I 
112TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 2685 
To increase the statutory limit on the public debt by $750,000,000,000 
upon the adoption by Congress of a balanced budget constitutional 
amendment and by an additional $750,000,000,000 upon ratification 
by the States of that amendment. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JULY 28, 2011 
Mr. BROOKS (for himself and Mr. BACHUS) 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 
$750,000,000,000 upon the adoption by Congress of a 
balanced budget constitutional amendment and by an 
additional $750,000,000,000 upon ratification by the 
States of that amendment. 
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 ‘‘Restoring America’s 
Dignity Act of 2011’’. 
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(2) The limitations imposed by the amendment 
may be suspended by a majority of the membership 
of both houses of Congress, by rollcall vote, for any 
fiscal year in which the United States is in a war 
declared by Congress pursuant to article I, section 
8, or may be suspended by three-fourths of the 
membership of Congress, by rollcall vote, for any 
other fiscal year. 
(3) Any bill that increases net gross tax re-
ceipts of the United States by levying a new tax or 
revenue source, or increasing the rate of any existing 
tax or revenue source, or by amending the terms of 
one or more then-existing taxes or revenue sources, 
shall not become law unless approved by three-fifths 
of the membership of each House of Congress by a 
rollcall vote. 
(4) The Congress shall enforce and implement 
the amendment by appropriate legislation, which 
may rely on estimates of outlays and receipts. 
(5) In any fiscal year in which Congress does 
not suspend the amendment pursuant to its terms 
and the President determines that total budgeted 
outlays will exceed total receipts, the President shall 
take such steps as the President in his discretion 
deems are necessary to ensure total outlays for that 
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fiscal year do not exceed total receipts. Notwith-
standing the foregoing, the President may not order 
any increase in tax or other revenue to enforce the 
amendment. A President’s intentional noncompliance 
with this provision is an impeachable offense. 
(6) Any Member of Congress and any Governor 
or Attorney General of any State shall have standing 
and a cause of action to seek judicial enforcement of 
the amendment. No court of the United States or of 
any State may order any increase in tax or other 
revenue to enforce this article. 
(7)(A) The amendment shall be effective after 
ratification by the legislatures of three-fourths of the 
several States and shall be phased in beginning with 
the first fiscal year commencing six or more months 
after ratification. 
(B) Within three months after ratification, Con-
gress shall determine, or cause to be determined, the 
total outlays, the total receipts, and the resulting 
deficit of the United States for the fiscal year in 
which ratification occurred. 
(C) The first fiscal year deficit shall not exceed 
eighty percent of the deficit for the fiscal year in 
which ratification occurred. 
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(D) The second fiscal year deficit shall not ex-
ceed sixty percent of the deficit for the fiscal year 
in which ratification occurred. 
(E) The third fiscal year deficit shall not exceed 
forty percent of the deficit for the fiscal year in 
which ratification occurred. 
(F) The fourth fiscal year deficit shall not ex-
ceed twenty percent of the deficit for the fiscal year 
in which ratification occurred. 
(G) The fifth phase-in fiscal year deficit, and all 
years thereafter, shall have no deficit. 
Æ 
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