I 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 6139 

To amend chapter 31 of title 31 of the United States Code and title IV 

of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to automatically suspend the 

debt limit for the fiscal year of a budget resolution. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

DECEMBER 3, 2021 

Mr. ARRINGTON (for himself, Mr. PETERS, Mr. HUIZENGA, and Ms. 

BOURDEAUX) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Rules, 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 amend chapter 31 of title 31 of the United States Code 

and title IV of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 

to automatically suspend the debt limit for the fiscal 

year of a budget resolution. 

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 ‘‘Responsible Budgeting 

5 Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. PRESIDENTIAL REQUEST TO SUSPEND THE DEBT 

2 LIMIT. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title 31, United States Code, is 

4 amended by striking section 3101A and inserting the fol5 lowing: 

6 ‘‘§ 3101A. Modification of statutory limit on the public 

7 debt 

8 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Upon adoption by Congress of 

9 a concurrent resolution on the budget under section 301 

10 or 304 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 (2 U.S.C. 

11 632, 634) that satisfies the required ratio, as determined 

12 by the Congressional Budget Office, the Clerk of the 

13 House of Representatives shall prepare an engrossment of 

14 a joint resolution in the form prescribed in subsection (b) 

15 suspending the statutory limit on the public debt until the 

16 last day of the fiscal year of that concurrent resolution. 

17 Upon engrossment of the joint resolution, the vote by 

18 which the concurrent resolution on the budget was adopt19 ed by the House of Representatives shall also be consid20 ered as a vote on passage of the joint resolution in the 

21 House of Representatives, and the joint resolution shall 

22 be considered as passed by the House of Representatives 

23 and duly certified and examined. The engrossed copy shall 

24 be signed by the Clerk of the House of Representatives 

25 and transmitted to the Senate. Upon receipt of the House 

26 of Representatives joint resolution in the Senate, the vote 


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1 by which the concurrent resolution on the budget was 

2 adopted in the Senate shall also be considered as a vote 

3 on passage of the joint resolution in the Senate, and the 

4 joint resolution shall be considered as passed by the Sen5 ate, duly certified and examined, and transmitted to the 

6 House of Representatives for enrollment. 

7 ‘‘(b) FORM OF JOINT RESOLUTION.—The form of the 

8 joint resolution described in this subsection is a joint reso9 lution— 

10 ‘‘(1) which does not have a preamble; 

11 ‘‘(2) the title of which is only as follows: ‘Joint 

12 resolution suspending the debt limit, as prepared 

13 under section 3101A of title 31, United States Code, 

14 on llllll’ (with the blank containing the 

15 date on which the joint resolution is prepared); and 

16 ‘‘(3) the matter after the resolving clause which 

17 is only as follows: ‘Section 3101(b) of title 31, 

18 United States Code, shall not apply for the period 

19 beginning on the date of enactment and ending on 

20 September 30, llll.’ (with the blank being 

21 filled with the fiscal year of the concurrent resolu22 tion on the budget). 

23 ‘‘(c) INCREASE OF DEBT LIMIT.—Effective on the 

24 date on which the authority of a joint resolution described 


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1 in subsection (b) terminates, the limitation in effect under 

2 section 3101(b) shall be increased to the extent that— 

3 ‘‘(1) the face amount of obligations issued 

4 under this chapter and the face amount of obliga5 tions whose principal and interest are guaranteed by 

6 the United States Government (except guaranteed 

7 obligations held by the Secretary of the Treasury) 

8 outstanding on such date, exceeds 

9 ‘‘(2) the face amount of such obligations out10 standing on the date the debt limit was last in ef11 fect. 

12 ‘‘(d) RESTORING CONGRESSIONAL AUTHORITY OVER

13 THE NATIONAL DEBT.— 

14 ‘‘(1) EXTENSION LIMITED TO NECESSARY OBLI15 GATIONS.—An obligation shall not be taken into ac16 count under subsection (c)(1) unless the issuance of 

17 such obligation was necessary to fund a commitment 

18 incurred pursuant to law by the Federal Government 

19 that required payment before the date on which the 

20 authorization of the joint resolution described in 

21 subsection (b) terminates. 

22 ‘‘(2) PROHIBITION ON CREATION OF CASH RE23 SERVE DURING EXTENSION PERIOD.—The Secretary 

24 of the Treasury shall not issue obligations during 

25 the period specified in the matter after the resolving 


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1 clause of a joint resolution, as described in sub2 section (b)(3), for the purpose of increasing the cash 

3 balance above normal operating balances in anticipa4 tion of the expiration of such period. 

5 ‘‘(e) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec6 tion shall be construed as limiting or otherwise affecting— 

7 ‘‘(1) the power of the House of Representatives 

8 or the Senate to consider and pass bills or joint res9 olutions, without regard to the procedures under 

10 subsection (a), that would change the statutory limit 

11 on the public debt; or 

12 ‘‘(2) the rights of Members, Delegates, the 

13 Resident Commissioner, or committees with respect 

14 to the introduction, consideration, and reporting of 

15 such bills or joint resolutions. 

16 ‘‘(f) DEFINITION.—In this section and section 

17 3101B— 

18 ‘‘(1) the term ‘required ratio’ means the ratio 

19 that— 

20 ‘‘(A) reduces by not less than 10 percent21 age points the projected ratio under current law 

22 of debt held by the public to Gross Domestic 

23 Product in the tenth fiscal year after the cur24 rent fiscal year; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) reduces such projected ratio by 50 

2 percent of the total reduction required under 

3 subparagraph (A) not later than the fifth fiscal 

4 year after the current fiscal year; and 

5 ‘‘(2) the term ‘statutory limit on the public 

6 debt’ means the maximum face amount of obliga7 tions issued under authority of this chapter and obli8 gations guaranteed as to principal and interest by 

9 the United States (except such guaranteed obliga10 tions as may be held by the Secretary of the Treas11 ury), as determined under section 3101(b) after the 

12 application of section 3101(a), that may be out13 standing at any one time. 

14 ‘‘§ 3101B. Presidential modification of the debt ceil15 ing 

16 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.— 

17 ‘‘(1) WRITTEN NOTIFICATION.—If, for a fiscal 

18 year, Congress does not adopt a concurrent resolu19 tion on the budget that satisfies the required ratio 

20 by the covered date, the President may submit a 

21 written notification to Congress, including a debt re22 duction proposal with legislative language that satis23 fies the required ratio, that the President is sus24 pending the statutory limit on the public debt subVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:53 Dec 14, 2021 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H6139.IH H6139

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1 ject to limit in section 3101(b) and that further bor2 rowing is required to meet existing commitments. 

3 ‘‘(2) EFFECT OF NOTIFICATION.— 

4 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara5 graph (C), upon the submission of a written no6 tification by the President under paragraph (1), 

7 including a debt reduction proposal comprised 

8 of legislative text that the Director of the Office 

9 of Management and Budget has determined 

10 satisfies the required ratio, the statutory limit 

11 on the public debt shall be suspended until the 

12 end of the fiscal year beginning in the calendar 

13 year in which the President submits a request. 

14 ‘‘(B) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Except as pro15 vided in subparagraph (C), a suspension of the 

16 statutory limit on the public debt under sub17 paragraph (A) shall take effect on the date that 

18 is 30 calendar days after the date on which the 

19 written notification is submitted by the Presi20 dent under paragraph (1). 

21 ‘‘(C) LIMITATION ON AUTHORITY.—The 

22 statutory limit on the public debt shall not be 

23 suspended under this paragraph if, during the 

24 30-calendar-day period beginning on the date 

25 on which Congress receives a notification under 


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1 this paragraph, Congress enacts into law a joint 

2 resolution of disapproval in accordance with 

3 subsection (b). 

4 ‘‘(3) COVERED DATE DEFINED.—For purposes 

5 of paragraph (1), the term ‘covered date’ means the 

6 earlier of— 

7 ‘‘(A) April 15 of the calendar year in 

8 which the fiscal year of the applicable concur9 rent resolution on the budget begins; or 

10 ‘‘(B) 60 days before the date on which the 

11 statutory limit on the public debt will be 

12 reached, as described in the congressional noti13 fication submitted by the Secretary of the 

14 Treasury. 

15 ‘‘(4) INCREASE OF DEBT LIMIT.—Effective on 

16 the date the debt limit extension pursuant to the 

17 written notification under paragraph (1) terminates, 

18 the limitation in effect under section 3101(b) shall 

19 be increased to the extent that— 

20 ‘‘(A) the face amount of obligations issued 

21 under this chapter and the face amount of obli22 gations whose principal and interest are guar23 anteed by the United States Government (ex24 cept guaranteed obligations held by the SecVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:53 Dec 14, 2021 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H6139.IH H6139

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1 retary of the Treasury) outstanding on such 

2 date, exceeds 

3 ‘‘(B) the face amount of such obligations 

4 outstanding on the date the debt limit was last 

5 in effect. 

6 ‘‘(5) RESTORING CONGRESSIONAL AUTHORITY

7 OVER THE NATIONAL DEBT.— 

8 ‘‘(A) EXTENSION LIMITED TO NECESSARY

9 OBLIGATIONS.—An obligation shall not be taken 

10 into account under paragraph (4)(A) unless the 

11 issuance of such obligation was necessary to 

12 fund a commitment incurred pursuant to law by 

13 the Federal Government that required payment 

14 before the date on which the debt limit exten15 sion pursuant to the written notification under 

16 paragraph (1) terminates. 

17 ‘‘(B) PROHIBITION ON CREATION OF CASH

18 RESERVE DURING EXTENSION PERIOD.—The 

19 Secretary of the Treasury shall not issue obliga20 tions during the period beginning on the effec21 tive date described in paragraph (2)(B) and 

22 ending on the last day of the fiscal year de23 scribed in paragraph (2)(A) for the purpose of 

24 increasing the cash balance above normal operVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:53 Dec 14, 2021 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H6139.IH H6139

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1 ating balances in anticipation of the expiration 

2 of such period. 

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

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If a joint resolution of dis5 approval has not been enacted by the end of the 30- 

6 calendar-day period beginning on the date on which 

7 the presidential notification to which the joint reso8 lution relates was received by Congress under sub9 section (a), the statutory limit on public debt shall 

10 be suspended as specified in the presidential notifi11 cation. 

12 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS OF JOINT RESOLUTION.—For 

13 the purpose of this section, the term ‘joint resolu14 tion’ means only a joint resolution— 

15 ‘‘(A) that is introduced between the date 

16 the written notification is received and 3 cal17 endar days after that date (or if the House of 

18 Representatives or Senate is not in session, the 

19 next calendar date in which it is in session); 

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

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

22 ‘Joint resolution relating to the disapproval of 

23 the President’s exercise of authority to suspend 

24 the debt limit, as submitted under section 

25 3101B(a) of title 31, United States Code, on 


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1 llllll’ (with the blank containing the 

2 date of such submission); and 

3 ‘‘(D) the matter after the resolving clause 

4 of which is only as follows: ‘That Congress dis5 approves of the President’s exercise of authority 

6 to suspend the debt limit, as exercised pursuant 

7 to the written notification under section 

8 3101B(a) of title 31, United States Code.’. 

9 ‘‘(c) EXPEDITED CONSIDERATION IN THE HOUSE OF

10 REPRESENTATIVES.— 

11 ‘‘(1) RECONVENING.—Upon receipt of a written 

12 notification described in subsection (a)(1), the 

13 Speaker of the House of Representatives, if the 

14 House of Representatives would otherwise be ad15 journed, shall notify the Members of the House of 

16 Representatives that, pursuant to this section, the 

17 House of Representatives shall convene not later 

18 than the second calendar day after receipt of such 

19 written notification. 

20 ‘‘(2) REPORTING AND DISCHARGE.—A joint 

21 resolution introduced under paragraph (1) shall be 

22 referred to the Committee on Ways and Means of 

23 the House of Representatives and such committee 

24 shall report the joint resolution to the House of Rep25 resentatives without amendment not later than 5 


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1 calendar days after the date on which the joint reso2 lution is introduced. If the Committee on Ways and 

3 Means fails to report the joint resolution within the 

4 5-day period, the Committee on Ways and Means 

5 shall be discharged from further consideration of the 

6 joint resolution and it shall be referred to the appro7 priate calendar. 

8 ‘‘(3) PROCEEDING TO CONSIDERATION.—Upon 

9 report or discharge from the Committee on Ways 

10 and Means of the House of Representatives, and not 

11 later than 6 days after the date on which the joint 

12 resolution is introduced under paragraph (1), it shall 

13 be in order to move to proceed to consider the joint 

14 resolution in the House of Representatives. All 

15 points of order against the motion are waived. Such 

16 a motion shall not be in order after the House of 

17 Representatives has disposed of a motion to proceed 

18 on a joint resolution addressing a particular submis19 sion. The previous question shall be considered as 

20 ordered on the motion to its adoption without inter21 vening motion. The motion shall not be debatable. A 

22 motion to reconsider the vote by which the motion 

23 is disposed of shall not be in order. 

24 ‘‘(4) CONSIDERATION.—The joint resolution 

25 shall be considered as read. All points of order 


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1 against the joint resolution and against its consider2 ation are waived. The previous question shall be con3 sidered as ordered on the joint resolution to its pas4 sage without intervening motion except two hours of 

5 debate equally divided and controlled by the pro6 ponent and an opponent. A motion to reconsider the 

7 vote on passage of the joint resolution shall not be 

8 in order. 

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

10 ‘‘(1) RECONVENING.—Upon receipt of a written 

11 notification under subsection (a)(1), if the Senate 

12 has adjourned or recessed for more than 2 days, the 

13 majority leader of the Senate, after consultation 

14 with the minority leader of the Senate, shall notify 

15 the Members of the Senate that, pursuant to this 

16 section, the Senate shall convene not later than the 

17 second calendar day after receipt of such message. 

18 ‘‘(2) PLACEMENT ON CALENDAR.—Upon intro19 duction in the Senate, the joint resolution shall be 

20 immediately placed on the calendar. 

21 ‘‘(3) FLOOR CONSIDERATION.— 

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

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

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1 gress receives a written notification under sub2 section (a) and ending on the sixth day after 

3 the date on which Congress receives a written 

4 notification under subsection (a) (even though a 

5 previous motion to the same effect has been dis6 agreed to) to move to proceed to the consider7 ation of the joint resolution, and all points of 

8 order against the joint resolution (and against 

9 consideration of the joint resolution) are 

10 waived. The motion to proceed is not debatable. 

11 The motion is not subject to a motion to post12 pone. A motion to reconsider the vote by which 

13 the motion is agreed to or disagreed to shall not 

14 be in order. If a motion to proceed to the con15 sideration of the resolution is agreed to, the 

16 joint resolution shall remain the unfinished 

17 business until disposed of. 

18 ‘‘(B) CONSIDERATION.—Consideration of 

19 the joint resolution, and on all debatable mo20 tions and appeals in connection therewith, shall 

21 be limited to not more than 10 hours, which 

22 shall be divided equally between the majority 

23 and minority leaders or their designees. A mo24 tion further to limit debate is in order and not 

25 debatable. An amendment to, or a motion to 


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1 postpone, or a motion to proceed to the consid2 eration of other business, or a motion to recom3 mit the joint resolution is not in order. 

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

5 has voted to proceed to a joint resolution, the 

6 vote on passage of the joint resolution shall 

7 occur immediately following the conclusion of 

8 consideration of the joint resolution, and a sin9 gle quorum call at the conclusion of the debate 

10 if requested in accordance with the rules of the 

11 Senate. 

12 ‘‘(D) RULINGS OF THE CHAIR ON PROCE13 DURE.—Appeals from the decisions of the Chair 

14 relating to the application of the rules of the 

15 Senate, as the case may be, to the procedure re16 lating to a joint resolution shall be decided 

17 without debate. 

18 ‘‘(e) AMENDMENT NOT IN ORDER.—A joint resolu19 tion of disapproval considered pursuant to this section 

20 shall not be subject to amendment in either the House 

21 of Representatives or the Senate. 

22 ‘‘(f) COORDINATION WITH ACTION BY OTHER

23 HOUSE.— 


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

2 resolution, one House receives from the other a joint 

3 resolution— 

4 ‘‘(A) the joint resolution of the other 

5 House shall not be referred to a committee; and 

6 ‘‘(B) the procedure in the receiving house 

7 shall be the same as if no joint resolution had 

8 been received from the other house until the 

9 vote on passage, when the joint resolution re10 ceived from the other house shall supplant the 

11 joint resolution of the receiving House. 

12 ‘‘(2) TREATMENT OF JOINT RESOLUTION OF

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

14 consider a joint resolution under this section, the 

15 joint resolution of the House shall be entitled to ex16 pedited floor procedures under this section. 

17 ‘‘(3) TREATMENT OF COMPANION MEASURES.— 

18 If, following passage of the joint resolution in the 

19 Senate, the Senate then receives the companion 

20 measure from the House of Representatives, the 

21 companion measure shall not be debatable. 

22 ‘‘(4) CONSIDERATION AFTER PASSAGE.— 

23 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If Congress passes a 

24 joint resolution, the period beginning on the 

25 date the President is presented with the joint 


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1 resolution and ending on the date the President 

2 signs, allows to become law without the signa3 ture of the President, or vetoes and returns the 

4 joint resolution (but excluding days when either 

5 House is not in session) shall be disregarded in 

6 computing the appropriate calendar day period 

7 described in subsection (b)(1). 

8 ‘‘(B) DEBATE ON VETO MESSAGE.—De9 bate on a veto message in the Senate under this 

10 section shall be 1 hour equally divided between 

11 the majority and minority leaders or their des12 ignees. 

13 ‘‘(C) VETO OVERRIDE.—If, within the 30- 

14 calendar-day period described in subsection 

15 (b)(1), Congress overrides a veto of a joint reso16 lution, the limitation in effect under section 

17 3101(b) shall not be suspended. 

18 ‘‘(g) RULES OF HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES AND

19 SENATE.—This section and section 3101A are enacted by 

20 Congress— 

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

22 the Senate and House of Representatives, respec23 tively, and as such it is deemed a part of the rules 

24 of each House, respectively, but applicable only with 

25 respect to the procedure to be followed in that 


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1 House in the case of a joint resolution, and it super2 sedes other rules only to the extent that it is incon3 sistent with such rules; and 

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

5 right of either House to change the rules (so far as 

6 relating to the procedure of that House) at any time, 

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

8 the case of any other rule of that House.’’. 

9 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

10 of subchapter I of chapter 31 of title 31, United States 

11 Code, is amended by striking the item relating to section 

12 3101A and inserting the following: 

‘‘3101A. Modification of statutory limit on the public debt. 

‘‘3101B. Presidential modification of the debt ceiling.’’. 

13 SEC. 3. CONSIDERATION OF THE DEBT REDUCTION PRO14 POSAL SUBMITTED BY THE PRESIDENT. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Part A of title IV of the Congres16 sional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 (2 

17 U.S.C. 651 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 

18 406 the following: 

19 ‘‘SEC. 407. CONSIDERATION OF THE DEBT REDUCTION PRO20 POSAL SUBMITTED BY THE PRESIDENT. 

21 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Any debt reduction proposal 

22 submitted by the President under section 3101B(a)(2)(A) 

23 of title 31, United States Code, is required to satisfy the 


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1 required ratio as determined by the Office of Management 

2 and Budget. 

3 ‘‘(b) CONSIDERATION OF THE PRESIDENT’S PRO4 POSAL IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.— 

5 ‘‘(1) INTRODUCTION.—Any debt reduction pro6 posal submitted by the President under section 

7 3101B of title 31, United States Code, shall be in8 troduced by the majority or minority leader of the 

9 House of Representatives or their designees. Upon 

10 introduction, the Chair of the Committee on the 

11 Budget shall within 3 days submit the proposal to 

12 the Congressional Budget Office to be scored. 

13 ‘‘(2) REFERRAL.—Any proposal introduced 

14 under paragraph (1) shall be referred to the Com15 mittee on the Budget of the House of Representa16 tives. 

17 ‘‘(3) REQUESTS BY BUDGET COMMITTEE.—Not 

18 later than 3 days after the date on which a proposal 

19 is referred under paragraph (2), the Chair of the 

20 Committee on the Budget of the House of Rep21 resentatives shall submit to each appropriate com22 mittee of the House a request that, during the 30- 

23 day period beginning on the date on which the re24 quest is made, the appropriate committee submit to 

25 the Committee on the Budget of the House— 


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1 ‘‘(A) a general assessment of the proposal 

2 introduced under paragraph (1); and 

3 ‘‘(B)(i) any recommendations related to 

4 the proposal; or 

5 ‘‘(ii) any alternative recommendation to re6 duce the deficit within the jurisdiction of the 

7 committee. 

8 ‘‘(4) REPORTED LEGISLATION BY BUDGET COM9 MITTEE.— 

10 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Committee on the 

11 Budget of the House of Representatives shall 

12 report a bill that meets the required ratio not 

13 later than 60 days after the date on which the 

14 President submits a debt reduction proposal 

15 under this section. 

16 ‘‘(B) CONTENTS OF LEGISLATION.—The 

17 bill reported under subparagraph (A) may in18 clude— 

19 ‘‘(i) the debt reduction proposal sub20 mitted by the President under this section; 

21 and 

22 ‘‘(ii) any recommendations submitted 

23 to the Committee on the Budget of the 

24 House of Representatives under paragraph 

25 (3), including any modifications to such 


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1 proposals by the Committee on the Budget 

2 of the House of Representatives. 

3 ‘‘(C) CBO SCORE.— 

4 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—No bill may be re5 ported under subparagraph (A) unless the 

6 Chair of the Committee on the Budget— 

7 ‘‘(I) submits to the Director of 

8 the Congressional Budget Office such 

9 bill for a cost estimate to be prepared 

10 under section 402; and 

11 ‘‘(II) receives from the Director a 

12 cost estimate described in subclause 

13 (I) that includes a statement that 

14 such bill meets the required ratio. 

15 ‘‘(ii) TIME PERIOD.—The 60-day pe16 riod described in subparagraph (A) shall 

17 not include the period beginning on the 

18 date on which the Chair of the Committee 

19 on the Budget of the House of Representa20 tives submits to the Director of the Con21 gressional Budget Office the bill under 

22 clause (i)(I) and ending on the date on 

23 which the Chair receives the cost estimate 

24 under clause (i)(II). 

25 ‘‘(5) DISCHARGE.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If the Committee on 

2 the Budget of the House of Representatives 

3 fails to report a bill within 60 days after the re4 ferral of the proposal submitted under section 

5 3101B of title 31, United States Code, and 

6 such proposal has been determined by the Di7 rector to satisfy the required ratio, then the 

8 committee shall be discharged from further con9 sideration of the bill that embodies the debt re10 duction proposal of the President and it shall 

11 be referred to the appropriate calendar. 

12 ‘‘(B) CONSIDERATION.—In the House of 

13 Representatives, if the Committee on Rules fails 

14 to report a rule within 7 legislative days of the 

15 bill being placed on the Calendar for the consid16 eration of a bill reported by the Committee on 

17 the Budget under paragraph (4) or discharged 

18 under subparagraph (A) of this paragraph 

19 which has been determined by the Director to 

20 satisfy the required ratio, then any Member 

21 may offer a privilege resolution providing for 

22 the consideration of the bill. Such resolution 

23 shall provide that upon its adoption it shall be 

24 in order to consider in the House of Represent25 atives the bill. The bill under the procedure set 


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1 forth in section 408(c) shall be debatable for 

2 two hours equally divided and controlled by a 

3 proponent and opponent of thereof. The pre4 vious question shall be considered as ordered on 

5 the bill of final passage without intervening mo6 tion except 1 motion to recommit. 

7 ‘‘(c) CONSIDERATION OF THE PRESIDENT’S PRO8 POSAL IN THE SENATE.— 

9 ‘‘(1) INTRODUCTION.—Any debt reduction pro10 posal submitted by the President under section 

11 3101B of title 31, United States Code, shall be in12 troduced by the majority or minority leader of the 

13 Senate or their designees. Upon introduction, the 

14 Chair of the Committee on the Budget shall within 

15 3 days submit the proposal to the Congressional 

16 Budget Office to be scored. 

17 ‘‘(2) REFERRAL.—Any proposal introduced 

18 under paragraph (1) shall be referred to the Com19 mittee on the Budget of the Senate. 

20 ‘‘(3) REQUESTS BY BUDGET COMMITTEE.— 

21 ‘‘(A) APPROPRIATE COMMITTEES.—Not 

22 later than 3 days after the date on which a pro23 posal is referred under paragraph (2), the Chair 

24 of the Committee on the Budget of the Senate 

25 shall submit to each appropriate committee of 


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1 the Senate a request that, during the 30-day 

2 period beginning on the date on which the re3 quest is made, the appropriate committee sub4 mit to the Committee on the Budget of the 

5 Senate— 

6 ‘‘(i) a general assessment of the pro7 posal introduced under paragraph (1); and 

8 ‘‘(ii)(I) any recommendations related 

9 to the proposal; or 

10 ‘‘(II) any alternative recommendation 

11 to reduce the deficit within the jurisdiction 

12 of the committee. 

13 ‘‘(B) OTHER PROPOSALS.—Any Member of 

14 the Senate may introduce a bill that meets the 

15 required ratio, as determined by the Congres16 sional Budget Office, which shall be referred to 

17 the Committee on the Budget of the Senate if 

18 the proposal is sponsored by not less than one19 fifth of the Members, duly chosen and sworn, 

20 including— 

21 ‘‘(i) not fewer than 10 Members who 

22 are members of or caucus with the mem23 bers of the political party of the majority 

24 leader of the Senate; and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) not fewer than 10 Members who 

2 are members of or caucus with any other 

3 political party that is not the political 

4 party of the majority leader of the Senate. 

5 ‘‘(4) REPORTED LEGISLATION BY BUDGET COM6 MITTEE.— 

7 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Committee on the 

8 Budget of the Senate shall report a bill that 

9 meets the required ratio not later than 60 days 

10 after the date on which the President submits 

11 a debt reduction proposal under this section. 

12 ‘‘(B) CONTENTS OF LEGISLATION.—The 

13 bill reported under subparagraph (A) may in14 clude— 

15 ‘‘(i) the debt reduction proposal sub16 mitted by the President under this section; 

17 and 

18 ‘‘(ii) any proposal submitted to the 

19 Committee on the Budget of the Senate 

20 under paragraph (3), including any modi21 fications to such proposals by the Com22 mittee on the Budget of the Senate. 

23 ‘‘(C) CBO SCORE.— 


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1 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—No bill may be re2 ported under subparagraph (A) unless the 

3 Chair of the Committee on the Budget— 

4 ‘‘(I) submits to the Director of 

5 the Congressional Budget Office such 

6 bill for a cost estimate to be prepared 

7 under section 402; and 

8 ‘‘(II) receives from the Director a 

9 cost estimate described in subclause 

10 (I) that includes a statement that 

11 such bill meets the required ratio. 

12 ‘‘(ii) TIME PERIOD.—The 60-day pe13 riod described in subparagraph (A) shall 

14 not include the period beginning on the 

15 date on which the Chair of the Committee 

16 on the Budget of the Senate submits to the 

17 Director of the Congressional Budget Of18 fice the bill under clause (i)(I) and ending 

19 on the date on which the Chair receives the 

20 cost estimate under clause (i)(II). 

21 ‘‘(5) DISCHARGE.—If the Committee on the 

22 Budget of the Senate has not reported a bill under 

23 paragraph (4) before the end of the 60-day period 

24 described in that paragraph, the Committee on the 


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1 Budget of the Senate shall be automatically dis2 charged from further consideration of— 

3 ‘‘(A) the proposal introduced under para4 graph (1), which shall be placed on the appro5 priate calendar; and 

6 ‘‘(B) any proposal submitted under para7 graph (3)(B), which shall be placed on the ap8 propriate calendar. 

9 ‘‘(d) DEFINITION.—In this section and section 408, 

10 the term ‘required ratio’ means the ratio that reduces by 

11 not less than 5 percentage points the projected ratio under 

12 current law of debt held by the public to Gross Domestic 

13 Product in the tenth fiscal year after the current fiscal 

14 year. 

15 ‘‘SEC. 408. CONSIDERATION IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENT16 ATIVES OF ALTERNATIVE DEBT REDUCTION 

17 PROPOSALS. 

18 ‘‘(a) INTRODUCTION.—In the House of Representa19 tives, any bill that satisfies the required ratio as deter20 mined by the Congressional Budget Office and does not 

21 contain any matter that is unrelated to debt reduction may 

22 be introduced by the majority leader, the minority leader, 

23 or by any other Member (if that Member’s proposed bill 

24 is cosponsored by at least 145 other Members or by at 


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1 least 20 Members of the majority party and 20 Members 

2 of the minority party). 

3 ‘‘(b) REFERRAL TO COMMITTEE ON RULES.—Any 

4 bill introduced under subsection (a) shall be referred to 

5 the Committee on Rules. Each such bill shall be scored 

6 by the Director of the Congressional Budget Office to de7 termine if such bill satisfies the required ratio. If such bill 

8 achieves the required ratio, it shall be reported without 

9 amendment to the House for its consideration within 30 

10 calendar days of the date of introduction of the bill. 

11 ‘‘(c) QUEEN-OF-THE-HILL RULE FOR CONSIDER12 ATION.—In the House of Representatives, any bill de13 scribed in section 407 and any bill reported under sub14 section (b) shall be considered in the House of Representa15 tives pursuant to a special order of business if the text 

16 of the bill provides that the text of all such bills reported 

17 under subsection (b) may be offered as amendments in 

18 the nature of a substitute and if more than one such 

19 amendment is adopted then the one receiving the greater 

20 number of affirmative recorded votes shall be considered 

21 as finally adopted. 

22 ‘‘SEC. 409. CONSIDERATION ON THE FLOOR OF THE SEN23 ATE. 

24 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding Rule XXII of 

25 the Standing Rules of the Senate, it is in order, not later 


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1 than 5 days of session after the date on which a bill meet2 ing the requirements of section 407(c)(4) is reported from 

3 the Committee on the Budget of the Senate or the date 

4 on which any proposal is placed on the calendar after dis5 charge under section 407(c)(5), as applicable, for the ma6 jority leader of the Senate or a Member of the Senate des7 ignated by the majority leader of the Senate to move to 

8 proceed to the consideration of the bill. It shall also be 

9 in order, notwithstanding Rule XXII of the Standing 

10 Rules of the Senate, for any Member of the Senate to 

11 move to proceed to the consideration of the bill at any 

12 time after the conclusion of such 5-day period. A motion 

13 to proceed is in order even though a previous motion to 

14 the same effect has been disagreed to. All points of order 

15 against the motion to proceed to the bill are waived. The 

16 motion is not subject to a motion to postpone. A motion 

17 to reconsider the vote by which the motion is agreed to 

18 or disagreed to shall not be in order. Consideration of the 

19 motion to proceed shall be limited to not more than 10 

20 hours equally divided between the majority leader and the 

21 minority leader or their designees. A motion to proceed 

22 shall require an affirmative vote of three-fifths of Senators 

23 duly chosen and sworn. 

24 ‘‘(b) EXTRANEOUS PROVISIONS.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—When the Senate is consid2 ering a bill under subsection (a), upon a point of 

3 order being made by any Senator against a extra4 neous material contained in the joint resolution, and 

5 the point of order is sustained by the Chair, the pro6 vision that contains the extraneous material shall be 

7 stricken from the joint resolution. 

8 ‘‘(2) EXTRANEOUS MATERIAL DEFINED.—In 

9 this subsection, the term ‘extraneous material’ 

10 means— 

11 ‘‘(A) a provision that does not produce a 

12 change in outlays or revenue, including changes 

13 in outlays and revenues brought about by 

14 changes in the terms and conditions under 

15 which outlays are made or revenues are re16 quired to be collected (but a provision in which 

17 outlay decreases or revenue increases exactly 

18 offset outlay increases or revenue decreases 

19 shall not be considered extraneous by virtue of 

20 this subparagraph); or 

21 ‘‘(B) a provision producing changes in out22 lays or revenues which are merely incidental to 

23 the non-budgetary components of the provision. 

24 ‘‘(3) FORM OF THE POINT OF ORDER.—A point 

25 of order under paragraph (1) may be raised by a 


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1 Senator as provided in section 313(e) of the Con2 gressional Budget Act of 1974 (2 U.S.C. 644(e)). 

3 ‘‘SEC. 410. CONSIDERATION BY OTHER HOUSE. 

4 ‘‘If a House of Congress receives a bill passed by the 

5 other House under section 408 or 409 and has not yet 

6 passed a bill under section 408 or 409, the following pro7 cedures for consideration shall apply: 

8 ‘‘(1) EXPEDITED CONSIDERATION IN THE

9 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.— 

10 ‘‘(A) PROCEEDING TO CONSIDERATION.— 

11 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—It shall be in 

12 order, not later than 30 days after the 

13 date on which the House of Representa14 tives receives a bill passed by the Senate 

15 under section 409, to move to proceed to 

16 consider the bill in the House of Rep17 resentatives. 

18 ‘‘(ii) PROCEDURE.—For a motion to 

19 proceed to consider a bill under this sub20 paragraph— 

21 ‘‘(I) all points of order against 

22 the motion are waived; 

23 ‘‘(II) such a motion shall not be 

24 in order after the House of RepresentVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:53 Dec 14, 2021 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00031 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H6139.IH H6139

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1 atives has disposed of a motion to 

2 proceed on the bill; 

3 ‘‘(III) the previous question shall 

4 be considered as ordered on the mo5 tion to its adoption without inter6 vening motion; 

7 ‘‘(IV) the motion shall not be de8 batable; and 

9 ‘‘(V) a motion to reconsider the 

10 vote by which the motion is disposed 

11 of shall not be in order. 

12 ‘‘(B) CONSIDERATION.—If the House of 

13 Representatives proceeds to consideration of a 

14 bill under this paragraph— 

15 ‘‘(i) the bill shall be considered as 

16 read; 

17 ‘‘(ii) all points of order against the 

18 bill and against its consideration are 

19 waived; 

20 ‘‘(iii) the previous question shall be 

21 considered as ordered on the bill to its pas22 sage without intervening motion except 

23 three hours of debate equally divided and 

24 controlled by the proponent and an oppo25 nent; 


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1 ‘‘(iv) an amendment to the bill shall 

2 not be in order; and 

3 ‘‘(v) a motion to reconsider the vote 

4 on passage of the bill shall not be in order. 

5 ‘‘(2) EXPEDITED CONSIDERATION IN THE SEN6 ATE.— 

7 ‘‘(A) PROCEEDING TO CONSIDERATION.— 

8 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding 

9 rule XXII of the Standing Rules of the 

10 Senate, it is in order, not later than 30 

11 days after the date on which the Senate re12 ceives a bill passed under section 408 by 

13 the House of Representatives, to move to 

14 proceed to consider the bill in the Senate. 

15 ‘‘(ii) PROCEDURE.—For a motion to 

16 proceed to the consideration of a bill under 

17 this paragraph— 

18 ‘‘(I) all points of order against 

19 the motion are waived; 

20 ‘‘(II) the motion is not debatable; 

21 ‘‘(III) the motion is not subject 

22 to a motion to postpone; 

23 ‘‘(IV) a motion to reconsider the 

24 vote by which the motion is agreed to 


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1 or disagreed to shall not be in order; 

2 and 

3 ‘‘(V) if the motion is agreed to, 

4 the bill shall remain the unfinished 

5 business until disposed of. 

6 ‘‘(B) FLOOR CONSIDERATION GEN7 ERALLY.—If the Senate proceeds to consider8 ation of a bill under this paragraph— 

9 ‘‘(i) all points of order against the bill 

10 (and against consideration of the bill) are 

11 waived; 

12 ‘‘(ii) consideration of the bill, and all 

13 debatable motions and appeals in connec14 tion therewith, shall be limited to not more 

15 than 20 hours, which shall be divided 

16 equally between the majority and minority 

17 leaders or their designees; 

18 ‘‘(iii) a motion further to limit debate 

19 is in order and not debatable; 

20 ‘‘(iv) an amendment to, a motion to 

21 postpone, or a motion to recommit the bill 

22 is not in order; and 

23 ‘‘(v) a motion to proceed to the con24 sideration of other business is not in order. 


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1 ‘‘(C) VOTE ON PASSAGE.—The vote on 

2 passage of a bill under this paragraph shall 

3 occur immediately following the conclusion of 

4 the consideration of the bill, and a single 

5 quorum call at the conclusion of the debate if 

6 requested in accordance with the rules of the 

7 Senate, and shall require an affirmative vote of 

8 three-fifths of the Members of the Senate duly 

9 chosen and sworn. 

10 ‘‘(3) CONFERENCES.—If the Senate and the 

11 House of Representatives have both passed the bill 

12 in different forms, then a conference committee on 

13 the bill shall be considered as ordered and the 

14 Speaker of the House of Representatives and the 

15 majority leader of the Senate shall immediately ap16 point Managers to such conference committee to re17 solve any disagreement between the Houses.’’. 

18 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents 

19 in section 1(b) of the Congressional Budget and Impound20 ment Control Act of 1974 is amended by inserting after 

21 the item relating to section 406 the following: 

‘‘Sec. 407. Consideration of the debt reduction proposal submitted by the President. 

‘‘Sec. 408. Consideration in the House of Representatives of alternative debt reduction proposals. 

‘‘Sec. 409. Consideration on the floor of the Senate. 

‘‘Sec. 410. Consideration by other house.’’. 

Æ 


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