A bill to establish the Federal Rainy Day Fund to control emergency spending.

Subjects: Economics and Public Finance


<html><body><pre>[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 718 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 718

 To establish the Federal Rainy Day Fund to control emergency spending.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 8, 2023

   Mr. Braun introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
                referred to the Committee on the Budget

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To establish the Federal Rainy Day Fund to control emergency spending.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. LIMITATIONS ON EMERGENCY SPENDING.

    (a) Definitions.--In this section--
            (1) the term ``discretionary spending limit'' has the 
        meaning given that term in section 250(c) of the Balanced 
        Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (2 U.S.C. 
        900(c));
            (2) the term ``emergency'' means any occasion or instance 
        for which Federal assistance is needed to supplement State and 
        local efforts and capabilities to save lives and to protect 
        property and public health and safety, or to lessen or avert 
        the threat of a catastrophe in any part of the United States;
            (3) the term ``Fund'' means the Federal Rainy Day Fund 
        established under subsection (c)(1); and
            (4) the term ``previous year's nonemergency discretionary 
        spending'' means the amount of the discretionary spending limit 
        for all categories for the most recent previous fiscal year for 
        which there was a discretionary spending limit, excluding any 
        adjustment for the fiscal year for amounts designated as being 
        for an emergency requirement under section 251(b)(2)(A)(i) of 
        the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 
        (2 U.S.C. 901(b)(2)(A)(i)), as in effect on the day before the 
        date of enactment of this Act.
    (b) Sense of the Senate.--It is the sense of the Senate that saving 
for a rainy day should be accompanied by offsets in other programs so 
that the Federal Government does not live beyond its means.
    (c) Federal Rainy Day Fund.--
            (1) Establishment.--There is established in the Treasury an 
        account to be known as the ``Federal Rainy Day Fund''.
            (2) Funding.--For fiscal year 2024 and each fiscal year 
        thereafter, there is authorized to be appropriated to the Fund 
        an amount equal to 2 percent of the amount of previous year's 
        nonemergency discretionary spending.
            (3) Availability.--Amounts in the Fund shall remain 
        available until expended, in accordance with subsection (d).
    (d) Use of Federal Rainy Day Fund.--
            (1) Prohibition on using federal rainy day fund for 
        nonemergencies.--
                    (A) Point of order against use for 
                nonemergencies.--
                            (i) In general.--In the Senate, it shall 
                        not be in order to consider a provision in a 
                        bill, joint resolution, motion, amendment, 
                        amendment between the Houses, or conference 
                        report that appropriates funds from the Federal 
                        Rainy Day Fund for any program, project, or 
                        activity that is not an emergency.
                            (ii) Point of order sustained.--If a point 
                        of order is made by a Senator against a 
                        provision described in clause (i), and the 
                        point of order is sustained by the Chair, that 
                        provision shall be stricken from the measure 
                        and may not be offered as an amendment from the 
                        floor.
                    (B) Form of the point of order.--A point of order 
                under subparagraph (A)(i) may be raised by a Senator as 
                provided in section 313(e) of the Congressional Budget 
                Act of 1974 (2 U.S.C. 644(e)).
                    (C) Conference reports.--When the Senate is 
                considering a conference report on, or an amendment 
                between the Houses in relation to, a bill or joint 
                resolution, upon a point of order being made by any 
                Senator pursuant to subparagraph (A)(i), and such point 
                of order being sustained, such material contained in 
                such conference report or House amendment shall be 
                stricken, and the Senate shall proceed to consider the 
                question of whether the Senate shall recede from its 
                amendment and concur with a further amendment, or 
                concur in the House amendment with a further amendment, 
                as the case may be, which further amendment shall 
                consist of only that portion of the conference report 
                or House amendment, as the case may be, not so 
                stricken. Any such motion in the Senate shall be 
                debatable. In any case in which such point of order is 
                sustained against a conference report (or Senate 
                amendment derived from such conference report by 
                operation of this subparagraph), no further amendment 
                shall be in order.
                    (D) No waiver or suspension.--In the Senate, it 
                shall not be in order to move to waive or suspend 
                subparagraph (A).
            (2) Use of federal rainy day fund first.--
                    (A) Point of order against regular appropriations 
                for emergencies.--
                            (i) In general.--In the Senate, it shall 
                        not be in order to consider a provision in a 
                        bill, joint resolution, motion, amendment, 
                        amendment between the Houses, or conference 
                        report that appropriates funds from the General 
                        Fund of the Treasury for an emergency, unless 
                        there are no unobligated funds in the Federal 
                        Rainy Day Fund.
                            (ii) Point of order sustained.--If a point 
                        of order is made by a Senator against a 
                        provision described in clause (i), and the 
                        point of order is sustained by the Chair, that 
                        provision shall be stricken from the measure 
                        and may not be offered as an amendment from the 
                        floor.
                    (B) Form of the point of order.--A point of order 
                under subparagraph (A)(i) may be raised by a Senator as 
                provided in section 313(e) of the Congressional Budget 
                Act of 1974 (2 U.S.C. 644(e)).
                    (C) Conference reports.--When the Senate is 
                considering a conference report on, or an amendment 
                between the Houses in relation to, a bill or joint 
                resolution, upon a point of order being made by any 
                Senator pursuant to subparagraph (A)(i), and such point 
                of order being sustained, such material contained in 
                such conference report or House amendment shall be 
                stricken, and the Senate shall proceed to consider the 
                question of whether the Senate shall recede from its 
                amendment and concur with a further amendment, or 
                concur in the House amendment with a further amendment, 
                as the case may be, which further amendment shall 
                consist of only that portion of the conference report 
                or House amendment, as the case may be, not so 
                stricken. Any such motion in the Senate shall be 
                debatable. In any case in which such point of order is 
                sustained against a conference report (or Senate 
                amendment derived from such conference report by 
                operation of this subparagraph), no further amendment 
                shall be in order.
                    (D) No waiver or suspension.--In the Senate, it 
                shall not be in order to move to waive or suspend 
                subparagraph (A).
            (3) Point of order against emergency spending.--Section 314 
        of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 (2 U.S.C. 645) is 
        amended--
                    (A) in subsection (d)--
                            (i) in paragraph (1), by striking 
                        ``contains a provision providing new budget 
                        authority and outlays or reducing revenue, and 
                        a designation of such provision as an emergency 
                        requirement pursuant to 251(b)(2)(A) of the 
                        Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control 
                        Act of 1985'' and inserting ``contains an 
                        appropriation from the Federal Rainy Day Fund 
                        for an emergency (as defined in section __ of 
                        the ___ Act)''; and
                            (ii) in paragraph (2)(A), by striking ``a 
                        designation'' and inserting ``an 
                        appropriation''; and
                    (B) in subsection (e)--
                            (i) in the subsection heading, by striking 
                        ``Designation'' and inserting 
                        ``Appropriation'';
                            (ii) in paragraph (1), by striking ``an 
                        emergency designation in that measure, that 
                        provision making such a designation'' and 
                        inserting ``a provision containing an 
                        appropriation from the Federal Rainy Day Fund 
                        for an emergency (as defined in section __ of 
                        the ___ Act, that provision'';
                            (iii) in paragraph (2), by striking 
                        ``three-fifths'' each place it appears and 
                        inserting ``two-thirds'';
                            (iv) by striking paragraph (3); and
                            (v) by redesignating paragraphs (4) and (5) 
                        as paragraphs (3) and (4), respectively.
    (e) Increased Threshold for Allocation Points of Order.--
Notwithstanding section 904 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 (2 
U.S.C. 621 note), in the Senate--
            (1) section 302(f) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 
        (2 U.S.C. 633(f)) may only be waived or suspended upon the 
        affirmative vote of two-thirds of the Members, duly chosen and 
        sworn; and
            (2) an appeal of the ruling of the Chair on a point of 
        order raised under section 302(f) of the Congressional Budget 
        Act of 1974 (2 U.S.C. 633(f)) shall only be sustained upon the 
        affirmative vote of two-thirds of the Members, duly chosen and 
        sworn.
    (f) GAO Study.--The Comptroller General of the United States shall 
submit to Congress a report assessing the relationship between 
emergency, disaster, and wildfire spending, which shall include 
recommendations, if any, to modify the spending that qualifies as 
emergency spending.
    (g) Repeal of Adjustment for Emergency Spending.--Section 
251(b)(2)(A) of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act 
of 1985 (2 U.S.C. 901(b)(2)(A)) is amended--
            (1) in the subparagraph heading, by striking ``Emergency 
        appropriations; overseas'' and inserting ``Overseas'';
            (2) by striking ``that--'' and all that follows through 
        ``(ii) the Congress'' and inserting ``that the Congress'';
            (3) by striking ``designates,'' and all that follows 
        through ``the adjustment'' and inserting ``designates, the 
        adjustment''; and
            (4) by striking ``designated as emergency requirements or 
        for'' and inserting ``designated for''.
    (h) Effective Date.--This section and the amendments made by this 
section shall--
            (1) take effect on the date of enactment of this Act; and
            (2) apply with respect to fiscal year 2024 and each fiscal 
        year thereafter.
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