In the House of Representatives, U. S., 

July 29, 2011. 

Resolved, That the bill from the Senate (S. 627) entitled 

‘‘An Act to establish the Commission on Freedom of Information Act Processing Delays.’’, do pass with the following 

AMENDMENT: 

Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert: 

1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

2 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

3 ‘‘Budget Control Act of 2011’’. 

4 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

5 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

TITLE I—TEN-YEAR DISCRETIONARY CAPS WITH SEQUESTER 

Sec. 101. Enforcing discretionary spending limits. 

Sec. 102. Definitions. 

Sec. 103. Reports and orders. 

Sec. 104. Expiration. 

Sec. 105. Conforming amendments to the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974. 

TITLE II—VOTE ON THE BALANCED BUDGET AMENDMENT 

Sec. 201. Vote on the balanced budget amendment. 

Sec. 202. Consideration by the other House. 

TITLE III—DEBT CEILING DISAPPROVAL PROCESS 

Sec. 301. Debt ceiling disapproval process. 

TITLE IV—JOINT SELECT COMMITTEE ON DEFICIT REDUCTION 

Sec. 401. Establishment of Joint Select Committee. 

Sec. 402. Expedited consideration of joint committee recommendations. 

Sec. 403. Funding. 

Sec. 404. Rulemaking. 
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TITLE V—PELL GRANT AND STUDENT LOAN PROGRAM CHANGES 

Sec. 501. Federal Pell Grants. 

Sec. 502. Termination of authority to make interest subsidized loans to graduate 

and professional students. 

Sec. 503. Termination of Direct Loan repayment incentives. 

Sec. 504. Inapplicability of title IV negotiated rulemaking and master calendar 

exception. 

1 TITLE I—TEN-YEAR DISCRE2 TIONARY CAPS WITH SEQUES3 TER 

4 SEC. 101. ENFORCING DISCRETIONARY SPENDING LIMITS. 

5 Section 251 of the Balanced Budget and Emergency 

6 Deficit Control Act of 1985 is amended to read as follows: 

7 ‘‘SEC. 251. ENFORCING DISCRETIONARY SPENDING LIMITS. 

8 ‘‘(a) ENFORCEMENT.— 

9 ‘‘(1) SEQUESTRATION.—Within 15 calendar days 

10 after Congress adjourns to end a session there shall be 

11 a sequestration to eliminate a budget-year breach, if 

12 any. 

13 ‘‘(2) ELIMINATING A BREACH.—Each non-exempt 

14 account shall be reduced by a dollar amount cal15 culated by multiplying the enacted level of 

16 sequestrable budgetary resources in that account at 

17 that time by the uniform percentage necessary to 

18 eliminate a breach. 

19 ‘‘(3) MILITARY PERSONNEL.—If the President 

20 uses the authority to exempt any personnel account 

21 from sequestration under section 255(f), each account 

22 within subfunctional category 051 (other than those 
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1 military personnel accounts for which the authority 

2 provided under section 255(f) has been exercised) shall 

3 be further reduced by a dollar amount calculated by 

4 multiplying the enacted level of non-exempt budgetary 

5 resources in that account at that time by the uniform 

6 percentage necessary to offset the total dollar amount 

7 by which outlays are not reduced in military per8 sonnel accounts by reason of the use of such authority. 

9 ‘‘(4) PART-YEAR APPROPRIATIONS.—If, on the 

10 date specified in paragraph (1), there is in effect an 

11 Act making or continuing appropriations for part of 

12 a fiscal year for any budget account, then the dollar 

13 sequestration calculated for that account under para14 graphs (2) and (3) shall be subtracted from— 

15 ‘‘(A) the annualized amount otherwise 

16 available by law in that account under that or 

17 a subsequent part-year appropriation; and 

18 ‘‘(B) when a full-year appropriation for 

19 that account is enacted, from the amount other20 wise provided by the full-year appropriation. 

21 ‘‘(5) LOOK-BACK.—If, after June 30, an appro22 priation for the fiscal year in progress is enacted that 

23 causes a breach for that year (after taking into ac24 count any sequestration of amounts), the discre-
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1 tionary spending limits for the next fiscal year shall 

2 be reduced by the amount or amounts of that breach. 

3 ‘‘(6) WITHIN-SESSION SEQUESTRATION.—If an 

4 appropriation for a fiscal year in progress is enacted 

5 (after Congress adjourns to end the session for that 

6 budget year and before July 1 of that fiscal year) that 

7 causes a breach for that year (after taking into ac8 count any prior sequestration of amounts), 15 days 

9 later there shall be a sequestration to eliminate that 

10 breach following the procedures set forth in para11 graphs (2) through (4). 

12 ‘‘(7) ESTIMATES.— 

13 ‘‘(A) CBO ESTIMATES.—As soon as prac14 ticable after Congress completes action on any 

15 discretionary appropriation, CBO, after con16 sultation with the Committees on the Budget of 

17 the House of Representatives and the Senate, 

18 shall provide OMB with an estimate of the 

19 amount of discretionary new budget authority 

20 for the current year, if any, and the budget year 

21 provided by that legislation. 

22 ‘‘(B) OMB ESTIMATES AND EXPLANATION

23 OF DIFFERENCES.—Not later than 7 calendar 

24 days (excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal 

25 holidays) after the date of enactment of any dis-
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1 cretionary appropriation, OMB shall transmit a 

2 report to the House of Representatives and to the 

3 Senate containing the CBO estimate of that leg4 islation, an OMB estimate of the amount of dis5 cretionary new budget authority for the current 

6 year, if any, and the budget year provided by 

7 that legislation, and an explanation of any dif8 ference between the 2 estimates. If during the 

9 preparation of the report OMB determines that 

10 there is a significant difference between OMB 

11 and CBO, OMB shall consult with the Commit12 tees on the Budget of the House of Representa13 tives and the Senate regarding that difference 

14 and that consultation shall include, to the extent 

15 practicable, written communication to those com16 mittees that affords such committees the oppor17 tunity to comment before the issuance of the re18 port. 

19 ‘‘(C) ASSUMPTIONS AND GUIDELINES.— 

20 OMB estimates under this paragraph shall be 

21 made using current economic and technical as22 sumptions. OMB shall use the OMB estimates 

23 transmitted to the Congress under this para24 graph. OMB and CBO shall prepare estimates 

25 under this paragraph in conformance with 
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1 scorekeeping guidelines determined after con2 sultation among the House and Senate Commit3 tees on the Budget, CBO, and OMB. 

4 ‘‘(D) ANNUAL APPROPRIATIONS.—For pur5 poses of this paragraph, amounts provided by 

6 annual appropriations shall include any discre7 tionary appropriations for the current year, if 

8 any, and the budget year in accounts for which 

9 funding is provided in that legislation that re10 sult from previously enacted legislation. 

11 ‘‘(b) ADJUSTMENTS TO DISCRETIONARY SPENDING

12 LIMITS.— 

13 ‘‘(1) CONCEPTS AND DEFINITIONS.—When the 

14 President submits the budget under section 1105 of 

15 title 31, United States Code, OMB shall calculate and 

16 the budget shall include adjustments to discretionary 

17 spending limits (and those limits as cumulatively ad18 justed) for the budget year and each outyear to reflect 

19 changes in concepts and definitions. Such changes 

20 shall equal the baseline levels of new budget authority 

21 and outlays using up-to-date concepts and definitions 

22 minus those levels using the concepts and definitions 

23 in effect before such changes. Such changes may only 

24 be made after consultation with the Committees on 

25 Appropriations and the Budget of the House of Rep-
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1 resentatives and the Senate and that consultation 

2 shall include written communication to such commit3 tees that affords such committees the opportunity to 

4 comment before official action is taken with respect to 

5 such changes. 

6 ‘‘(2) SEQUESTRATION REPORTS.—When OMB 

7 submits a sequestration report under section 254(e), 

8 (f), or (g) for a fiscal year, OMB shall calculate, and 

9 the sequestration report and subsequent budgets sub10 mitted by the President under section 1105(a) of title 

11 31, United States Code, shall include adjustments to 

12 discretionary spending limits (and those limits as ad13 justed) for the fiscal year and each succeeding year, 

14 as follows: 

15 ‘‘(A) EMERGENCY APPROPRIATIONS; OVER16 SEAS CONTINGENCY OPERATIONS/GLOBAL WAR ON

17 TERRORISM.—If, for any fiscal year, appropria18 tions for discretionary accounts are enacted 

19 that— 

20 ‘‘(i) the President designates as emer21 gency requirements and that the Congress so 

22 designates in statute on an account by ac23 count basis; or 

24 ‘‘(ii) the President designates for Over25 seas Contingency Operations/Global War on 
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1 Terrorism and that the Congress so des2 ignates in statute on an account by account 

3 basis; 

4 the adjustment shall be the total of such appro5 priations in discretionary accounts designated as 

6 emergency requirements or for Overseas Contin7 gency Operations/Global War on Terrorism, as 

8 applicable, and the outlays flowing in all fiscal 

9 years from such appropriations. 

10 ‘‘(B) CONTINUING DISABILITY REVIEWS AND

11 REDETERMINATIONS.—(i) If a bill or joint reso12 lution making appropriations for a fiscal year is 

13 enacted that specifies an amount for continuing 

14 disability reviews under titles II and XVI of the 

15 Social Security Act and for the cost associated 

16 with conducting redeterminations of eligibility 

17 under title XVI of the Social Security Act, then 

18 the adjustments for that fiscal year shall be the 

19 additional new budget authority provided in 

20 that Act for such expenses for that fiscal year 

21 and the additional outlays flowing therefrom, but 

22 shall not exceed— 

23 ‘‘(I) for fiscal year 2012, $623,000,000 

24 in additional new budget authority; 
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1 ‘‘(II) for fiscal year 2013, 

2 $751,000,000 in additional new budget au3 thority; 

4 ‘‘(III) for fiscal year 2014, 

5 $924,000,000 in additional new budget au6 thority; 

7 ‘‘(IV) for fiscal year 2015, 

8 $1,123,000,000 in additional new budget 

9 authority; 

10 ‘‘(V) for fiscal year 2016, 

11 $1,166,000,000 in additional new budget 

12 authority; 

13 ‘‘(VI) for fiscal year 2017, 

14 $1,309,000,000 in additional new budget 

15 authority; 

16 ‘‘(VII) for fiscal year 2018, 

17 $1,309,000,000 in additional new budget 

18 authority; 

19 ‘‘(VIII) for fiscal year 2019, 

20 $1,309,000,000 in additional new budget 

21 authority; 

22 ‘‘(IX) for fiscal year 2020, 

23 $1,309,000,000 in additional new budget 

24 authority; and 
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1 ‘‘(X) for fiscal year 2021, 

2 $1,309,000,000 in additional new budget 

3 authority. 

4 ‘‘(ii) As used in this subparagraph— 

5 ‘‘(I) the term ‘continuing disability re6 views’ means continuing disability reviews 

7 under titles II and XVI of the Social Secu8 rity Act and redeterminations of eligibility 

9 under title XVI of the Social Security Act; 

10 and 

11 ‘‘(II) the term ‘additional new budget 

12 authority’ means the amount provided for a 

13 fiscal year, in excess of $273,000,000, in an 

14 appropriation Act and specified to pay for 

15 the costs of continuing disability reviews 

16 under the heading ‘Limitation on Adminis17 trative Expenses’ for the Social Security 

18 Administration. 

19 ‘‘(C) HEALTH CARE FRAUD AND ABUSE

20 CONTROL.— 

21 ‘‘(i) If a bill or joint resolution making 

22 appropriations for a fiscal year is enacted 

23 that specifies an amount for the health care 

24 fraud abuse control program at the Depart25 ment of Health and Human Services (75– 
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1 8393–0–7–571), then the adjustments for 

2 that fiscal year shall be the amount of addi3 tional new budget authority provided in 

4 that Act for such program for that fiscal 

5 year and the additional outlays flowing 

6 therefrom, but shall not exceed— 

7 ‘‘(I) for fiscal year 2012, 

8 $270,000,000 in additional new budget 

9 authority; 

10 ‘‘(II) for fiscal year 2013, 

11 $299,000,000 in additional new budget 

12 authority; 

13 ‘‘(III) for fiscal year 2014, 

14 $329,000,000 in additional new budget 

15 authority; 

16 ‘‘(IV) for fiscal year 2015, 

17 $361,000,000 in additional new budget 

18 authority; 

19 ‘‘(V) for fiscal year 2016, 

20 $395,000,000 in additional new budget 

21 authority; 

22 ‘‘(VI) for fiscal year 2017, 

23 $414,000,000 in additional new budget 

24 authority; 
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1 ‘‘(VII) for fiscal year 2018, 

2 $434,000,000 in additional new budget 

3 authority; 

4 ‘‘(VIII) for fiscal year 2019, 

5 $454,000,000 in additional new budget 

6 authority; 

7 ‘‘(IX) for fiscal year 2020, 

8 $475,000,000 in additional new budget 

9 authority; and 

10 ‘‘(X) for fiscal year 2021, 

11 $496,000,000 in additional new budget 

12 authority. 

13 ‘‘(ii) As used in this subparagraph, the 

14 term ‘additional new budget authority’ 

15 means the amount provided for a fiscal 

16 year, in excess of $311,000,000, in an ap17 propriation Act and specified to pay for the 

18 costs of the health care fraud and abuse con19 trol program. 

20 The adjustment for outlays shall only be for the out21 lays flowing from the additional new budget author22 ity and the total outlays adjustments made for any 

23 fiscal year shall not exceed the total adjustments made 

24 for that fiscal year in new budget authority. 
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1 ‘‘(c) DISCRETIONARY SPENDING LIMIT.—As used in 

2 this part, the term ‘discretionary spending limit’ means— 

3 ‘‘(1) with respect to fiscal year 2012, for total 

4 discretionary spending: $1,043,000,000,000, in new 

5 budget authority of which new budget authority for 

6 function 050 shall be between $535,440,000,000 and 

7 $568,560,000,000; 

8 ‘‘(2) with respect to fiscal year 2013, for total 

9 discretionary spending: $1,047,000,000,000 in new 

10 budget authority of which new budget authority for 

11 function 050 shall be between $537,440,000,000 and 

12 $570,560,000,000; 

13 ‘‘(3) with respect to fiscal year 2014, for total 

14 discretionary spending: $1,066,000,000,000 in new 

15 budget authority; 

16 ‘‘(4) with respect to fiscal year 2015, for total 

17 discretionary spending: $1,086,000,000,000 in new 

18 budget authority; 

19 ‘‘(5) with respect to fiscal year 2016, for total 

20 discretionary spending: $1,107,000,000,000 in new 

21 budget authority; 

22 ‘‘(6) with respect to fiscal year 2017, for total 

23 discretionary spending: $1,131,000,000,000 in new 

24 budget authority; 
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1 ‘‘(7) with respect to fiscal year 2018, for total 

2 discretionary spending: $1,156,000,000,000 in new 

3 budget authority; 

4 ‘‘(8) with respect to fiscal year 2019, for total 

5 discretionary spending: $1,182,000,000,000 in new 

6 budget authority; 

7 ‘‘(9) with respect to fiscal year 2020, for total 

8 discretionary spending: $1,208,000,000,000 in new 

9 budget authority; and 

10 ‘‘(10) with respect to fiscal year 2021, for total 

11 discretionary spending: $1,234,000,000,000 in new 

12 budget authority; 

13 as adjusted in strict conformance with subsection (b).’’. 

14 SEC. 102. DEFINITIONS. 

15 Section 250(c) is amended as follows: 

16 (1) Strike paragraph (4) and redesignate suc17 ceeding paragraphs accordingly. 

18 (2) In paragraph (7)(C) (as redesignated), strike 

19 ‘‘the food stamp program’’ and insert ‘‘the Supple20 mental Nutrition Assistance Program’’. 

21 (3) Strike paragraph (13) (as redesignated) and 

22 insert the following new paragraph: 

23 ‘‘(13) The term ‘outyear’ means a fiscal year one 

24 or more years after the budget year.’’. 
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1 (4) At the end, add the following new para2 graphs: 

3 ‘‘(19) The term ‘emergency’ means a situation 

4 that— 

5 ‘‘(A) requires new budget authority and 

6 outlays (or new budget authority and the outlays 

7 flowing therefrom) for the prevention or mitiga8 tion of, or response to, loss of life or property, or 

9 a threat to national security; and 

10 ‘‘(B) is unanticipated. 

11 ‘‘(20) The term ‘unanticipated’ means that the 

12 underlying situation is— 

13 ‘‘(A) sudden, which means quickly coming 

14 into being or not building up over time; 

15 ‘‘(B) urgent, which means a pressing and 

16 compelling need requiring immediate action; 

17 ‘‘(C) unforeseen, which means not predicted 

18 or anticipated as an emerging need; and 

19 ‘‘(D) temporary, which means not of a per20 manent duration.’’. 

21 SEC. 103. REPORTS AND ORDERS. 

22 Section 254 of the Balanced Budget and Emergency 

23 Deficit Control Act of 1985 is amended as follows: 

24 (1) In subsection (c)(2), strike ‘‘2002’’ and insert 

25 ‘‘2021’’. 
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1 (2) In subsection (f)(2)(A), strike ‘‘2002’’ and in2 sert ‘‘2021’’. 

3 SEC. 104. EXPIRATION. 

4 (a) REPEALER.—Section 275 of the Balanced Budget 

5 and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 is repealed. 

6 (b) CONFORMING CHANGE.—Sections 252(d)(1), 

7 254(c), 254(f)(3), 254(f)(4), 254(g), and 254(i) of the Bal8 anced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 

9 shall not apply to the Congressional Budget Office. 

10 SEC. 105. CONFORMING AMENDMENTS TO THE CONGRES11 SIONAL BUDGET AND IMPOUNDMENT CON12 TROL ACT OF 1974. 

13 (a) ADJUSTMENTS.—Section 314 of the Congressional 

14 Budget Act of 1974 is amended as follows: 

15 (1) Strike subsection (a) and insert the following: 

16 ‘‘(a) ADJUSTMENTS.—After the reporting of a bill or 

17 joint resolution or the offering of an amendment thereto or 

18 the submission of a conference report thereon, the chairman 

19 of the Committee on the Budget of the House of Representa20 tives or the Senate may make appropriate budgetary ad21 justments of new budget authority and the outlays flowing 

22 therefrom in the same amount as required by section 251(b) 

23 of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act 

24 of 1985.’’. 
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1 (2) Strike subsections (b) and (e) and redesignate 

2 subsections (c) and (d) as subsections (b) and (c), re3 spectively. 

4 (3) At the end, add the following new sub5 sections: 

6 ‘‘(d) EMERGENCIES.—If a reported bill or joint resolu7 tion, or amendment thereto or conference report thereon, 

8 contains a provision providing new budget authority and 

9 outlays or reducing revenue, and a designation of such pro10 vision as an emergency requirement pursuant to 

11 251(b)(2)(A) of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Def12 icit Control Act of 1985, the chair of the Committee on the 

13 Budget shall not count the budgetary effects of such provi14 sion for purposes of title III and title IV of the Congres15 sional Budget Act of 1974 and the Rules of the House of 

16 Representatives. 

17 ‘‘(e) ENFORCEMENT OF DISCRETIONARY SPENDING

18 CAPS.—It shall not be in order in the House of Representa19 tives or the Senate to consider any bill, joint resolution, 

20 amendment, motion, or conference report that would cause 

21 the discretionary spending limits as set forth in section 251 

22 of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act 

23 to be exceeded.’’. 

24 (b) MOTION TO STRIKE IN THE HOUSE OF REP25 RESENTATIVES.—(1) In the House of Representatives, if a 
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1 reported bill or joint resolution, or amendment thereto or 

2 conference report thereon, contains a provision providing 

3 new budget authority and outlays or reducing revenue, and 

4 a designation of such provision as an emergency pursuant 

5 to this section, the chair of the Committee on the Budget 

6 shall not count the budgetary effects of such provision for 

7 purposes of title III and title IV of the Congressional Budget 

8 Act of 1974 and the Rules of the House of Representatives. 

9 (2) In the House of Representatives, a proposal to 

10 strike a designation under paragraph (1) shall be excluded 

11 from an evaluation of budgetary effects for purposes of title 

12 III and title IV of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 

13 and the Rules of the House of Representatives. 

14 (3) An amendment offered under paragraph (2) that 

15 also proposes to reduce each amount appropriated or other16 wise made available by the pending measure that is not 

17 required to be appropriated or otherwise made available 

18 shall be in order at any point in the reading of the pending 

19 measure. 

20 (c) DEFINITIONS.—Section 3 of the Congressional 

21 Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 is amended 

22 by adding at the end the following new paragraph: 

23 ‘‘(11) The terms ‘emergency’ and ‘unanticipated’ 

24 have the meanings given to such terms in section 
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1 250(c) of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit 

2 Control Act of 1985.’’. 

3 (d) APPEALS FOR DISCRETIONARY CAPS.—Section 

4 904(c)(2) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 is amend5 ed by striking ‘‘and 312(c)’’ and inserting ‘‘312(c), and 

6 314(e)’’. 

7 TITLE II—VOTE ON THE BAL8 ANCED BUDGET AMENDMENT 

9 SEC. 201. VOTE ON THE BALANCED BUDGET AMENDMENT. 

10 After September 30, 2011, and not later than December 

11 31, 2011, the House of Representatives and Senate, respec12 tively, shall vote on passage of a joint resolution, the title 

13 of which is as follows: ‘‘Joint resolution proposing a bal14 anced budget amendment to the Constitution of the United 

15 States.’’. 

16 SEC. 202. CONSIDERATION BY THE OTHER HOUSE. 

17 (a) HOUSE CONSIDERATION.— 

18 (1) REFERRAL.—If the House receives a joint 

19 resolution described in section 201 from the Senate, 

20 such joint resolution shall be referred to the Com21 mittee on the Judiciary. If the committee fails to re22 port the joint resolution within five legislative days, 

23 it shall be in order to move that the House discharge 

24 the committee from further consideration of the joint 

25 resolution. Such a motion shall not be in order after 
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1 the House has disposed of a motion to discharge the 

2 joint resolution. The previous question shall be consid3 ered as ordered on the motion to its adoption without 

4 intervening motion except twenty minutes of debate 

5 equally divided and controlled by the proponent and 

6 an opponent. If such a motion is adopted, the House 

7 shall proceed immediately to consider the joint resolu8 tion in accordance with paragraph (3). A motion to 

9 reconsider the vote by which the motion is disposed of 

10 shall not be in order. 

11 (2) PROCEEDING TO CONSIDERATION.—After the 

12 joint resolution has been referred to the appropriate 

13 calendar or the committee has been discharged (other 

14 than by motion) from its consideration, it shall be in 

15 order to move to proceed to consider the joint resolu16 tion in the House. Such a motion shall not be in 

17 order after the House has disposed of a motion to pro18 ceed with respect to the joint resolution. The previous 

19 question shall be considered as ordered on the motion 

20 to its adoption without intervening motion. A motion 

21 to reconsider the vote by which the motion is disposed 

22 of shall not be in order. 

23 (3) CONSIDERATION.—The joint resolution shall 

24 be considered as read. All points of order against the 

25 joint resolution and against its consideration are 
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1 waived. The previous question shall be considered as 

2 ordered on the joint resolution to its passage without 

3 intervening motion except two hours of debate equally 

4 divided and controlled by the proponent and an oppo5 nent and one motion to limit debate on the joint reso6 lution. A motion to reconsider the vote on passage of 

7 the joint resolution shall not be in order. 

8 (b) SENATE CONSIDERATION.—(1) If the Senate re9 ceives a joint resolution described in section 201 from the 

10 House of Representatives, such joint resolution shall be re11 ferred to the appropriate committee of the Senate. If such 

12 committee has not reported the joint resolution at the close 

13 of the fifth session day after its receipt by the Senate, such 

14 committee shall be automatically discharged from further 

15 consideration of the joint resolution and it shall be placed 

16 on the calendar. 

17 (2) Consideration of the joint resolution and on all de18 batable motions and appeals in connection therewith, shall 

19 be limited to not more than 20 hours, which shall be divided 

20 equally between the majority and minority leaders or their 

21 designees. A motion further to limit debate is in order and 

22 not debatable. An amendment to, or a motion to postpone, 

23 or a motion to proceed to the consideration of other busi24 ness, or a motion to recommit the joint resolution is not 

25 in order. Any debatable motion or appeal is debatable for 
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1 not to exceed 1 hour, to be divided equally between those 

2 favoring and those opposing the motion or appeal. All time 

3 used for consideration of the joint resolution, including time 

4 used for quorum calls and voting, shall be counted against 

5 the total 20 hours of consideration. 

6 (3) If the Senate has voted to proceed to a joint resolu7 tion, the vote on passage of the joint resolution shall be 

8 taken on or before the close of the seventh session day after 

9 such joint resolution has been reported or discharged or im10 mediately following the conclusion of consideration of the 

11 joint resolution, and a single quorum call at the conclusion 

12 of the debate if requested in accordance with the rules of 

13 the Senate. 

14 TITLE III—DEBT CEILING 

15 DISAPPROVAL PROCESS 

16 SEC. 301. DEBT CEILING DISAPPROVAL PROCESS. 

17 Subchapter I of chapter 31 of subtitle III of title 31, 

18 United States Code, is amended— 

19 (1) in section 3101(b), by striking ‘‘or otherwise’’ 

20 and inserting ‘‘or as provided by section 3101A or 

21 otherwise’’; and 

22 (2) by inserting after section 3101, the following: 

23 ‘‘§ 3101A. Presidential modification of the debt ceiling 

24 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.— 

25 ‘‘(1) $900 BILLION.— 
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1 ‘‘(A) CERTIFICATION.—If, not later than 

2 December 31, 2011, the President submits a 

3 written certification to Congress that the Presi4 dent has determined that the debt subject to limit 

5 is within $100,000,000,000 of the limit in sec6 tion 3101(b) and that further borrowing is re7 quired to meet existing commitments, the Sec8 retary of the Treasury may exercise authority to 

9 borrow an additional $900,000,000,000 subject to 

10 the enactment of a joint resolution of dis11 approval enacted pursuant to this section. Upon 

12 submission of such certification, the limit on debt 

13 provided in section 3101(b) (referred to in this 

14 section as the ‘debt limit’) is increased by 

15 $400,000,000,000. 

16 ‘‘(B) RESOLUTION OF DISAPPROVAL.—Con17 gress may consider a joint resolution of dis18 approval of the authority under subparagraph 

19 (A) as provided in subsections (b) through (f). 

20 The joint resolution of disapproval considered 

21 under this section shall contain only the lan22 guage provided in subsection (b)(2). If the time 

23 for disapproval has lapsed without enactment of 

24 a joint resolution of disapproval under this sec-
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1 tion, the debt limit is increased by an additional 

2 $500,000,000,000. 

3 ‘‘(2) ADDITIONAL AMOUNT.— 

4 ‘‘(A) CERTIFICATION.—If, after the debt 

5 limit is increased by $900,000,000,000 under 

6 paragraph (1), the President submits a written 

7 certification to Congress that the President has 

8 determined that the debt subject to limit is with9 in $100,000,000,000 of the limit in section 

10 3101(b) and that further borrowing is required 

11 to meet existing commitments, the Secretary of 

12 the Treasury may exercise authority to borrow 

13 an additional amount equal to 

14 $1,600,000,000,000 if the amount of deficit re15 duction achieved pursuant to the enactment of 

16 the joint committee bill as set forth pursuant to 

17 section 401(b)(3) of the Budget Control Act of 

18 2011 is greater than $1,600,000,000,000 and the 

19 Archivist of the United States has submitted to 

20 the States for their ratification a proposed 

21 amendment to the Constitution of the United 

22 States pursuant to a joint resolution entitled 

23 ‘Joint resolution proposing a balanced budget 

24 amendment to the Constitution of the United 

25 States’, subject to the enactment of a joint resolu-
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1 tion of disapproval enacted pursuant to this sec2 tion. 

3 ‘‘(B) RESOLUTION OF DISAPPROVAL.—Con4 gress may consider a joint resolution of dis5 approval of the authority under subparagraph 

6 (A) as provided in subsections (b) through (f). 

7 The joint resolution of disapproval considered 

8 under this section shall contain only the lan9 guage provided in subsection (b)(2). If the time 

10 for disapproval has lapsed without enactment of 

11 a joint resolution of disapproval under this sec12 tion, the debt limit is increased by the amount 

13 authorized under subparagraph (A). 

14 ‘‘(b) JOINT RESOLUTION OF DISAPPROVAL.— 

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except for the 

16 $400,000,000,000 increase in the debt limit provided 

17 by subsection (a)(1)(A), the debt limit may not be 

18 raised under this section if, within 60 calendar days 

19 after the date on which Congress receives a certifi20 cation described in subsection (a)(1) or within 15 cal21 endar days after Congress receives the certification de22 scribed in subsection (a)(2) (regardless of whether 

23 Congress is in session), there is enacted into law a 

24 joint resolution disapproving the President’s exercise 

25 of authority with respect to such additional amount. 
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1 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS OF JOINT RESOLUTION.—For the 

2 purpose of this section, the term ‘joint resolution’ 

3 means only a joint resolution— 

4 ‘‘(A)(i) for the certification described in 

5 subsection (a)(1), that is introduced on Sep6 tember 6, 7, 8, or 9, 2011 (or, if the Senate was 

7 not in session, the next calendar day on which 

8 the Senate is in session); and 

9 ‘‘(ii) for the certification described in sub10 section (a)(2), that is introduced between the 

11 date the certification is received and 3 calendar 

12 days after that date; 

13 ‘‘(B) which does not have a preamble; 

14 ‘‘(C) the title of which is only as follows: 

15 ‘Joint resolution relating to the disapproval of 

16 the President’s exercise of authority to increase 

17 the debt limit, as submitted under section 3101A 

18 of title 31, United States Code, on 

19 llllll’, with the blank containing the 

20 date of such submission; and 

21 ‘‘(D) the matter after the resolving clause of 

22 which is only as follows: ‘That Congress dis23 approves of the President’s exercise of authority 

24 to increase the debt limit, as exercised pursuant 
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1 to the certification under section 3101A(a) of 

2 title 31, United States Code.’. 

3 ‘‘(c) EXPEDITED CONSIDERATION IN HOUSE OF REP4 RESENTATIVES.— 

5 ‘‘(1) RECONVENING.—Upon receipt of a certifi6 cation described in subsection (a)(2), the Speaker, if 

7 the House would otherwise be adjourned, shall notify 

8 the Members of the House that, pursuant to this sec9 tion, the House shall convene not later than the sec10 ond calendar day after receipt of such certification. 

11 ‘‘(2) REPORTING AND DISCHARGE.—Any com12 mittee of the House of Representatives to which a 

13 joint resolution is referred shall report it to the House 

14 without amendment not later than 5 calendar days 

15 after the date of introduction of a joint resolution de16 scribed in subsection (a). If a committee fails to re17 port the joint resolution within that period, the com18 mittee shall be discharged from further consideration 

19 of the joint resolution and the joint resolution shall be 

20 referred to the appropriate calendar. 

21 ‘‘(3) PROCEEDING TO CONSIDERATION.—After 

22 each committee authorized to consider a joint resolu23 tion reports it to the House or has been discharged 

24 from its consideration, it shall be in order, not later 

25 than the sixth day after introduction of a joint resolu-
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1 tion under subsection (a), to move to proceed to con2 sider the joint resolution in the House. All points of 

3 order against the motion are waived. Such a motion 

4 shall not be in order after the House has disposed of 

5 a motion to proceed on a joint resolution addressing 

6 a particular submission. The previous question shall 

7 be considered as ordered on the motion to its adoption 

8 without intervening motion. The motion shall not be 

9 debatable. A motion to reconsider the vote by which 

10 the motion is disposed of shall not be in order. 

11 ‘‘(4) CONSIDERATION.—The joint resolution shall 

12 be considered as read. All points of order against the 

13 joint resolution and against its consideration are 

14 waived. The previous question shall be considered as 

15 ordered on the joint resolution to its passage without 

16 intervening motion except two hours of debate equally 

17 divided and controlled by the proponent and an oppo18 nent. A motion to reconsider the vote on passage of 

19 the joint resolution shall not be in order. 

20 ‘‘(d) EXPEDITED PROCEDURE IN SENATE.— 

21 ‘‘(1) RECONVENING.—Upon receipt of a certifi22 cation under subsection (a)(2), if the Senate has ad23 journed or recessed for more than 2 days, the majority 

24 leader of the Senate, after consultation with the mi25 nority leader of the Senate, shall notify the Members 
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1 of the Senate that, pursuant to this section, the Sen2 ate shall convene not later than the second calendar 

3 day after receipt of such message. 

4 ‘‘(2) PLACEMENT ON CALENDAR.—Upon intro5 duction in the Senate, the joint resolution shall be im6 mediately placed on the calendar. 

7 ‘‘(3) FLOOR CONSIDERATION.— 

8 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding Rule 

9 XXII of the Standing Rules of the Senate, it is 

10 in order at any time during the period begin11 ning on the day after the date on which Congress 

12 receives a certification under subsection (a) and, 

13 for the certification described in subsection 

14 (a)(1), ending on September 14, 2011, and for 

15 the certification described in subsection (a)(2), 

16 on the 6th day after the date on which Congress 

17 receives a certification under subsection (a) (even 

18 though a previous motion to the same effect has 

19 been disagreed to) to move to proceed to the con20 sideration of the joint resolution, and all points 

21 of order against the joint resolution (and against 

22 consideration of the joint resolution) are waived. 

23 The motion to proceed is not debatable. The mo24 tion is not subject to a motion to postpone. A 

25 motion to reconsider the vote by which the mo-
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1 tion is agreed to or disagreed to shall not be in 

2 order. If a motion to proceed to the consideration 

3 of the resolution is agreed to, the joint resolution 

4 shall remain the unfinished business until dis5 posed of. 

6 ‘‘(B) CONSIDERATION.—Consideration of 

7 the joint resolution, and on all debatable motions 

8 and appeals in connection therewith, shall be 

9 limited to not more than 10 hours, which shall 

10 be divided equally between the majority and mi11 nority leaders or their designees. A motion fur12 ther to limit debate is in order and not debat13 able. An amendment to, or a motion to postpone, 

14 or a motion to proceed to the consideration of 

15 other business, or a motion to recommit the joint 

16 resolution is not in order. 

17 ‘‘(C) VOTE ON PASSAGE.—If the Senate has 

18 voted to proceed to a joint resolution, the vote on 

19 passage of the joint resolution shall occur imme20 diately following the conclusion of consideration 

21 of the joint resolution, and a single quorum call 

22 at the conclusion of the debate if requested in ac23 cordance with the rules of the Senate. 

24 ‘‘(D) RULINGS OF THE CHAIR ON PROCE25 DURE.—Appeals from the decisions of the Chair 
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1 relating to the application of the rules of the 

2 Senate, as the case may be, to the procedure re3 lating to a joint resolution shall be decided with4 out debate. 

5 ‘‘(e) AMENDMENT NOT IN ORDER.—A joint resolution 

6 of disapproval considered pursuant to this section shall not 

7 be subject to amendment in either the House of Representa8 tives or the Senate. 

9 ‘‘(f) COORDINATION WITH ACTION BY OTHER

10 HOUSE.— 

11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If, before passing the joint 

12 resolution, one House receives from the other a joint 

13 resolution— 

14 ‘‘(A) the joint resolution of the other House 

15 shall not be referred to a committee; and 

16 ‘‘(B) the procedure in the receiving House 

17 shall be the same as if no joint resolution had 

18 been received from the other House until the vote 

19 on passage, when the joint resolution received 

20 from the other House shall supplant the joint res21 olution of the receiving House. 

22 ‘‘(2) TREATMENT OF JOINT RESOLUTION OF

23 OTHER HOUSE.—If the Senate fails to introduce or 

24 consider a joint resolution under this section, the joint 
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1 resolution of the House shall be entitled to expedited 

2 floor procedures under this section. 

3 ‘‘(3) TREATMENT OF COMPANION MEASURES.—If, 

4 following passage of the joint resolution in the Senate, 

5 the Senate then receives the companion measure from 

6 the House of Representatives, the companion measure 

7 shall not be debatable. 

8 ‘‘(4) CONSIDERATION AFTER PASSAGE.—(A) If 

9 Congress passes a joint resolution, the period begin10 ning on the date the President is presented with the 

11 joint resolution and ending on the date the President 

12 signs, allows to become law without his signature, or 

13 vetoes and returns the joint resolution (but excluding 

14 days when either House is not in session) shall be dis15 regarded in computing the appropriate calendar day 

16 period described in subsection (b)(1). 

17 ‘‘(B) debate on a veto message in the Senate 

18 under this section shall be 1 hour equally divided be19 tween the majority and minority leaders or their des20 ignees. 

21 ‘‘(5) VETO OVERRIDE.—If within the appro22 priate calendar day period described in subsection 

23 (b)(1), Congress overrides a veto of the joint resolution 

24 with respect to authority exercised pursuant to para25 graph (1) or (2) of subsection (a), the limit on debt 
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1 provided in section 3101(b) shall not be raised, except 

2 for the $400,000,000,000 increase in the limit pro3 vided by subsection (a)(1)(A). 

4 ‘‘(6) SEQUESTER.—(A) If within the 60-calendar 

5 day period described in subsection (b)(1), Congress 

6 overrides a veto of the joint resolution with respect to 

7 authority exercised pursuant to paragraph (1) of sub8 section (a), OMB shall, immediately, sequester pro 

9 rata amounts from all discretionary and direct 

10 spending accounts as defined in section 250(c) of the 

11 Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act 

12 of 1985 (2 U.S.C. 900(c)) (as in effect September 30, 

13 2006) equal to $400,000,000,000. No reduction of 

14 payments for net interest (functional category 900) 

15 shall be made under any order issued under this 

16 paragraph. 

17 ‘‘(B) Section 255 of the Balanced Budget and 

18 Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 shall not 

19 apply to this section, except that payments for mili20 tary personnel accounts (within subfunctional cat21 egory 051), TRICARE for Life, Medicare (functional 

22 category 570), military retirement, Social Security 

23 (functional category 650), veterans (functional cat24 egory 700), and net interest (functional category 900) 

25 shall be exempt. 
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1 ‘‘(g) RULES OF HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES AND

2 SENATE.—This subsection and subsections (b), (c), (d), (e), 

3 and (f) are enacted by Congress— 

4 ‘‘(1) as an exercise of the rulemaking power of 

5 the Senate and House of Representatives, respectively, 

6 and as such it is deemed a part of the rules of each 

7 House, respectively, but applicable only with respect 

8 to the procedure to be followed in that House in the 

9 case of a joint resolution, and it supersedes other rules 

10 only to the extent that it is inconsistent with such 

11 rules; and 

12 ‘‘(2) with full recognition of the constitutional 

13 right of either House to change the rules (so far as re14 lating to the procedure of that House) at any time, 

15 in the same manner, and to the same extent as in the 

16 case of any other rule of that House.’’. 

17 TITLE IV—JOINT SELECT COM18 MITTEE ON DEFICIT REDUC19 TION 

20 SEC. 401. ESTABLISHMENT OF JOINT SELECT COMMITTEE. 

21 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this title: 

22 (1) JOINT SELECT COMMITTEE.—The term ‘‘joint 

23 committee’’ means the Joint Select Committee on Def24 icit Reduction established under subsection (b)(1). 
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1 (2) JOINT SELECT COMMITTEE BILL.—The term 

2 ‘‘joint committee bill’’ means a bill consisting of the 

3 proposed legislative language of the joint committee 

4 recommended under subsection (b)(3)(B) and intro5 duced under section 402(a). 

6 (b) ESTABLISHMENT OF JOINT SELECT COMMITTEE.— 

7 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established a 

8 joint select committee of Congress to be known as the 

9 ‘‘Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction’’. 

10 (2) GOAL.—The goal of the joint committee shall 

11 be to reduce the deficit by $1,800,000,000,000 or more 

12 over the period of fiscal years 2012 to 2021. 

13 (3) DUTIES.— 

14 (A) IN GENERAL.— 

15 (i) IMPROVING THE SHORT-TERM AND

16 LONG-TERM FISCAL IMBALANCE.—The joint 

17 committee shall provide recommendations 

18 and legislative language that will signifi19 cantly improve the short-term and long20 term fiscal imbalance of the Federal Gov21 ernment. 

22 (ii) RECOMMENDATIONS OF COMMIT23 TEES.—Not later than October 14, 2011, 

24 each committee of the House of Representa25 tives and the Senate may transmit to the 
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1 joint committee its recommendations for 

2 changes in law to reduce the deficit con3 sistent with the goal described in subsection 

4 (b)(2) for the joint committee’s consider5 ation. 

6 (B) REPORT, RECOMMENDATIONS, AND LEG7 ISLATIVE LANGUAGE.— 

8 (i) IN GENERAL.—Not later than No9 vember 23, 2011, the joint committee shall 

10 vote on— 

11 (I) a report that contains a de12 tailed statement of the findings, conclu13 sions, and recommendations of the 

14 joint committee and the CBO estimate 

15 required by paragraph (5)(D)(ii); and 

16 (II) proposed legislative language 

17 to carry out such recommendations as 

18 described in subclause (I) which shall 

19 include a statement of the deficit re20 duction achieved by the legislation over 

21 the period of fiscal years 2012 to 2021. 

22 Any change to the Rules of the House of 

23 Representatives or the Standing Rules of the 

24 Senate included in the report or legislative 
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1 language shall be considered to be merely 

2 advisory. 

3 (ii) APPROVAL OF REPORT AND LEGIS4 LATIVE LANGUAGE.—The report of the joint 

5 committee and the proposed legislative lan6 guage described in clause (i) shall require 

7 the approval of a majority of the members 

8 of the joint committee. 

9 (iii) ADDITIONAL VIEWS.—A member 

10 of the joint committee who gives notice of an 

11 intention to file supplemental, minority, or 

12 additional views at the time of final joint 

13 committee vote on the approval of the report 

14 and legislative language under clause (ii), 

15 shall be entitled to 3 calendar days in 

16 which to file such views in writing with the 

17 staff director of the joint committee. Such 

18 views shall then be included in the joint 

19 committee report and printed in the same 

20 volume, or part thereof, and their inclusion 

21 shall be noted on the cover of the report. In 

22 the absence of timely notice, the joint com23 mittee report may be printed and trans24 mitted immediately without such views. 
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1 (iv) TRANSMISSION OF REPORT AND

2 LEGISLATIVE LANGUAGE.—If the report and 

3 legislative language are approved by the 

4 joint committee pursuant to clause (ii), then 

5 not later than December 2, 2011, the joint 

6 committee shall submit the joint committee 

7 report and legislative language described in 

8 clause (i) to the President, the Vice Presi9 dent, the Speaker of the House, and the Ma10 jority and Minority Leaders of both Houses. 

11 (v) REPORT AND LEGISLATIVE LAN12 GUAGE TO BE MADE PUBLIC.—Upon the ap13 proval or disapproval of the joint committee 

14 report and legislative language pursuant to 

15 clause (ii), the joint committee shall 

16 promptly make the full report and legisla17 tive language, and a record of the vote, 

18 available to the public. 

19 (4) MEMBERSHIP.— 

20 (A) IN GENERAL.—The joint committee 

21 shall be composed of 12 members appointed pur22 suant to subparagraph (B). 

23 (B) DESIGNATION.—Members of the joint 

24 committee shall be appointed as follows: 
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1 (i) The majority leader of the Senate 

2 shall appoint three members from among 

3 Members of the Senate. 

4 (ii) The minority leader of the Senate 

5 shall appoint three members from among 

6 Members of the Senate. 

7 (iii) The Speaker of the House of Rep8 resentatives shall appoint three members 

9 from among Members of the House of Rep10 resentatives. 

11 (iv) The minority leader of the House 

12 of Representatives shall appoint three mem13 bers from among Members of the House of 

14 Representatives. 

15 (C) CO-CHAIRS.— 

16 (i) IN GENERAL.—There shall be two 

17 Co-Chairs of the joint committee. The ma18 jority leader of the Senate shall appoint one 

19 Co-Chair from among the members of the 

20 joint committee. The Speaker of the House 

21 of Representatives shall appoint the second 

22 Co-Chair from among the members of the 

23 joint committee. The Co-Chairs shall be ap24 pointed not later than 14 calendar days 

25 after the date of enactment of this section. 
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1 (ii) STAFF DIRECTOR.—The Co-Chairs, 

2 acting jointly, shall hire the staff director of 

3 the joint committee. 

4 (D) DATE.—Members of the joint committee 

5 shall be appointed not later than 14 calendar 

6 days after the date of enactment of this section. 

7 (E) PERIOD OF APPOINTMENT.—Members 

8 shall be appointed for the life of the joint com9 mittee. Any vacancy in the joint committee shall 

10 not affect its powers, but shall be filled not later 

11 than 14 calendar days after the date on which 

12 the vacancy occurs in the same manner as the 

13 original designation. If a member of the com14 mittee leaves Congress, the member is no longer 

15 a member of the joint committee and a vacancy 

16 shall exist. 

17 (5) ADMINISTRATION.— 

18 (A) IN GENERAL.—To enable the joint com19 mittee to exercise its powers, functions and du20 ties, there are authorized to be disbursed by the 

21 Senate the actual and necessary expenses of the 

22 joint committee approved by the co-chairs, sub23 ject to Senate rules and regulations. 

24 (B) EXPENSES.—In carrying out its func25 tions, the joint committee is authorized to incur 
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1 expenses in the same manner and under the 

2 same conditions as the Joint Economic Com3 mittee as authorized by section 11 of Public Law 

4 79–304 (15 U.S.C. 1024(d)). 

5 (C) QUORUM.—Seven members of the joint 

6 committee shall constitute a quorum for purposes 

7 of voting, meeting, and holding hearings. 

8 (D) VOTING.— 

9 (i) PROXY VOTING.—No proxy voting 

10 shall be allowed on behalf of the members of 

11 the joint committee. 

12 (ii) CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE

13 ESTIMATES.—The Congressional Budget Of14 fice shall provide estimates of the legislation 

15 (as described in paragraph (3)(B)) in ac16 cordance with sections 308(a) and 201(f) of 

17 the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 (2 

18 U.S.C. 639(a) and 601(f)) (including esti19 mates of the effect of interest payment on 

20 the debt). In addition, the Congressional 

21 Budget Office shall provide information on 

22 the budgetary effect of the legislation beyond 

23 the year 2021. The joint committee may not 

24 vote on any version of the report, rec25 ommendations, or legislative language un-
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1 less such estimates are available for consid2 eration by all members of the joint com3 mittee at least 48 hours prior to the vote as 

4 certified by the Co-Chairs. 

5 (E) MEETINGS.— 

6 (i) INITIAL MEETING.—Not later than 

7 45 calendar days after the date of enact8 ment of this section, the joint committee 

9 shall hold its first meeting. 

10 (ii) AGENDA.—The Co-Chairs shall 

11 provide an agenda to the joint committee 

12 members not less than 48 hours in advance 

13 of any meeting. 

14 (F) HEARINGS.— 

15 (i) IN GENERAL.—The joint committee 

16 may, for the purpose of carrying out this 

17 section, hold such hearings, sit and act at 

18 such times and places, require attendance of 

19 witnesses and production of books, papers, 

20 and documents, take such testimony, receive 

21 such evidence, and administer such oaths 

22 the joint committee considers advisable. 

23 (ii) HEARING PROCEDURES AND RE24 SPONSIBILITIES OF CO-CHAIRS.— 
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1 (I) ANNOUNCEMENT.—The joint 

2 committee Co-Chairs shall make a pub3 lic announcement of the date, place, 

4 time, and subject matter of any hear5 ing to be conducted not less than 7 

6 days in advance of such hearing, un7 less the Co-Chairs determine that there 

8 is good cause to begin such hearing at 

9 an earlier date. 

10 (II) WRITTEN STATEMENT.—A 

11 witness appearing before the joint com12 mittee shall file a written statement of 

13 proposed testimony at least 2 calendar 

14 days prior to appearance, unless the 

15 requirement is waived by the Co16 Chairs, following their determination 

17 that there is good cause for failure of 

18 compliance. 

19 (G) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—Upon writ20 ten request of the Co-Chairs, a Federal agency 

21 shall provide technical assistance to the joint 

22 committee in order for the joint committee to 

23 carry out its duties. 

24 (c) STAFF OF JOINT COMMITTEE.— 
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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Co-Chairs of the joint 

2 committee may jointly appoint and fix the compensa3 tion of staff as they deem necessary, within the guide4 lines for Senate employees and following all applica5 ble Senate rules and employment requirements. 

6 (2) ETHICAL STANDARDS.—Members on the joint 

7 committee who serve in the House of Representatives 

8 shall be governed by the House ethics rules and re9 quirements. Members of the Senate who serve on the 

10 joint committee and staff of the joint committee shall 

11 comply with Senate ethics rules. 

12 (d) TERMINATION.—The joint committee shall termi13 nate on January 13, 2012. 

14 SEC. 402. EXPEDITED CONSIDERATION OF JOINT COM15 MITTEE RECOMMENDATIONS. 

16 (a) INTRODUCTION.—If approved by the majority re17 quired by section 401(b)(3)(B)(ii), the proposed legislative 

18 language submitted pursuant to section 401(b)(3)(B)(iv) 

19 shall be introduced in the Senate (by request) on the next 

20 day on which the Senate is in session by the majority leader 

21 of the Senate or by a Member of the Senate designated by 

22 the majority leader of the Senate and shall be introduced 

23 in the House of Representatives (by request) on the next 

24 legislative day by the majority leader of the House or by 
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1 a Member of the House designated by the majority leader 

2 of the House. 

3 (b) CONSIDERATION IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTA4 TIVES.— 

5 (1) REFERRAL AND REPORTING.—Any committee 

6 of the House of Representatives to which the joint 

7 committee bill is referred shall report it to the House 

8 without amendment not later than December 9, 2011. 

9 If a committee fails to report the joint committee bill 

10 within that period, it shall be in order to move that 

11 the House discharge the committee from further con12 sideration of the bill. Such a motion shall not be in 

13 order after the last committee authorized to consider 

14 the bill reports it to the House or after the House has 

15 disposed of a motion to discharge the bill. The pre16 vious question shall be considered as ordered on the 

17 motion to its adoption without intervening motion ex18 cept 20 minutes of debate equally divided and con19 trolled by the proponent and an opponent. If such a 

20 motion is adopted, the House shall proceed imme21 diately to consider the joint committee bill in accord22 ance with paragraphs (2) and (3). A motion to recon23 sider the vote by which the motion is disposed of shall 

24 not be in order. 
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1 (2) PROCEEDING TO CONSIDERATION.—After the 

2 last committee authorized to consider a joint com3 mittee bill reports it to the House or has been dis4 charged (other than by motion) from its consider5 ation, it shall be in order to move to proceed to con6 sider the joint committee bill in the House. Such a 

7 motion shall not be in order after the House has dis8 posed of a motion to proceed with respect to the joint 

9 committee bill. The previous question shall be consid10 ered as ordered on the motion to its adoption without 

11 intervening motion. A motion to reconsider the vote 

12 by which the motion is disposed of shall not be in 

13 order. 

14 (3) CONSIDERATION.—The joint committee bill 

15 shall be considered as read. All points of order 

16 against the joint committee bill and against its con17 sideration are waived. The previous question shall be 

18 considered as ordered on the joint committee bill to its 

19 passage without intervening motion except 2 hours of 

20 debate equally divided and controlled by the pro21 ponent and an opponent and one motion to limit de22 bate on the joint committee bill. A motion to recon23 sider the vote on passage of the joint committee bill 

24 shall not be in order. 
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1 (4) VOTE ON PASSAGE.—The vote on passage of 

2 the joint committee bill shall occur not later than De3 cember 23, 2011. 

4 (c) EXPEDITED PROCEDURE IN THE SENATE.— 

5 (1) COMMITTEE CONSIDERATION.—A joint com6 mittee bill introduced in the Senate under subsection 

7 (a) shall be jointly referred to the committee or com8 mittees of jurisdiction, which committees shall report 

9 the bill without any revision and with a favorable 

10 recommendation, an unfavorable recommendation, or 

11 without recommendation, not later than December 9, 

12 2011. If any committee fails to report the bill within 

13 that period, that committee shall be automatically 

14 discharged from consideration of the bill, and the bill 

15 shall be placed on the appropriate calendar. 

16 (2) MOTION TO PROCEED.—Notwithstanding 

17 Rule XXII of the Standing Rules of the Senate, it is 

18 in order, not later than 2 days of session after the 

19 date on which a joint committee bill is reported or 

20 discharged from all committees to which it was re21 ferred, for the majority leader of the Senate or the 

22 majority leader’s designee to move to proceed to the 

23 consideration of the joint committee bill. It shall also 

24 be in order for any Member of the Senate to move to 

25 proceed to the consideration of the joint committee bill 
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1 at any time after the conclusion of such 2-day period. 

2 A motion to proceed is in order even though a pre3 vious motion to the same effect has been disagreed to. 

4 All points of order against the motion to proceed to 

5 the joint committee bill are waived. The motion to 

6 proceed is not debatable. The motion is not subject to 

7 a motion to postpone. A motion to reconsider the vote 

8 by which the motion is agreed to or disagreed to shall 

9 not be in order. If a motion to proceed to the consid10 eration of the joint committee bill is agreed to, the 

11 joint committee bill shall remain the unfinished busi12 ness until disposed of. 

13 (3) CONSIDERATION.—All points of order against 

14 the joint committee bill and against consideration of 

15 the joint committee bill are waived. Consideration of 

16 the joint committee bill and of all debatable motions 

17 and appeals in connection therewith shall not exceed 

18 a total of 30 hours which shall be divided equally be19 tween the Majority and Minority Leaders or their 

20 designees. A motion further to limit debate on the 

21 joint committee bill is in order, shall require an af22 firmative vote of three-fifths of the Members duly cho23 sen and sworn, and is not debatable. Any debatable 

24 motion or appeal is debatable for not to exceed 1 

25 hour, to be divided equally between those favoring and 
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1 those opposing the motion or appeal. All time used for 

2 consideration of the joint committee bill, including 

3 time used for quorum calls and voting, shall be count4 ed against the total 30 hours of consideration. 

5 (4) NO AMENDMENTS.—An amendment to the 

6 joint committee bill, or a motion to postpone, or a 

7 motion to proceed to the consideration of other busi8 ness, or a motion to recommit the joint committee 

9 bill, is not in order. 

10 (5) VOTE ON PASSAGE.—If the Senate has voted 

11 to proceed to the joint committee bill, the vote on pas12 sage of the joint committee bill shall occur imme13 diately following the conclusion of the debate on a 

14 joint committee bill, and a single quorum call at the 

15 conclusion of the debate if requested. The vote on pas16 sage of the joint committee bill shall occur not later 

17 than December 23, 2011. 

18 (6) RULINGS OF THE CHAIR ON PROCEDURE.— 

19 Appeals from the decisions of the Chair relating to the 

20 application of the rules of the Senate, as the case may 

21 be, to the procedure relating to a joint committee bill 

22 shall be decided without debate. 

23 (d) AMENDMENT.—The joint committee bill shall not 

24 be subject to amendment in either the House of Representa25 tives or the Senate. 
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1 (e) CONSIDERATION BY THE OTHER HOUSE.— 

2 (1) IN GENERAL.—If, before passing the joint 

3 committee bill, one House receives from the other a 

4 joint committee bill— 

5 (A) the joint committee bill of the other 

6 House shall not be referred to a committee; and 

7 (B) the procedure in the receiving House 

8 shall be the same as if no joint committee bill 

9 had been received from the other House until the 

10 vote on passage, when the joint committee bill re11 ceived from the other House shall supplant the 

12 joint committee bill of the receiving House. 

13 (2) REVENUE MEASURE.—This subsection shall 

14 not apply to the House of Representatives if the joint 

15 committee bill received from the Senate is a revenue 

16 measure. 

17 (f) RULES TO COORDINATE ACTION WITH OTHER

18 HOUSE.— 

19 (1) TREATMENT OF JOINT COMMITTEE BILL OF

20 OTHER HOUSE.—If the Senate fails to introduce or 

21 consider a joint committee bill under this section, the 

22 joint committee bill of the House shall be entitled to 

23 expedited floor procedures under this section. 

24 (2) TREATMENT OF COMPANION MEASURES IN

25 THE SENATE.—If following passage of the joint com-
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1 mittee bill in the Senate, the Senate then receives the 

2 joint committee bill from the House of Representa3 tives, the House-passed joint committee bill shall not 

4 be debatable. The vote on passage of the joint com5 mittee bill in the Senate shall be considered to be the 

6 vote on passage of the joint committee bill received 

7 from the House of Representatives. 

8 (3) VETOES.—If the President vetoes the joint 

9 committee bill, debate on a veto message in the Senate 

10 under this section shall be 1 hour equally divided be11 tween the majority and minority leaders or their des12 ignees. 

13 (g) LOSS OF PRIVILEGE.—The provisions of this sec14 tion shall cease to apply to the joint committee bill if— 

15 (1) the joint committee fails to vote on the report 

16 or proposed legislative language required under sec17 tion 201(b)(3)(B)(i) by November 23, 2011; or 

18 (2) the joint committee bill does not pass both 

19 Houses by December 23, 2011. 

20 SEC. 403. FUNDING. 

21 Funding for the joint committee shall be derived in 

22 equal portions from— 

23 (1) the applicable accounts of the House of Rep24 resentatives; and 
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1 (2) the contingent fund of the Senate from the 

2 appropriations account ‘‘Miscellaneous Items’’, subject 

3 to Senate rules and regulations. 

4 SEC. 404. RULEMAKING. 

5 The provisions of this title are enacted by Congress— 

6 (1) as an exercise of the rulemaking power of the 

7 House of Representatives and the Senate, respectively, 

8 and as such they shall be considered as part of the 

9 rules of each House, respectively, or of that House to 

10 which they specifically apply, and such rules shall su11 persede other rules only to the extent that they are in12 consistent therewith; and 

13 (2) with full recognition of the constitutional 

14 right of either House to change such rules (so far as 

15 relating to such House) at any time, in the same 

16 manner, and to the same extent as in the case of any 

17 other rule of such House. 

18 TITLE V—PELL GRANT AND STU19 DENT LOAN PROGRAM 

20 CHANGES 

21 SEC. 501. FEDERAL PELL GRANTS. 

22 Section 401(b)(7)(A)(iv) of the Higher Education Act 

23 of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070a(b)(7)(A)(iv)) is amended— 
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1 (1) in subclause (II), by striking 

2 ‘‘$3,183,000,000’’ and inserting ‘‘$12,183,000,000’’; 

3 and 

4 (2) in subclause (III), by striking ‘‘$0’’ and in5 serting ‘‘$8,000,000,000’’. 

6 SEC. 502. TERMINATION OF AUTHORITY TO MAKE INTEREST 

7 SUBSIDIZED LOANS TO GRADUATE AND PRO8 FESSIONAL STUDENTS. 

9 Section 455(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 

10 (20 U.S.C. 1087e(a)) is amended by adding at the end the 

11 following new paragraph: 

12 ‘‘(3) TERMINATION OF AUTHORITY TO MAKE IN13 TEREST SUBSIDIZED LOANS TO GRADUATE AND PRO14 FESSIONAL STUDENTS.— 

15 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara16 graph (B) and notwithstanding any provision of 

17 this part or part B, for any period of instruction 

18 beginning on or after July 1, 2012— 

19 ‘‘(i) a graduate or professional student 

20 shall not be eligible to receive a Federal Di21 rect Stafford loan under this part; and 

22 ‘‘(ii) the maximum annual amount of 

23 Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford loans 

24 such a student may borrow in any aca25 demic year (as defined in section 481(a)(2)) 
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1 or its equivalent shall be the maximum an2 nual amount for such student determined 

3 under section 428H, plus an amount equal 

4 to the amount of Federal Direct Stafford 

5 loans the student would have received in the 

6 absence of this subparagraph. 

7 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.—Subparagraph (A) shall 

8 not apply to an individual enrolled in course 

9 work specified in paragraph (3)(B) or (4)(B) of 

10 section 484(b).’’. 

11 SEC. 503. TERMINATION OF DIRECT LOAN REPAYMENT IN12 CENTIVES. 

13 Section 455(b)(8) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 

14 (20 U.S.C. 1087e(b)(8)) is amended— 

15 (1) in subparagraph (A)— 

16 (A) by amending the header to read as fol17 lows: ‘‘(A) INCENTIVES FOR LOANS DISBURSED

18 BEFORE JULY 1, 2012.—’’; and 

19 (B) by inserting ‘‘with respect to loans for 

20 which the first disbursement of principal is made 

21 before July 1, 2012,’’ after ‘‘of this part’’; 

22 (2) in subparagraph (B), by inserting ‘‘with re23 spect to loans for which the first disbursement of 

24 principal is made before July 1, 2012’’ after ‘‘repay25 ment incentives’’; and 
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1 (3) by adding at the end the following new sub2 paragraph: 

3 ‘‘(C) NO REPAYMENT INCENTIVES FOR NEW

4 LOANS DISBURSED ON OR AFTER JULY 1, 2012.— 

5 Notwithstanding any other provision of this 

6 part, the Secretary is prohibited from author7 izing or providing any repayment incentive not 

8 otherwise authorized under this part to encour9 age on-time repayment of a loan under this part 

10 for which the first disbursement of principal is 

11 made on or after July 1, 2012, including any re12 duction in the interest or origination fee rate 

13 paid by a borrower of such a loan, except that 

14 the Secretary may provide for an interest rate 

15 reduction for a borrower who agrees to have pay16 ments on such a loan automatically electroni17 cally debited from a bank account.’’. 

18 SEC. 504. INAPPLICABILITY OF TITLE IV NEGOTIATED 

19 RULEMAKING AND MASTER CALENDAR EX20 CEPTION. 

21 Sections 482(c) and 492 of the Higher Education Act 

22 of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1089(c), 1098a) shall not apply to the 
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1 amendments made by this title, or to any regulations pro2 mulgated under those amendments. 

Attest: 

Clerk. 

112TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 627 

AMENDMENT