Cut, Cap, and Balance Act of 2015

Summary: Cut, Cap, and Balance Act of 2015  This bill amends the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to establish FY2016 spending limits of $2.832 trillion for new budget authority and $2.884 trillion for outlays. Spending for Social Security, Medicare, Veterans Benefits and Services, Net Interest, and Military Personnel is exempt from the limits.  The chairs of the congressional budget committees may make specified adjustments to the limits for legislation that designates amounts for Overseas Contingency Operations/ Global War on Terrorism.  The bill amends the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 to limit total annual spending for FY2016-FY2025 to a specified percentage of projected annual gross domestic product (GDP), which begins at 19.9% for FY2016 and decreases each year until it reaches 18% for FY2021-FY2025.  The bill enforces the spending limits using automatic spending cuts known as sequestration and specifies exemptions.  The Department of the Treasury may not exercise additional borrowing authority in subsequent legislation until a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution is submitted to the states that: (1) requires that total outlays not exceed total receipts, (2) contains a spending limitation as a percentage of GDP, and (3) requires tax increases be approved by a two-thirds vote in both houses of Congress. 

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Cut, Cap, and Balance Act of 2015''.

                              TITLE I--CUT

SEC. 101. MODIFICATION OF THE CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET ACT.

    Title III of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 (2 U.S.C. 631 et 
seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:

``SEC. 316. SPENDING LIMITS.

    ``(a) In General.--It shall not be in order in the House of 
Representatives or the Senate to consider any bill, joint resolution, 
amendment, or conference report that would cause the spending limits as 
set forth in this section to be exceeded.
    ``(b) Limits.--In this section, the term `spending limits' means 
for fiscal year 2016--
            ``(1) $2,832,215,000,000 in new budget authority; and
            ``(2) $2,884,442,000,000 in outlays.
    ``(c) Adjustments.--After the reporting of a bill or joint 
resolution relating to the global war on terrorism described in 
subsection (d), or the offering of an amendment thereto or the 
submission of a conference report thereon--
            ``(1) the chair of the House or Senate Committee on the 
        Budget may adjust the spending limits provided in this section 
        for purposes of congressional enforcement, the budgetary 
        aggregates in the concurrent resolution on the budget most 
        recently adopted by the Senate and the House of 
        Representatives, and allocations pursuant to section 302(a) of 
        the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 (2 U.S.C. 633(a)), by the 
        amount of new budget authority in that measure for that purpose 
        and the outlays flowing therefrom; and
            ``(2) following any adjustment under paragraph (1), the 
        House or Senate Committee on Appropriations may report 
        appropriately revised suballocations pursuant to section 302(b) 
        of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 (2 U.S.C. 633(b)) to 
        carry out this subsection.
    ``(d) Global War on Terrorism.--If a bill or joint resolution is 
reported making appropriations for fiscal year 2016 that designates 
amounts for Overseas Contingency Operations/Global War on Terrorism for 
purposes of section 251(b)(2)(A) of the Balanced Budget and Emergency 
Deficit Control Act of 1985 (2 U.S.C. 901(b)(2)(A)), the allowable 
adjustments provided for in subsection (c) for fiscal year 2016 shall 
not exceed $58,000,000,000 in budget authority and the outlays flowing 
therefrom.

``SEC. 317. CERTAIN SPENDING LIMITS.

    ``(a) In General.--It shall not be in order in the House of 
Representatives or the Senate to consider any bill, joint resolution, 
amendment, or conference report that includes any provision that would 
cause total spending, except as excluded in subsection (b), to exceed 
the limits specified in section 316(b).
    ``(b) Exempt From Spending Limits.--Spending for the following 
functions is exempt from the limits specified in section 316 (b):
            ``(1) Social Security, function 650.
            ``(2) Medicare, function 570.
            ``(3) Veterans Benefits and Services, function 700.
            ``(4) Net Interest, function 900.
            ``(5) Military personnel accounts within subfunctional 
        category 051.''.

SEC. 102. STATUTORY ENFORCEMENT OF SPENDING CAPS THROUGH SEQUESTRATION.

    Title III of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 (2 U.S.C. 631 et 
seq.) is amended by inserting after section 317, as added by section 
101 of this Act, the following:

``SEC. 318. ENFORCEMENT OF DISCRETIONARY AND DIRECT SPENDING CAPS.

    ``(a) Implementation.--The sequesters shall be implemented as 
follows:
            ``(1) Discretionary spending implementation.--For the 
        discretionary limits in section 316, pursuant to section 251(a) 
        of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 
        1985 (2 U.S.C. 901(a)) with each category sequestered 
        separately.
            ``(2) Direct spending implementation.--(A) The 
        sequestration to enforce this section for direct spending shall 
        be implemented pursuant to section 254 of the Balanced Budget 
        and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (2 U.S.C. 904).
            ``(B) Section 255 of the Balanced Budget and Control Act of 
        1985 (2 U.S.C. 905) shall not apply to this section, except 
        that payments for military personnel accounts (within 
        subfunctional category 051), TRICARE for Life, Medicare 
        (functional category 570), military retirement, Social Security 
        (functional category 650), veterans (functional category 700), 
        net interest (functional category 900), and discretionary 
        appropriations shall be exempt.
    ``(b) Modification of Presidential Order.--
            ``(1) In general.--At any time after the Director of the 
        Office of Management and Budget issues a sequestration report 
        under subsection (a) and section 319(c) the provisions of 
        section 258A of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit 
        Control Act of 1985 (2 U.S.C. 907b) shall apply to the 
        consideration in the House of Representatives and the Senate of 
        a bill or joint resolution to override the order if the bill or 
        joint resolution, as enacted, would achieve the same level of 
        reductions in new budget authority and outlays for the 
        applicable fiscal year as set forth in the order.
            ``(2) Point of order.--In the House of Representatives or 
        Senate, it shall not be in order to consider a bill or joint 
        resolution which waives, modifies, or in any way alters a 
        sequestration order unless the chair of the House or Senate 
        Committee on the Budget certifies that the measure achieves the 
        same levels of reductions in new budget authority and outlays 
        for the applicable year as set forth in the order.''.

                             TITLE II--CAP

SEC. 201. LIMIT ON TOTAL SPENDING.

    (a) Definitions.--Section 250(c) of the Balanced Budget and 
Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (2 U.S.C. 900(c)) is amended--
            (1) by striking paragraph (4);
            (2) by redesignating paragraphs (5) through (21) as 
        paragraphs (4) through (20), respectively; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(21) The term `GDP', for any fiscal year, means the gross 
        domestic product during such fiscal year consistent with 
        Department of Commerce definitions.''.
    (b) Caps.--Title III of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 (2 
U.S.C. 631 et seq.) is amended adding after section 318, as added by 
section 102 of this Act, the following:

``SEC. 319. ENFORCING GDP OUTLAY LIMITS.

    ``(a) Enforcing GDP Outlay Limits.--In this section, the term `GDP 
outlay limit' means an amount, as estimated by the Director of the 
Office of Management and Budget, equal to--
            ``(1) projected GDP for that fiscal year as estimated by 
        OMB, multiplied by
            ``(2)(A) 19.9 percent for fiscal year 2016;
            ``(B) 19.52 percent for fiscal year 2017;
            ``(C) 19.14 percent for fiscal year 2018;
            ``(D) 18.76 percent for fiscal year 2019;
            ``(E) 18.38 percent for fiscal year 2020;
            ``(F) 18 percent for fiscal year 2021;
            ``(G) 18 percent for fiscal year 2021;
            ``(H) 18 percent for fiscal year 2022;
            ``(I) 18 percent for fiscal year 2023;
            ``(J) 18 percent for fiscal year 2024; and
            ``(K) 18 percent for fiscal year 2025.
    ``(b) GDP Outlay Limit and Outlays.--
            ``(1) Determining the gdp outlay limit.--The Director of 
        the Office of Management and Budget shall establish in the 
        President's budget the GDP outlay limit for the budget year.
            ``(2) Total federal outlays.--In this section, total 
        Federal outlays shall include all on-budget and off-budget 
        outlays.
    ``(c) Sequestration.--The sequestration to enforce this section 
shall be implemented pursuant to section 254 of the Balanced Budget and 
Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (2 U.S.C. 904).
    ``(d) Exempt Programs.--Section 255 of the Balanced Budget and 
Control Act of 1985 (2 U.S.C. 905) shall not apply to this section, 
except that payments for military personnel accounts (within 
subfunctional category 051), TRICARE for Life, Medicare (functional 
category 570), military retirement, Social Security (functional 
category 650), veterans (functional category 700), and net interest 
(functional category 900) shall be exempt.''.

SEC. 202. ENFORCEMENT PROCEDURES UNDER THE CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET ACT OF 
              1974.

    (a) Enforcement.--Title III of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 
(2 U.S.C. 631 et seq.) is amended by adding after section 319, as added 
by section 201 of this Act, the following:

``SEC. 320. ENFORCEMENT PROCEDURES.

    ``It shall not be in order in the House of Representatives or the 
Senate to consider any bill, joint resolution, amendment, or conference 
report that would cause the most recently reported current GDP outlay 
limits set forth in section 319 to be exceeded.''.
    (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents in section 1(b) of 
the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 is amended 
by adding after the item relating to section 315 the following:

``Sec. 316. Spending limits.
``Sec. 317. Certain spending limits.
``Sec. 318. Enforcement of discretionary and direct spending caps.
``Sec. 319. Enforcing GDP outlay limits.
``Sec. 320. Enforcement procedures.''.

                           TITLE III--BALANCE

SEC. 301. REQUIREMENT THAT A BALANCED BUDGET AMENDMENT BE SUBMITTED TO 
              STATES.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of the Treasury shall not exercise 
the additional borrowing authority in subsequent legislation until the 
Archivist of the United States transmits to the States a balanced 
budget amendment to the Constitution that--
            (1) requires that total outlays not exceed total receipts;
            (2) contains a spending limitation as a percentage of GDP; 
        and
            (3) requires that tax increases be approved by a \2/3\ vote 
        in both Houses of Congress for their ratification.
    (b) Point of Order.--It shall not be in order in the House of 
Representatives or the Senate to consider any bill, joint resolution, 
amendment, or conference report that would cause the Secretary of the 
Treasury to exercise additional borrowing authority described in 
subsection (a) until such time as the Archivist of the United States 
transmits to the States an amendment to the Constitution described in 
subsection (a).