I 
117TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 6393 
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 
JANUARY 13, 2022 
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 with-
in 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. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Responsible Budgeting 
Act’’. 
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SEC. 2. PRESIDENTIAL REQUEST TO SUSPEND THE DEBT 
LIMIT. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Title 31, United States Code, is 
amended by striking section 3101A and inserting the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘§ 3101A. Modification of statutory limit on the public 
debt 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Upon adoption by Congress of 
a concurrent resolution on the budget under section 301 
or 304 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 (2 U.S.C. 
632, 634) that satisfies the required ratio, as determined 
by the Congressional Budget Office, the Clerk of the 
House of Representatives shall prepare an engrossment of 
a joint resolution in the form prescribed in subsection (b) 
suspending the statutory limit on the public debt until the 
last day of the fiscal year of that concurrent resolution. 
Upon engrossment of the joint resolution, the vote by 
which the concurrent resolution on the budget was adopt-
ed by the House of Representatives shall also be consid-
ered as a vote on passage of the joint resolution in the 
House of Representatives, and the joint resolution shall 
be considered as passed by the House of Representatives 
and duly certified and examined. The engrossed copy shall 
be signed by the Clerk of the House of Representatives 
and transmitted to the Senate. Upon receipt of the House 
of Representatives joint resolution in the Senate, the vote 
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by which the concurrent resolution on the budget was 
adopted in the Senate shall also be considered as a vote 
on passage of the joint resolution in the Senate, and the 
joint resolution shall be considered as passed by the Sen-
ate, duly certified and examined, and transmitted to the 
House of Representatives for enrollment. 
‘‘(b) FORM OF JOINT RESOLUTION.—The form of the 
joint resolution described in this subsection is a joint reso-
lution— 
‘‘(1) which does not have a preamble; 
‘‘(2) the title of which is only as follows: ‘Joint 
resolution suspending the debt limit, as prepared 
under section 3101A of title 31, United States Code, 
on llllll’ (with the blank containing the 
date on which the joint resolution is prepared); and 
‘‘(3) the matter after the resolving clause which 
is only as follows: ‘Section 3101(b) of title 31, 
United States Code, shall not apply for the period 
beginning on the date of enactment and ending on 
September 30, llll.’ (with the blank being 
filled with the fiscal year of the concurrent resolu-
tion on the budget). 
‘‘(c) INCREASE OF DEBT LIMIT.—Effective on the 
date on which the authority of a joint resolution described 
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in subsection (b) terminates, the limitation in effect under 
section 3101(b) shall be increased to the extent that— 
‘‘(1) the face amount of obligations issued 
under this chapter and the face amount of obliga-
tions whose principal and interest are guaranteed by 
the United States Government (except guaranteed 
obligations held by the Secretary of the Treasury) 
outstanding on such date, exceeds 
‘‘(2) the face amount of such obligations out-
standing on the date the debt limit was last in ef-
fect. 
‘‘(d) RESTORING CONGRESSIONAL AUTHORITY OVER 
THE NATIONAL DEBT.— 
‘‘(1) EXTENSION LIMITED TO NECESSARY OBLI-
GATIONS.—An obligation shall not be taken into ac-
count under subsection (c)(1) unless the issuance of 
such obligation was necessary to fund a commitment 
incurred pursuant to law by the Federal Government 
that required payment before the date on which the 
authorization of the joint resolution described in 
subsection (b) terminates. 
‘‘(2) PROHIBITION ON CREATION OF CASH RE-
SERVE DURING EXTENSION PERIOD.—The Secretary 
of the Treasury shall not issue obligations during 
the period specified in the matter after the resolving 
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clause of a joint resolution, as described in sub-
section (b)(3), for the purpose of increasing the cash 
balance above normal operating balances in anticipa-
tion of the expiration of such period. 
‘‘(e) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec-
tion shall be construed as limiting or otherwise affecting— 
‘‘(1) the power of the House of Representatives 
or the Senate to consider and pass bills or joint res-
olutions, without regard to the procedures under 
subsection (a), that would change the statutory limit 
on the public debt; or 
‘‘(2) the rights of Members, Delegates, the 
Resident Commissioner, or committees with respect 
to the introduction, consideration, and reporting of 
such bills or joint resolutions. 
‘‘(f) DEFINITIONS.—In this section and section 
3101B— 
‘‘(1) the term ‘required ratio’ means the ratio 
that reduces by not less than 5 percentage points 
the projected ratio under current law of debt held by 
the public to Gross Domestic Product in the tenth 
fiscal year after the current fiscal year; and 
‘‘(2) the term ‘statutory limit on the public 
debt’ means the maximum face amount of obliga-
tions issued under authority of this chapter and obli-
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gations guaranteed as to principal and interest by 
the United States (except such guaranteed obliga-
tions as may be held by the Secretary of the Treas-
ury), as determined under section 3101(b) after the 
application of section 3101(a), that may be out-
standing at any one time. 
‘‘§ 3101B. Presidential modification of the debt ceil-
ing 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.— 
‘‘(1) WRITTEN NOTIFICATION.—If, for a fiscal 
year, Congress does not adopt a concurrent resolu-
tion on the budget that satisfies the required ratio 
by the covered date, the President may submit a 
written notification to Congress, including a debt re-
duction proposal with legislative language that satis-
fies the required ratio, that the President is sus-
pending the statutory limit on the public debt sub-
ject to limit in section 3101(b) and that further bor-
rowing is required to meet existing commitments. 
‘‘(2) EFFECT OF NOTIFICATION.— 
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—Subject to subpara-
graph (C), upon the submission of a written no-
tification by the President under paragraph (1), 
including a debt reduction proposal comprised 
of legislative text that the Director of the Office 
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of Management and Budget has determined 
satisfies the required ratio, the statutory limit 
on the public debt shall be suspended until the 
end of the fiscal year beginning in the calendar 
year in which the President submits a request. 
‘‘(B) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Except as pro-
vided in subparagraph (C), a suspension of the 
statutory limit on the public debt under sub-
paragraph (A) shall take effect on the date that 
is 30 calendar days after the date on which the 
written notification is submitted by the Presi-
dent under paragraph (1). 
‘‘(C) LIMITATION
ON
AUTHORITY.—The 
statutory limit on the public debt shall not be 
suspended under this paragraph if, during the 
30-calendar-day period beginning on the date 
on which Congress receives a notification under 
this paragraph, Congress enacts into law a joint 
resolution of disapproval in accordance with 
subsection (b). 
‘‘(3) COVERED DATE DEFINED.—For purposes 
of paragraph (1), the term ‘covered date’ means the 
earlier of— 
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‘‘(A) April 15 of the calendar year in 
which the fiscal year of the applicable concur-
rent resolution on the budget begins; or 
‘‘(B) 60 days before the date on which the 
statutory limit on the public debt will be 
reached, as described in the congressional noti-
fication submitted by the Secretary of the 
Treasury. 
‘‘(4) INCREASE OF DEBT LIMIT.—Effective on 
the date the debt limit extension pursuant to the 
written notification under paragraph (1) terminates, 
the limitation in effect under section 3101(b) shall 
be increased to the extent that— 
‘‘(A) the face amount of obligations issued 
under this chapter and the face amount of obli-
gations whose principal and interest are guar-
anteed by the United States Government (ex-
cept guaranteed obligations held by the Sec-
retary of the Treasury) outstanding on such 
date, exceeds 
‘‘(B) the face amount of such obligations 
outstanding on the date the debt limit was last 
in effect. 
‘‘(5) RESTORING
CONGRESSIONAL
AUTHORITY 
OVER THE NATIONAL DEBT.— 
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‘‘(A) EXTENSION LIMITED TO NECESSARY 
OBLIGATIONS.—An obligation shall not be taken 
into account under paragraph (4)(A) unless the 
issuance of such obligation was necessary to 
fund a commitment incurred pursuant to law by 
the Federal Government that required payment 
before the date on which the debt limit exten-
sion pursuant to the written notification under 
paragraph (1) terminates. 
‘‘(B) PROHIBITION ON CREATION OF CASH 
RESERVE
DURING
EXTENSION
PERIOD.—The 
Secretary of the Treasury shall not issue obliga-
tions during the period beginning on the effec-
tive date described in paragraph (2)(B) and 
ending on the last day of the fiscal year de-
scribed in paragraph (2)(A) for the purpose of 
increasing the cash balance above normal oper-
ating balances in anticipation of the expiration 
of such period. 
‘‘(b) JOINT RESOLUTION OF DISAPPROVAL.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If a joint resolution of dis-
approval has not been enacted by the end of the 30- 
calendar-day period beginning on the date on which 
the presidential notification to which the joint reso-
lution relates was received by Congress under sub-
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section (a), the statutory limit on public debt shall 
be suspended as specified in the presidential notifi-
cation. 
‘‘(2) CONTENTS OF JOINT RESOLUTION.—For 
the purpose of this section, the term ‘joint resolu-
tion’ means only a joint resolution— 
‘‘(A) that is introduced between the date 
the written notification is received and 3 cal-
endar days after that date (or if the House of 
Representatives or Senate is not in session, the 
next calendar date in which it is in session); 
‘‘(B) which does not have a preamble; 
‘‘(C) the title of which is only as follows: 
‘Joint resolution relating to the disapproval of 
the President’s exercise of authority to suspend 
the debt limit, as submitted under section 
3101B(a) of title 31, United States Code, on 
llllll’ (with the blank containing the 
date of such submission); and 
‘‘(D) the matter after the resolving clause 
of which is only as follows: ‘That Congress dis-
approves of the President’s exercise of authority 
to suspend the debt limit, as exercised pursuant 
to the written notification under section 
3101B(a) of title 31, United States Code.’. 
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‘‘(c) EXPEDITED CONSIDERATION IN THE HOUSE OF 
REPRESENTATIVES.— 
‘‘(1) RECONVENING.—Upon receipt of a written 
notification described in subsection (a)(1), the 
Speaker of the House of Representatives, if the 
House of Representatives would otherwise be ad-
journed, shall notify the Members of the House of 
Representatives that, pursuant to this section, the 
House of Representatives shall convene not later 
than the second calendar day after receipt of such 
written notification. 
‘‘(2) REPORTING
AND
DISCHARGE.—A joint 
resolution introduced under paragraph (1) shall be 
referred to the Committee on Ways and Means of 
the House of Representatives and such committee 
shall report the joint resolution to the House of Rep-
resentatives without amendment not later than 5 
calendar days after the date on which the joint reso-
lution is introduced. If the Committee on Ways and 
Means fails to report the joint resolution within the 
5-day period, the Committee on Ways and Means 
shall be discharged from further consideration of the 
joint resolution and it shall be referred to the appro-
priate calendar. 
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‘‘(3) PROCEEDING TO CONSIDERATION.—Upon 
report or discharge from the Committee on Ways 
and Means of the House of Representatives, and not 
later than 6 days after the date on which the joint 
resolution is introduced under paragraph (1), it shall 
be in order to move to proceed to consider the joint 
resolution in the House of Representatives. All 
points of order against the motion are waived. Such 
a motion shall not be in order after the House of 
Representatives has disposed of a motion to proceed 
on a joint resolution addressing a particular submis-
sion. The previous question shall be considered as 
ordered on the motion to its adoption without inter-
vening motion. The motion shall not be debatable. A 
motion to reconsider the vote by which the motion 
is disposed of shall not be in order. 
‘‘(4) CONSIDERATION.—The joint resolution 
shall be considered as read. All points of order 
against the joint resolution and against its consider-
ation are waived. The previous question shall be con-
sidered as ordered on the joint resolution to its pas-
sage without intervening motion except two hours of 
debate equally divided and controlled by the pro-
ponent and an opponent. A motion to reconsider the 
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vote on passage of the joint resolution shall not be 
in order. 
‘‘(d) EXPEDITED PROCEDURE IN SENATE.— 
‘‘(1) RECONVENING.—Upon receipt of a written 
notification under subsection (a)(1), if the Senate 
has adjourned or recessed for more than 2 days, the 
majority leader of the Senate, after consultation 
with the minority leader of the Senate, shall notify 
the Members of the Senate that, pursuant to this 
section, the Senate shall convene not later than the 
second calendar day after receipt of such message. 
‘‘(2) PLACEMENT ON CALENDAR.—Upon intro-
duction in the Senate, the joint resolution shall be 
immediately placed on the calendar. 
‘‘(3) FLOOR CONSIDERATION.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding Rule 
XXII of the Standing Rules of the Senate, it is 
in order at any time during the period begin-
ning on the day after the date on which Con-
gress receives a written notification under sub-
section (a) and ending on the sixth day after 
the date on which Congress receives a written 
notification under subsection (a) (even though a 
previous motion to the same effect has been dis-
agreed to) to move to proceed to the consider-
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