IV 

115TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. RES. 1031 

Authorizing certain Committees of the House of Representatives to intervene 

in the case of Texas v. United States, No. 4:18–cv–00167–O (N.D. 

Tex.) and authorizing the Office of General Counsel of the House to 

represent such Committees in such intervention. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 25, 2018 

Ms. ROSEN (for herself, Mr. PALLONE, Mr. NEAL, Mr. SCOTT of Virginia, Mr. 

NADLER, Mr. HOYER, and Ms. PELOSI) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Rules 

RESOLUTION 

Authorizing certain Committees of the House of Representatives to intervene in the case of Texas v. United States, 

No. 4:18–cv–00167–O (N.D. Tex.) and authorizing the 

Office of General Counsel of the House to represent 

such Committees in such intervention. 

Whereas Texas, Wisconsin, Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, 

Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Paul 

LePage (Governor of Maine), Mississippi (by and through 

Governor Phil Bryant), Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, 

and West Virginia have filed suit in the United States 

District Court for the Northern District of Texas, arguing that the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act 


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2 

•HRES 1031 IH 

(Public Law 111–148; 124 Stat. 119), is unconstitutional 

and should be enjoined, by asserting that the Act’s requirement to maintain minimum essential coverage (commonly known as the ‘‘individual responsibility provision’’) 

in section 5000A(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 

1986, is unconstitutional following the amendment of 

that provision by the Act to provide for reconciliation 

pursuant to titles II and V of the concurrent resolution 

on the budget for fiscal year 2018 (Public Law 115–97) 

(commonly known as the ‘‘Tax Cuts and Jobs Act’’); 

Whereas these State and individual plaintiffs also seek to 

strike down the entire Patient Protection and Affordable 

Care Act as not severable from the individual responsibility provision; 

Whereas, on June 7, 2018, the Department of Justice refused to defend the constitutionality of the amended individual responsibility provision, despite the well-established 

duty of the Department to defend Federal statutes where 

reasonable arguments can be made in their defense; and 

Whereas the Department of Justice not only refused to defend the amended individual responsibility provision, but 

it affirmatively argued that this provision is unconstitutional and that the provisions of the Patient Protection 

and Affordable Care Act guaranteeing issuance of insurance coverage regardless of health status or preexisting 

conditions (commonly known as the ‘‘guaranteed issue 

provision’’), sections 2702, 2704, and 2705(a) of the 

Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300gg–1, 300gg– 

3, 300gg–4(a)), and prohibiting discriminatory premium 

rates (commonly known as the ‘‘community rating provision’’), sections 2701 and 2705(b) of the Public Health 

Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300gg(a)(1), 300gg–4(b)) must 


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•HRES 1031 IH 

now be struck down as not severable from the individual 

responsibility provision: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That— 

2 (1) the Committee on Education and the Work3 force, the Committee on Energy and Commerce, the 

4 Committee on the Judiciary, and the Committee on 

5 Ways and Means of the House of Representatives 

6 are authorized to intervene on behalf of the House 

7 of Representatives in the case of Texas v. United 

8 States, No. 4:18–cv–00167–O (N.D. Tex.) in order 

9 to unconditionally defend all provisions of the Pa10 tient Protection and Affordable Care Act, the 

11 amendments made by that Act to other provisions of 

12 law, and any amendments to such provisions, includ13 ing the provisions ensuring affordable health cov14 erage for those with preexisting conditions; and 

15 (2) the Office of General Counsel of the House 

16 of Representatives is authorized and directed, under 

17 the supervision of the Committee on Education and 

18 the Workforce, the Committee on Energy and Com19 merce, the Committee on the Judiciary, and the 

20 Committee on Ways and Means of the House of 

21 Representatives, to represent such Committees in 

22 such intervention. 

Æ 


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