II 

109TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 24 

To establish an emergency reserve fund to provide timely financial assistance 

in response to domestic disasters and emergencies. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JANUARY 24, 2005 

Mrs. HUTCHISON introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 

referred to the Committee on the Budget 

A BILL

To establish an emergency reserve fund to provide timely 

financial assistance in response to domestic disasters and 

emergencies.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Emergency Reserve 

5 Fund Act of 2005’’. 

6 SEC. 2. EMERGENCY RESERVE FUND. 

7 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the 

8 Treasury of the United States, under the office of the Sec9 retary of the Treasury, an Emergency Reserve Fund (re10 ferred to in this Act as the ‘‘Fund’’). The Fund shall be 
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1 available to provide financial resources to respond to do2 mestic disasters and emergencies described in subsection 

3 (c). 

4 (b) APPROPRIATIONS.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Fund shall consist of 

6 such sums as are appropriated in accordance with 

7 this subsection. 

8 (2) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this sub9 section, the term ‘‘operating expenditures’’ means an 

10 amount equal to the average domestic, non-defense, 

11 discretionary spending by the Federal Government 

12 spending for each of the last 5 years. 

13 (3) DEPOSITS INTO FUND.—On October 1 of 

14 each fiscal year, the Secretary of the Treasury shall 

15 make a cash deposit into the Fund of— 

16 (A) an amount sufficient to bring the 

17 Fund balance up to 1.2 percent of the oper18 ating expenditures; or 

19 (B) such an amount as may be required to 

20 replenish the Fund. 

21 (4) REPLENISHMENT.—There shall be appro22 priated, for each fiscal year, sufficient amounts to 

23 the Fund to replenish any amount allocated from 

24 the Fund during the preceding fiscal year so that— 
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1 (A) not less than 50 percent of any 

2 amount allocated in the preceding fiscal year or 

3 the amount necessary to restore the Fund to 

4 the 1.2 percent required balance, whichever is 

5 less, is replenished by the end of the first fiscal 

6 year following each such allocation; and 

7 (B) 100 percent of the amount allocated or 

8 the amount necessary to restore the Fund to 

9 the 1.2 percent required balance, whichever is 

10 less, is replenished by the end of the second fis11 cal year following each such allocation. 

12 (5) ADDITIONAL APPROPRIATIONS.— 

13 (A) IN GENERAL.—It shall not be in order 

14 in the Senate to consider any appropriation be15 yond the levels described in paragraphs (2) and 

16 (3). 

17 (B) SUPERMAJORITY WAIVER AND AP18 PEAL.—This paragraph may be waived or sus19 pended in the Senate only by an affirmative 

vote of 2 20 ⁄3 of the Members, duly chosen and 

sworn. An affirmative vote of 2 21 ⁄3 of the Mem22 bers of the Senate, duly chosen and sworn, shall 

23 be required in the Senate to sustain an appeal 

24 of the ruling of the Chair on a point of order 

25 raised under this section. 
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1 (c) USE OF FUNDS.—Amounts in the Fund shall only 

2 be available to meet the emergency funding requirements 

3 for particular domestic disasters and security emer4 gencies— 

5 (1) as designated by a joint resolution of Con6 gress; or 

7 (2) as declared by the President pursuant to 

8 the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emer9 gency Assistance Act. 

10 SEC. 3. PERMANENT APPROPRIATION. 

11 Section 1305 of title 31, United States Code, is 

12 amended by adding at the end the following: 

13 ‘‘(11) EMERGENCY RESERVE FUND.—To make 

14 payments into the Emergency Reserve Fund in ac15 cordance with the Emergency Reserve Fund Act of 

16 2005.’’. 

17 SEC. 4. CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET PROCESS. 

18 (a) BUDGET RESOLUTIONS.—Section 301(a) of the 

19 Congressional Budget Act of 1974 (2 U.S.C. 632(a)) is 

20 amended— 

21 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (6) and (7) as 

22 paragraphs (7) and (8) respectively; and 

23 (2) by inserting after paragraph (5) the fol24 lowing: 
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1 ‘‘(6) total new budget authority and total budg2 et outlays for emergency funding requirements for 

3 domestic disasters and emergencies, which shall be 

4 transferred to the Emergency Reserve Fund estab5 lished under section 2 of the Emergency Reserve 

6 Fund Act of 2005.’’. 

7 (b) ADJUSTMENT FOR EMERGENCY APPROPRIA8 TIONS.—Section 251(b)(2) of the Balanced Budget and 

9 Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (2 U.S.C. 

10 901(b)(2)) is amended— 

11 (1) by striking subparagraph (A); and 

12 (2) by redesignating subparagraphs (B) 

13 through (G) as subparagraphs (A) through (F). 

14 SEC. 5. REPORTING. 

15 Not later than November 30, 2006, and annually 

16 thereafter, the Director of the Office of Management and 

17 Budget shall submit a report to the Senate and the House 

18 of Representatives that lists the amounts expended from 

19 the Fund for the prior fiscal year for each disaster or 

20 emergency pursuant to section 2(c).

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