Government Bailout Prevention Act

To prohibit the provision of Federal funds to State and local governments for payment of obligations, to prohibit the Federal Reserve Banks, the Department of the Treasury, and other Federal agencies from financially assisting State and local governments that have defaulted on their obligations, and for other purposes. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Government Bailout Prevention Act 2. Definition In this Act, the term State (1) any of the several States; (2) the District of Columbia; and (3) any territory or possession of the United States. 3. Prohibition on the use of Federal funds to pay or guarantee State and local obligations (a) In general Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no Federal funds may be used to purchase or guarantee obligations of, issue lines of credit to, or provide direct or indirect grants-and-aid to, any State government, municipal government, local government, or county government which, on or after January 1, 2019, has filed for bankruptcy, has defaulted on its obligations, is at risk of defaulting, or is likely to default, absent such assistance from the United States Government. (b) Limit on Use of Borrowed Funds The Secretary of the Treasury shall not, directly or indirectly, use general fund revenues or funds borrowed pursuant to title 31, United States Code, to purchase or guarantee any asset or obligation of any State government, municipal government, local government, or county government, or otherwise to assist such government entity, if, on or after January 1, 2019, that State government, municipal government, or county government has defaulted on its obligations, has filed for bankruptcy, is at risk of defaulting, or is likely to default, absent such assistance from the United States Government. (c) Prohibition on Federal Reserve assistance Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no Federal Reserve Bank may provide or extend to, or authorize with respect to, any State government, municipal government, local government, county government, or other entity that has taxing authority or bonding authority, any funds, loan guarantees, credits, or any other financial instrument, including the purchasing of the bonds of such State, municipality, locality, county, or other bonding authority, or to otherwise assist such government entity under any authority of any Federal Reserve Bank. (d) Limitation Subsections (a) through (c) shall not apply to Federal assistance provided in response to a declared disaster. 4. Applicability The prohibition under section 3— (1) includes debt restructuring or any other related activity; and (2) does not include— (A) any discretionary appropriations or direct spending, as those terms are defined in section 250(c) of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 ( 2 U.S.C. 900(c) (B) any grant awarded by the United States to the State government, municipal government, local government, or county government.

Summary: Government Bailout Prevention Act This bill prohibits the use of federal funds to purchase or guarantee obligations of, issue lines of credit to, or provide grants to any state (defined to include the District of Columbia and any U.S. territory or possession), municipal, local, or county government that, on or after January 1, 2019, has defaulted on its obligations, is at risk of defaulting, or has filed for bankruptcy. The Department of the Treasury is prohibited from using general fund revenues or borrowed funds to purchase or guarantee any asset or obligation of any such state, municipal, local, or county government. Federal Reserve banks are prohibited from assisting such a state, municipal, local, or county government or other entity with taxing or bonding authority.