and
the extent to which each report issued by OMB or CBO under this section complies with all of the requirements contained in this Act, either certifying that the report fully and accurately complies with such requirements or indicating the respects in which it does not.
Discretionary Sequestration Reports
Discretionary Sequestration Reports
Reporting requirements
On the dates specified in section 3(a), OMB and CBO shall each issue a Discretionary Sequestration Report, updated to reflect laws enacted through those dates.
Discretionary spending
The Discretionary Sequestration Reports for each of fiscal year 2011 through 2015 shall set forth estimates for each of the following:
The applicable discretionary spending limits.
The new budget authority and the breach, if any.
The sequestration percentages necessary to eliminate the breach.
For the budget year, for each account to be sequestered, the level of enacted, sequesterable budget authority and resulting estimated outlays to be sequestered.
Explanation of differences
The OMB report shall explain any differences between OMB and CBO estimates for any breach and any required discretionary sequestration percentages. The OMB report shall also explain differences in the amount of sequesterable resources for any budget account to be reduced if such difference is greater than $5,000,000.
Economic and technical assumptions
In all reports required by this section, OMB shall use the same economic and technical assumptions as used in the most recent budget submitted by the President under section 1105(a) of title 31, United States Code.
Adjustments
When OMB submits a report under this section for a fiscal year, OMB shall calculate, and the subsequent reports and budgets submitted by the President under section 1105(a) of title 31, United States Code shall include, adjustments to discretionary spending limits (and those limits as adjusted) for the fiscal year and each succeeding year.
Limits
Discretionary spending limits
As used in this Act, the term discretionary spending limit means—
with respect to fiscal year 2011, $1,120,488,000 in new budget authority;
with respect to fiscal year 2012, $1,008,439,000 in new budget authority;
with respect to fiscal year 2013, $907,596,000 in new budget authority;
with respect to fiscal year 2014, $816,836,000 in new budget authority;
with respect to fiscal year 2015, $735,152,000 in new budget authority; and
with respect to fiscal years following 2015, the President shall recommend and the Congress shall consider legislation setting limits for those fiscal years.
Enforcement
Sequestration
On the date specified in section 3(a), there shall be a sequestration to eliminate a budget-year breach.
Eliminating a breach
Each account shall be reduced by a dollar amount calculated by multiplying the enacted level of budget authority for that year in that account at that time by the uniform percentage necessary to eliminate a breach of the discretionary spending limit.
Part-year appropriations
If, on the date the report is issued under paragraph (1), there is in effect an Act making continuing appropriations for part of a fiscal year for any budget account, then the dollar sequestration calculated for that account under paragraph (2) shall be subtracted from—
the annualized amount otherwise available by law in that account under that or a subsequent part-year appropriation; and
when a full-year appropriation for that account is enacted, from the amount otherwise provided by the full-year appropriation.
Look-back
If, after June 30, an appropriation for the fiscal year in progress is enacted that causes a breach for that year (after taking into account any previous sequestration), the discretionary spending limit for the next fiscal year shall be reduced by the amount of that breach.
Within-session sequestration reports and order
If an appropriation for a fiscal year in progress is enacted (after Congress adjourns to end the session for that budget year and before July 1 of that fiscal year) that causes a breach, 10 days later CBO shall issue a report containing the information required in section 5(c). Fifteen days after enactment, OMB shall issue a report containing the information required in section 5(c). On the same day as the OMB report, the President shall issue an order fully implementing without change all sequestrations required by the OMB calculations set forth in that report. This order shall be effective on issuance.
Estimates
CBO estimates
As soon as practicable after Congress completes action on any legislation providing discretionary appropriations, CBO shall provide an estimate to OMB of that legislation.
OMB estimates
Not later than 7 calendar days (excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays) after the date of enactment of any discretionary appropriations, OMB shall transmit a report to the House of Representatives and to the Senate containing—
the CBO estimate of that legislation;
an OMB estimate of that legislation using current economic and technical assumptions; and
an explanation of any difference between the 2 estimates.
Differences
If during the preparation of the report under paragraph (2), OMB determines that there is a difference between the OMB and CBO estimates, OMB shall consult with the Committees on the Budget of the House of Representatives and the Senate regarding that difference and that consultation, to the extent practicable, shall include written communication to such committees that affords such committees the opportunity to comment before the issuance of that report.
Assumptions and guidelines
OMB and CBO shall prepare estimates under this paragraph in conformance with scorekeeping guidelines determined after consultation among the House and Senate Committees on the Budget, CBO, and OMB.
Deferrals and rescissions
Deferrals and rescissions proposed under the Impoundment Control Act of 1974 for the budget year shall not be taken into account in determining such budget base.
Exemptions from sequestration
In general
Except as provided in subsection (b), all discretionary budget authority shall be subject to the sequestration procedures under this Act.
Exemptions
The following shall be exempt from reduction under any order issued under this Act:
Benefits and compensation provided to active duty military and to veterans defined as discretionary spending.
Provisions of discretionary spending legislation the President designates as an emergency requirement and the Congress so designates in statute.
Any salaries or other expenditures that may not be reduced on account of constitutional requirements.
In budget
The exemptions provided in paragraph (1) shall be the only exemptions to sequestration procedures under this Act, unless otherwise provided by law.