I 

113TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 371 

To increase the statutory limit on the public debt by $1,000,000,000 upon 

the adoption by Congress of a Balanced Budget Constitutional Amendment and by an additional $1,000,000,000 upon ratification by the 

States of that Amendment. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 23, 2013 

Mr. BROOKS of Alabama (for himself, Mr. BACHUS, Mr. WILSON of South 

Carolina, Mr. SOUTHERLAND, Mr. STUTZMAN, Mr. MCKINLEY, and Mr. 

JONES) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means 

A BILL 

To increase the statutory limit on the public debt by 

$1,000,000,000 upon the adoption by Congress of a Balanced Budget Constitutional Amendment and by an additional $1,000,000,000 upon ratification by the States 

of that Amendment. 

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 ‘‘Protecting America’s 

5 Solvency Act of 2013’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. INCREASE IN THE STATUTORY LIMIT ON THE PUB2 LIC DEBT. 

3 (a) ADOPTION.—Effective upon the adoption by the 

4 Congress of a Balanced Budget Constitutional Amend5 ment with the provisions described in section 3, below, the 

6 statutory limit on the public debt set forth in section 

7 3101(b) of title 31, United States Code, is increased by 

8 $1,000,000,000. 

9 (b) RATIFICATION.—Effective upon the ratification 

10 by the States of the Balanced Budget Constitutional 

11 Amendment with the provisions described in section 3, 

12 below, the statutory limit on the public debt set forth in 

13 section 3101(b) of title 31, United States Code, is in14 creased by an additional $1,000,000,000. 

15 SEC. 3. REQUIRED PROVISIONS OF A BALANCED BUDGET 

16 CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT. 

17 A Balanced Budget Constitutional Amendment, to 

18 comply with the requirements of section 2, above, must 

19 include the following provisions: 

20 (1) Total outlays of the United States for any 

21 fiscal year shall not exceed total receipts for that fis22 cal year. Total receipts shall include all receipts of 

23 the United States except those derived from bor24 rowing. Total outlays shall include all outlays of the 

25 United States except those for repayment of debt 

26 principal. The United States shall have no fiscal 


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1 year deficits except pursuant to the terms of the 

2 Amendment. 

3 (2) The fiscal year deficit prohibition described 

4 herein may be suspended by a majority of the mem5 bership of both houses of Congress, by rollcall vote, 

6 for any fiscal year in which the United States is ac7 tively engaged in military conflict pursuant to a war 

8 declared by Congress pursuant to article I, section 

9 8, or may be suspended by four-fifths of the mem10 bership of Congress, by rollcall vote, for any other 

11 fiscal year. 

12 (3) In any fiscal year in which Congress does 

13 not suspend the Amendment pursuant to its terms 

14 and in which total outlays will or may exceed total 

15 receipts, the President shall take such steps as are 

16 necessary to ensure total outlays for that fiscal year 

17 do not exceed total receipts. The President may not 

18 order any increase in taxes or other revenue meas19 ures to enforce the Amendment. A President’s fail20 ure to prevent a prohibited fiscal year deficit is an 

21 impeachable offense. 

22 (4) Any Member of Congress and any Governor 

23 or Attorney General of any State shall have standing 

24 and a cause of action to seek judicial enforcement of 

25 the Amendment. No court of the United States or 


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1 of any State may order any increase in taxes or 

2 other revenue measures to prevent or reduce fiscal 

3 year deficits. 

4 (5)(A) The Amendment shall be phased in be5 ginning with the first fiscal year commencing six or 

6 more months after ratification of the Amendment by 

7 the States. 

8 (B) Within three months after ratification, the 

9 President shall calculate the total outlays, the total 

10 receipts, and the resulting deficit of the United 

11 States for the fiscal year in which the Amendment 

12 was ratified. This deficit is the ‘‘Base Deficit’’. 

13 (C) Fiscal year deficits shall be phased-out as 

14 follows: 

15 (i) The deficit for the first fiscal year com16 mencing six or more months after ratification 

17 by the States of the Amendment shall not ex18 ceed eighty percent of the Base Deficit. 

19 (ii) The deficit for the first fiscal year 

20 commencing eighteen or more months after 

21 ratification by the States of the Amendment 

22 shall not exceed sixty percent of the Base Def23 icit. 

24 (iii) The deficit for the first fiscal year 

25 commencing thirty or more months after ratifiVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:05 Feb 01, 2013 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H371.IH H371

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1 cation by the States of the Amendment shall 

2 not exceed forty percent of the Base Deficit. 

3 (iv) The deficit for the first fiscal year 

4 commencing forty-two or more months after 

5 ratification by the States of the Amendment 

6 shall not exceed twenty percent of the Base 

7 Deficit. 

8 (v) There shall be no deficit for any fiscal 

9 year commencing fifty-four or more months 

10 after ratification by the States of the Amend11 ment. 

Æ 


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