I 

112TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1638 

To stimulate the economy, provide for a sound United States dollar by 

defining a value for the dollar, to remove the authority of Federal 

Reserve banks to pay earnings on certain balances maintained at such 

banks, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 15, 2011 

Mr. POE of Texas introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Financial Services, and in addition to the Committees on 

Ways and Means and the Budget, 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 stimulate the economy, provide for a sound United States 

dollar by defining a value for the dollar, to remove the 

authority of Federal Reserve banks to pay earnings on 

certain balances maintained at such banks, and for other 

purposes. 

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 ‘‘Dollar Bill Act of 

5 2011’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

2 Congress finds the following: 

3 (1) Article I, section 8 of the Constitution of 

4 the United States provides that the Congress shall 

5 have Power to coin money, regulate the value there6 of, and of foreign coin, and fix the standard of 

7 weights and measures. 

8 (2) Congress effectively delegated the power to 

9 regulate the value of United States money and for10 eign money to the Federal Reserve System via the 

11 Federal Reserve Act of 1913. 

12 (3) The value of the United States dollar has 

13 fallen dramatically relative to gold, crude oil, other 

14 real commodities and major foreign currencies. 

15 (4) The value of the United States dollar has 

16 become unstable and uncertain. 

17 (5) The Board of Governors of the Federal Re18 serve System has not produced a stable and reliable 

19 value for the United States dollar. 

20 (6) The Board of Governors of the Federal Re21 serve System cannot reasonably be expected to 

22 produce a stable and reliable value for the United 

23 States dollar. 

24 (7) An unstable dollar slows the growth of the 

25 economy by increasing the cost of capital, increasing 

26 the risks attendant to long-term capital investment, 


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1 and increasing the effective rate of the corporate in2 come tax. 

3 (8) An unstable dollar reduces the real earnings 

4 of American workers. 

5 (9) An unstable dollar reduces the real value of 

6 financial assets held by the public. 

7 (10) An unstable dollar reduces the real value 

8 of pension plans and retirement accounts upon 

9 which Americans depend for their security. 

10 (11) An unstable dollar damages the economic 

11 and political standing of the United States in the 

12 world community. 

13 (12) An unstable dollar gives rise to anxiety, 

14 uncertainty, and risk among the financial markets 

15 and the public. 

16 SEC. 3. DIRECTIVES TO THE BOARD OF GOVERNORS OF 

17 THE FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—Before the end of the 90-day pe19 riod beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act, 

20 the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System 

21 shall make the value of the U.S. dollar equal to the price 

22 of gold on the exchange operated by the Commodities Ex23 change, Inc. (COMEX) of the New York Mercantile Ex24 change, Inc. and maintain the value of the United States 

25 dollar at this level. 


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1 (b) TARGET.—In regulating the value of the United 

2 States dollar, the Board of Governors of the Federal Re3 serve System shall not conduct open market operations in4 directly, as in the current practice of targeting the Federal 

5 Funds rate. 

6 (c) PROMOTION OF STABLE AND EFFECTIVE FINAN7 CIAL MARKETS.—The Board of Governors of the Federal 

8 Reserve System shall use the banking and bank regulatory 

9 powers of the Board to maintain and promote stable and 

10 effective financial markets during and after the transition 

11 to a defined value for the United States dollar. 

12 SEC. 4. TAX DEPRECIATION. 

13 Effective January 1, 2011, all entities that depreciate 

14 capital assets for tax purposes shall be entitled to 100 per15 cent expensing of all capital investment for tax purposes 

16 in the year that the investment is made. 

17 SEC. 5. DIRECTIVE TO THE CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OF18 FICE. 

19 In addition to the scoring that the Congressional 

20 Budget Office will do of the tax changes provided in this 

21 Act in the normal course of events, the Congressional 

22 Budget Office shall also calculate the impact on Federal 

23 revenues on a present value basis. This calculation shall 

24 be done in the manner that such calculations are done by 


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1 the Social Security Trustees, and shall take into account 

2 the following: 

3 (1) That first year expensing of capital invest4 ment accelerates, but does not change the total 

5 amount of the depreciation that taxpayers take 

6 based upon their investments. 

7 (2) Capital investments by businesses have his8 torically earned much higher returns than the inter9 est rate on government bonds. 

10 SEC. 6. CONFLICT OF LAWS PROVISION. 

11 In the event that any provisions of this Act are found 

12 to be in conflict with those of the Full Employment and 

13 Balanced Growth Act of 1978, the provisions of this Act 

14 shall supersede the provisions of such Act to the extent 

15 of the conflict. 

16 SEC. 7. REMOVAL OF FEDERAL RESERVE BANK AUTHORITY 

17 TO PAY EARNINGS ON RESERVES. 

18 Section 19(b)(12) of the Federal Reserve Act (12 

19 U.S.C. 461(b)(12)) is amended— 

20 (1) in the heading of such paragraph, by strik21 ing ‘‘EARNINGS’’ and inserting ‘‘NO EARNINGS’’; 

22 (2) in subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘may re23 ceive earnings to be paid by the Federal Reserve 

24 bank at least once each calendar quarter, at a rate 

25 or rates not to exceed the general level of short-term 


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1 interest rates’’ and inserting ‘‘may not receive earn2 ings paid by the Federal Reserve bank’’; 

3 (3) by striking subparagraph (B); and 

4 (4) by redesignating subparagraph (C) as sub5 paragraph (B). 

Æ 


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