I

103D CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 1253

To give the President line-item veto rescission authority over appropriation

bills.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

MARCH 9, 1993

Mr. BUNNING introduced the following bill; which was referred jointly to the

Committees on Government Operations and Rules

A BILL

To give the President line-item veto rescission authority over

appropriation bills.

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 1993’’.

6 SEC. 2. LEGISLATIVE LINE ITEM VETO RESCISSION AU7 THORITY.

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

9 part B of title X of The Congressional Budget and Im10 poundment Control Act of 1974, and subject to the provi-
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1 sions of this section, the President may rescind all or part

2 of any discretionary budget authority pursuant to this Act

3 if the President—

4 (1) determines that such rescission—

5 (A) would help reduce the Federal budget

6 deficit;

7 (B) will not impair any essential Govern8 ment functions; and

9 (C) will not harm the national interest;

10 and

11 (2) notifies the Congress of such rescission by

12 a special message not later than twenty calendar

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

14 after the date of enactment of a regular or supple15 mental appropriation Act or a joint resolution mak16 ing continuing appropriations providing such budget

17 authority.

18 The President shall submit a separate rescission message

19 for each item rescinded under this paragraph.

20 SEC. 3. RESCISSION EFFECTIVE UNLESS DISAPPROVED.

21 (a) Any amount of budget authority rescinded under

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

23 shall be deemed canceled unless during the period de24 scribed in subsection (b), a rescission disapproval bill mak-
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1 ing available all of the amount rescinded is enacted into

2 law.

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

4 (1) a congressional review period of 20 calendar

5 days of session during which Congress must com6 plete action on the rescission disapproval bill and

7 present such bill to the President for approval or

8 disapproval;

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

10 an additional ten days (not including Sundays) dur11 ing which the President may exercise his authority

12 to sign or veto the rescission disapproval bill; and

13 (3) if the President vetoes the rescission dis14 approval bill during the period provided in para15 graph (2), an additional five calendar days of session

16 after the date of the veto.

17 (c) If a special message is transmitted by the Presi18 dent under this Act and the last session of the Congress

19 adjourns sine die before the expiration of the period de20 scribed in subsection (b), the rescission shall not take ef21 fect. The message shall be deemed to have been

22 retransmitted on the first day of the succeeding Congress

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

24 respect to such message) shall run beginning after such

25 first day.
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1 SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.

2 For purposes of this Act—

3 (a) the term ‘‘rescission disapproval bill’’ means

4 a bill or joint resolution which only disapproves a re5 scission of discretionary budget authority, in whole,

6 rescinded in a special message transmitted by the

7 President under this Act; and

8 (b) the term ‘‘calendar days of session’’ shall

9 mean only those days on which both Houses of Con10 gress are in session.

11 SEC. 5. CONGRESSIONAL CONSIDERATION OF LINE ITEM

12 VETO RESCISSIONS.

13 (a) PRESIDENTIAL SPECIAL MESSAGE.—Whenever

14 the President rescinds any budget authority as provided

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

16 of Congress a special message specifying—

17 (1) the amount of budget authority rescinded;

18 (2) any account, department, or establishment

19 of the Government to which such budget authority

20 is available for obligation, and the specific project or

21 governmental functions involved;

22 (3) the reasons and justifications for the deter23 mination to rescind budget authority pursuant to

24 this Act;
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1 (4) to the maximum extent practicable, the esti2 mated fiscal, economic, and budgetary effect of the

3 rescission; and

4 (5) all facts, circumstances, and considerations

5 relating to or bearing upon the rescission and the

6 decision to effect the rescission, and to the maxi7 mum extent practicable, the estimated effect of the

8 rescission upon the objects, purposes, and programs

9 for which the budget authority is provided.

10 (b) TRANSMISSION OF MESSAGES TO HOUSE AND

11 SENATE.—

12 (1) Each special message transmitted under

13 this Act shall be transmitted to the House of Rep14 resentatives and the Senate on the same day, and

15 shall be delivered to the Clerk of the House of Rep16 resentatives if the House is not in session, and to

17 the Secretary of the Senate if the Senate is not in

18 session. Each special message so transmitted shall

19 be referred to the appropriate committees of the

20 House of Representatives and the Senate. Each such

21 message shall be printed as a document of each

22 House.

23 (2) Any special message transmitted under this

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

25 Register published after such transmittal.
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1 (c) REFERRAL OF RESCISSION DISAPPROVAL

2 BILLS.—Any rescission disapproval bill introduced with

3 respect to a special message shall be referred to the appro4 priate committees of the House of Representatives or the

5 Senate, as the case may be.

6 (d) CONSIDERATION IN THE SENATE.—

7 (1) Any rescission disapproval bill received in

8 the Senate from the House shall be considered in

9 the Senate pursuant to the provisions of this Act.

10 (2) Debate in the Senate on any rescission dis11 approval bill and debatable motions and appeals in

12 connection therewith, shall be limited to not more

13 than ten hours. The time shall be equally divided be14 tween, and controlled by, the majority leader and the

15 minority leader or their designees.

16 (3) Debate in the Senate on any debatable mo17 tions or appeal in connection with such bill shall be

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

19 and controlled by the mover and the manager of the

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

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

22 in opposition thereto shall be controlled by the mi23 nority leader or his designee. Such leaders, or either

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

25 the passage of the bill, allot additional time to any
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1 Senator during the consideration of any debatable

2 motion or appeal.

3 (4) A motion to further limit debate is not de4 batable. A motion to recommit (except a motion to

5 recommit with instructions to report back within a

6 specified number of days not to exceed one, not

7 counting any day on which the Senate is not in ses8 sion) is not in order.

9 (e) POINTS OF ORDER.—

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

11 House of Representatives to consider any rescission

12 disapproval bill that relates to any matter other than

13 the rescission budget authority transmitted by the

14 President under this Act.

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

16 House of Representatives to consider any amend17 ment to a rescission disapproval bill.

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

19 suspended in the Senate only by a vote of three20 fifths of the members duly chosen and sworn.

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