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104TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 128

To give the President legislative, line-item veto authority over budget authority

in appropriations bills in fiscal years 1996 and 1997.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

JANUARY 4, 1995

Mr. SOLOMON (for himself, Mr. CRANE, Mr. CUNNINGHAM, Mr. MCINTOSH,

and Mr. ROYCE) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the

Committee on Government Reform and Oversight and, in addition, to the

Committee on Rules, for a period to be subsequently determined by the

Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within

the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

A BILL

To give the President legislative, line-item veto authority

over budget authority in appropriations bills in fiscal

years 1996 and 1997.

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 ‘‘The Legislative Line

5 Item Veto Act of 1995’’.
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1 SEC. 2. LEGISLATIVE LINE ITEM VETO RESCISSION AU2 THORITY.

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding the provisions of

4 part B of title X of The Congressional Budget and Im5 poundment Control Act of 1974, and subject to the provi6 sions of this section, the President may rescind all or part

7 of any discretionary budget authority for fiscal years 1996

8 or 1997 which is subject to the terms of this Act if the

9 President—

10 (1) determines that—

11 (A) such rescission would help balance the

12 Federal budget, reduce the Federal budget defi13 cit, or reduce the public debt;

14 (B) such rescission will not impair any es15 sential Government functions;

16 (C) such rescission will not harm the na17 tional interest; and

18 (D) such rescission will directly contribute

19 to the purpose of this Act of limiting discre20 tionary spending in fiscal years 1996 or 1997,

21 as the case may be; and

22 (2) notifies the Congress of such rescission by

23 a special message not later than twenty calendar

24 days (not including Saturdays, Sundays, or holidays)

25 after the date of enactment of a regular or supple26 mental appropriations act for fiscal year 1996 or
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1 1997 or a joint resolution making continuing appro2 priations providing such budget authority for fiscal

3 year 1996 or 1997, as the case may be.

4 The President shall submit a separate rescission message

5 for each appropriations bill under this paragraph.

6 SEC. 3. RESCISSION EFFECTIVE UNLESS DISAPPROVED.

7 (a) Any amount of budget authority rescinded under

8 this Act as set forth in a special message by the President

9 shall be deemed canceled unless during the period de10 scribed in subsection (b), a rescission disapproval bill mak11 ing available all of the amount rescinded is enacted into

12 law.

13 (b) The period referred to in subsection (a) is—

14 (1) a congressional review period of twenty cal15 endar days of session during which Congress must

16 complete action on the rescission disapproval bill and

17 present such bill to the President for approval or

18 disapproval;

19 (2) after the period provided in paragraph (1),

20 an additional ten days (not including Sundays) dur21 ing which the President may exercise his authority

22 to sign or veto the rescission disapproval bill; and

23 (3) if the President vetoes the rescission dis24 approval bill during the period provided in para-
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1 graph (2), an additional five calendar days of session

2 after the date of the veto.

3 (c) If a special message is transmitted by the Presi4 dent under this Act and the last session of the Congress

5 adjourns sine die before the expiration of the period de6 scribed in subsection (b), the rescission shall not take ef7 fect. The message shall be deemed to have been

8 retransmitted on the first day of the succeeding Congress

9 and the review period referred to in subsection (b) (with

10 respect to such message) shall run beginning after such

11 first day.

12 SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.

13 For purposes of this Act—

14 (1) the term ‘‘rescission disapproval bill’’ means

15 a bill or joint resolution which only disapproves a re16 scission of discretionary budget authority for fiscal

17 year 1996 or 1997, in whole, rescinded in a special

18 message transmitted by the President under this

19 Act; and

20 (2) the term ‘‘Calendar days of session’’ shall

21 mean only those days on which both Houses of Con22 gress are in session.
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1 SEC. 5. CONGRESSIONAL CONSIDERATION OF LEGISLATIVE

2 LINE ITEM VETO RESCISSIONS.

3 (a) PRESIDENTIAL SPECIAL MESSAGE.—Whenever

4 the President rescinds any budget authority as provided

5 in this Act, the President shall transmit to both Houses

6 of Congress a special message specifying—

7 (1) the amount of budget authority rescinded;

8 (2) any account, department, or establishment

9 of the Government to which such budget authority

10 is available for obligation, and the specific project or

11 governmental functions involved;

12 (3) the reasons and justifications for the deter13 mination to rescind budget authority pursuant to

14 this Act;

15 (4) to the maximum extent practicable, the esti16 mated fiscal, economic, and budgetary effect of the

17 rescission; and

18 (5) all factions, circumstances, and consider19 ations relating to or bearing upon the rescission and

20 the decision to effect the rescission, and to the maxi21 mum extent practicable, the estimated effect of the

22 rescission upon the objects, purposes, and programs

23 for which the budget authority is provided.

24 (b) TRANSMISSION OF MESSAGES TO HOUSE AND

25 SENATE.—
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1 (1) Each special message transmitted under

2 this Act shall be transmitted to the House or Rep3 resentatives and the Senate on the same day, and

4 shall be delivered to the Clerk of the House of Rep5 resentatives if the House is not in session, and to

6 the Secretary of the Senate if the Senate if the Sen7 ate is not in session. Each special message so trans8 mitted shall be referred to the appropriate commit9 tees of the House of Representatives and the Senate.

10 Each message shall be printed as a document of

11 each House.

12 (2) Any special message transmitted under this

13 Act shall be printed in the first issue of the Federal

14 Register published after such transmittal.

15 (c) REFERRAL OF RESCISSION DISAPPROVAL

16 BILLS.—Any rescission disapproval bill introduced with

17 respect to a special message shall be referred to the appro18 priate committees of the House of Representatives or the

19 Senate, as the case may be.

20 (d) CONSIDERATION IN THE SENATE.—

21 (1) Any rescission disapproval bill received in

22 the Senate from the House shall be considered in

23 the Senate pursuant to the provisions of this Act.

24 (2) Debate in the Senate on any rescission dis25 approval bill and debatable motions and appeals in
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1 connection therewith, shall be limited to not more

2 than ten hours. The time shall be equally divided be3 tween, and controlled by, the majority leader and the

4 minority leader or their designees.

5 (3) Debate in the Senate on any debatable mo6 tions or appeal in connection with such bill shall be

7 limited to one hour, to be equally divided between,

8 and controlled by the mover and the manager of the

9 bill, except that in the event the manager of the bill

10 is in favor of any such motion or appeal, the time

11 in opposition thereto shall be controlled by the mi12 nority leader or his designee. Such leaders, or either

13 of them, may, from the time under their control on

14 the passage of the bill, allot additional time to any

15 Senator during the consideration of any debatable

16 motion or appeal.

17 (4) A motion to further limit debate is not de18 batable. A motion to recommit (except a motion to

19 recommit with instructions to report back within a

20 specified number of days not to exceed one, not

21 counting any day on which the Senate is not in ses22 sion) is not in order.

23 (e) POINTS OF ORDER.—

24 (1) It shall not be in order in the Senate or the

25 House of Representatives to consider any rescission
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1 disapproval bill that relates to any matter other than

2 the rescission budget authority transmitted by the

3 President under this Act.

4 (2) It shall not be in order in the Senate or the

5 House of Representatives to consider any amend6 ment to a rescission disapproval bill.

7 (3) Paragraphs (1) and (2) may be waived or

8 suspended in the Senate only by a vote of three9 fifths of the members duly chosen and sworn.

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