IB 
Union Calendar No. 255
108TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 3973
[Report No. 108–442] 
To amend part C of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control 
Act of 1985 to extend the discretionary spending limits and pay-as-
you-go through fiscal year 2009. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MARCH 16, 2004
Mr. NUSSLE introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on the Budget 
MARCH 19, 2004
Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole 
House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed 
[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 
[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on March 16, 2004] 
A BILL 
To amend part C of the Balanced Budget and Emergency 
Deficit Control Act of 1985 to extend the discretionary 
spending limits and pay-as-you-go through fiscal year 
2009.
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 ‘‘Spending Control Act 
of 2004’’. 
SEC. 2. EXTENSION OF DISCRETIONARY SPENDING LIMITS. 
(a) DISCRETIONARY SPENDING LIMITS.—(1) Section 
251(c)(2) of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit 
Control Act of 1985 is amended by inserting a dash after 
‘‘2005’’, by redesignating the remaining portion of such 
paragraph as subparagraph (B) and by moving it two ems 
to the right, and by inserting after the dash the following 
new subparagraph: 
‘‘(A) for the general purpose discretionary 
category: $llll in new budget authority 
and $llll in outlays; and’’. 
(2) Section 251(c)(3) of the Balanced Budget and 
Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 is amended by in-
serting a dash after ‘‘2006’’, by redesignating the remaining 
portion of such paragraph as subparagraph (B) and by 
moving it two ems to the right, and by inserting after the 
dash the following new subparagraph: 
‘‘(A) for the general purpose discretionary 
category: $llll in new budget authority 
and $llll in outlays; and’’. 
(3) Section 251(c) of the Balanced Budget and Emer-
gency Deficit Control Act of 1985 is amended by redesig-
nating paragraphs (4) through (9) as paragraphs (7)
through (12) and inserting after paragraph (3) the fol-
lowing new paragraphs: 
‘‘(4) with respect to fiscal year 2007 for the gen-
eral purpose discretionary category: $llll in 
new budget authority and $llll in outlays; 
‘‘(5) with respect to fiscal year 2008 for the gen-
eral purpose discretionary category: $llll in 
new budget authority and $llll in outlays; and 
‘‘(6) with respect to fiscal year 2009 for the gen-
eral purpose discretionary category: $llll in 
new budget authority and $llll in outlays;’’. 
(b) ADVANCE APPROPRIATIONS.—Section 251 of the 
Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 
1985 is amended by adding at the end the following new 
subsection: 
‘‘(d) ADVANCE APPROPRIATIONS.—In any of fiscal 
years 2005 through 2009, discretionary advance appropria-
tions provided in appropriation Acts in excess of 
$llll shall be counted against the discretionary 
spending limits for the fiscal year for which the appropria-
tion Act containing the advance appropriation is enacted.’’. 
SEC. 3. EXTENSION OF PAY-AS-YOU-GO REQUIREMENT. 
(a) PURPOSE.—Section 252(a) of the Balanced Budget 
and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 is amended to 
read as follows:
‘‘(a) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this section is to as-
sure that any legislation that is enacted before October 1, 
2009, that causes a net increase in direct spending will trig-
ger an offsetting sequestration.’’. 
(b) TIMING.—Section 252(b)(1) of the Balanced Budg-
et and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 is amended 
by striking ‘‘any net deficit increase’’ and all that follows 
through ‘‘2002,’’ and by inserting ‘‘any net increase in di-
rect spending enacted before October 1, 2009,’’. 
(c) CALCULATION OF DIRECT SPENDING INCREASE.—
Section 252(b)(2) of the Balanced Budget and Emergency 
Deficit Control Act of 1985 is amended—
(1) by striking ‘‘deficit’’ the first place it ap-
pears and inserting ‘‘direct spending’’; 
(2) in subparagraph (A) by striking ‘‘and re-
ceipts’’; 
(3) in subparagraph (C) by striking ‘‘and re-
ceipts’’; and 
(4) by amending the heading to read as follows: 
‘‘CALCULATION OF DIRECT SPENDING INCREASE.—’’. 
(d) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—(1) The heading of 
section 252(c) of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Def-
icit Control Act of 1985 is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘ELIMINATING A DIRECT SPENDING INCREASE.—’’.
(2) Paragraphs (1), (2), and (4) of section 252(d) of 
the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act 
of 1985 are amended by striking ‘‘or receipts’’ each place 
it appears. 
(3) Section 252(e) of the Balanced Budget and Emer-
gency Deficit Control Act of 1985 is amended by striking 
‘‘or receipts’’ and by striking ‘‘, outlays, and receipts’’ and 
inserting ‘‘and outlays’’. 
(4) Section 254(c)(3) of the Balanced Budget and 
Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 is amended—
(A) in subparagraph (A) by striking ‘‘net deficit 
increase or decrease’’ and by inserting ‘‘net increase 
or decrease in direct spending’’; 
(B) in subparagraph (B) by striking ‘‘amount of 
deficit increase or decrease’’ and by inserting ‘‘in-
crease or decrease in direct spending’’; and 
(C) in subparagraph (C) by striking ‘‘a deficit 
increase’’ and by inserting ‘‘an increase in direct 
spending’’. 
SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 250(c) of the Balanced 
Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 is 
amended by adding at the end the following new para-
graphs:
‘‘(20) The term ‘advance appropriation’ means 
appropriations that first become available one fiscal 
year or more beyond the fiscal year for which an ap-
propriation Act making such funds available is en-
acted. 
‘‘(21)(A) Except as provided by subparagraph 
(B), the term ‘emergency requirement’ means any 
provision that provides new budget authority and re-
sulting outlays for a situation that poses a threat to 
life, property, or national security and is—
‘‘(i) sudden, quickly coming into being, and 
not building up over time; 
‘‘(ii) an urgent, pressing, and compelling 
need requiring immediate action; 
‘‘(iii) subject to subparagraph (B), unfore-
seen, unpredictable, and unanticipated; and 
‘‘(iv) not permanent, temporary in nature. 
‘‘(B) An emergency that is part of an aggregate 
level of anticipated emergencies, particularly when 
normally estimated in advance, is not unforeseen.’’. 
(b) CONTINGENCY OPERATIONS RELATED TO GLOBAL 
WAR ON TERRORISM.—Section 251(b)(2) of the Balanced 
Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 is 
amended by adding at the end the following new subpara-
graph:
‘‘(I) CONTINGENCY
OPERATIONS
RELATED 
TO
GLOBAL
WAR
ON
TERRORISM.—If supple-
mental appropriations for discretionary accounts 
are enacted for contingency operations related to 
the global war on terrorism that, pursuant to 
this subparagraph, the President designates as a 
contingency operation related to the global war 
on terrorism and the Congress so designates in 
statute, the adjustment shall be the total of such 
appropriations in discretionary accounts so des-
ignated and the outlays flowing in all fiscal 
years from such appropriations.’’. 
(c) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The second sentence 
of section 250(c)(4)(A) of the Balanced Budget and Emer-
gency Deficit Control Act of 1985 is amended to read as 
follows: ‘‘The general purpose discretionary category shall 
consist of accounts designated in the joint explanatory 
statement of managers accompanying the conference report 
on the Spending Control Act of 2004.’’. 
SEC. 5. PROJECTIONS UNDER SECTION 257. 
Section 257(c) of the Balanced Budget and Emergency 
Deficit Control Act of 1985 is amended by inserting after 
paragraph (6) the following new paragraph: 
‘‘(7) EMERGENCIES.—New budgetary resources 
designated under section 251(b)(2)(A) or 251(b)(2)(I)
shall not be assumed beyond the fiscal year for which 
they have been enacted.’’. 
SEC. 6. EXCEPTION FOR OUTLAY COMPONENTS OF EXPIR-
ING RECEIPTS LEGISLATION. 
Section 252(d)(4) of the Balanced Budget and Emer-
gency Deficit Control Act of 1985 is amended by striking 
‘‘and’’ at the end of subparagraph (A), by striking the pe-
riod and inserting ‘‘; and’’ at the end of subparagraph (B), 
and by adding at the end the following new subparagraph: 
‘‘(C) extending provisions in the Economic 
Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 
2001 or provisions in sections 101 through 104, 
section 202, or sections 301 and 302 of the Jobs 
and Growth Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 
2003.’’. 
SEC. 7. REPORTS. 
Subsections (c)(2) and (f)(2)(A) of section 254 of the 
Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 
1985 are amended by striking ‘‘2002’’ and inserting 
‘‘2009’’. 
SEC. 8. EXPIRATION. 
Section 275(b) of the Balanced Budget and Emergency 
Deficit Control Act of 1985 is amended by striking ‘‘2002’’ 
and inserting ‘‘2009’’ and by striking ‘‘2006’’ and inserting 
‘‘2013’’.
SEC. 9. TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS TO THE BALANCED 
BUDGET AND EMERGENCY DEFICIT CONTROL 
ACT OF 1985. 
Part C of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit 
Control Act of 1985 is amended as follows: 
(1) In section 250(a), strike ‘‘SEC. 256. GEN-
ERAL 
AND 
SPECIAL 
SEQUESTRATION 
RULES’’ and insert ‘‘Sec. 256. General and special 
sequestration rules’’ in the item relating to section 
256. 
(2) In subparagraphs (F), (G), (H), (I), (J), and 
(K) of section 250(c)(4), insert ‘‘subparagraph’’ after 
‘‘described in’’ each place it appears. 
(3) In section 250(c)(18), insert ‘‘of’’ after ‘‘ex-
penses’’. 
(4) In section 251(b)(1)(A), strike ‘‘committees’’ 
the first place it appears and insert ‘‘Committees’’. 
(5) In section 251(b)(1)(C)(i), strike ‘‘fiscal 
years’’ and insert ‘‘fiscal year’’. 
(6) In section 251(b)(1)(D)(ii), strike ‘‘fiscal 
years’’ and insert ‘‘fiscal year’’. 
(7) In section 252(b)(2)(B), insert ‘‘the’’ before 
‘‘budget year’’. 
(8) In section 252(c)(1)(C)(i), strike ‘‘paragraph 
(1)’’ and insert ‘‘subsection (b)’’.
(9) In section 254(c)(3)(A), strike ‘‘subsection’’ 
and insert ‘‘section’’. 
(10) In section 254(f)(4), strike ‘‘subsection’’ and 
insert ‘‘section’’ and strike ‘‘sequesterable’’ and insert 
‘‘sequestrable’’. 
(11) In section 255(g)(1)(B), move the fourteenth 
undesignated clause 2 ems to the right. 
(12) In section 255(g)(2), insert ‘‘and’’ after the 
semicolon at the end of the next-to-last undesignated 
clause. 
(13) In section 255(h)—
(A) strike ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon in the 
ninth undesignated clause; 
(B) insert ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon at the 
end of the tenth undesignated clause; and 
(C) strike the semicolon at the end and in-
sert a period. 
(14) In section 256(k)(1), strike ‘‘paragraph (5)’’ 
and insert ‘‘paragraph (6)’’. 
(15) 
In 
section 
257(b)(2)(A)(i), 
strike 
‘‘differenes’’ and insert ‘‘differences’’.
Union Calendar No. 255
108TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 3973
[Report No. 108–442] 
A BILL 
To amend part C of the Balanced Budget and 
Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 to extend 
the discretionary spending limits and pay-as-you-
go through fiscal year 2009. 
MARCH 19, 2004
Reported with an amendment, committed to the Com-
mittee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, 
and ordered to be printed