H. Con. Res. 84—33
Subtitle B—Sense of the Senate
SEC. 311. SENSE OF THE SENATE ON LONG TERM ENTITLEMENT
REFORMS, INCLUDING ACCURACY IN DETERMINING
CHANGES IN THE COST OF LIVING.
(a) FINDINGS.—
(1) ENTITLEMENT REFORMS.—The Senate finds that with
respect to long term entitlement reforms—
(A) entitlement spending continues to grow dramati-
cally as a percent of total Federal spending, rising from
fifty-six percent of the budget in 1987 to an estimated
seventy-three percent of the budget in 2007;
(B) this growth in mandatory spending poses a long-
term threat to the United States economy because it crowds
out spending for investments in education, infrastructure,
defense, law enforcement and other programs that enhance
economic growth;
(C) in 1994, the Bipartisan Commission on Entitlement
and Tax Reform concluded that if no changes are made
to current entitlement laws, all Federal revenues will be
spent on entitlement programs and interest on the debt
by the year 2012;
(D) the Congressional Budget Office has also recently
issued a report that found that pressure on the budget
from demographics and rising health care costs will
increase dramatically after 2002; and
(E) making significant entitlement changes will signifi-
cantly benefit the economy, and will forestall the need
for more drastic tax and spending decisions in future years.
(2) CPI.—The Senate finds that with respect to accuracy
in determining changes in the cost of living—
(A) the Final Report of the Senate Finance Committee’s
Advisory Commission to study the CPI has concluded that
the Consumer Price Index overstates the cost of living
in the United States by 1.1 percentage points;
(B) the overstatement of the cost of living by the
Consumer Price Index has been recognized by economists
since at least 1961, when a report noting the existence
of the overstatement was issued by a National Bureau
of Economic Research Committee, chaired by Professor
George J. Stigler;
(C) Congress and the President, through the indexing
of Federal tax brackets, Social Security benefits, and other
Federal program benefits, have undertaken to protect tax-
payers and beneficiaries of such programs from the erosion
of purchasing power due to inflation; and
(D) the overstatement of the cost of living increases
the deficit and undermines the equitable administration
of Federal benefits and tax policies.
(b) SENSE OF THE SENATE.—It is the sense of the Senate that
the provisions in this resolution assume that—
(1) Congress and the President should continue working
to enact structural entitlement reforms in the 1997 budget
agreement and in subsequent legislation;
(2) Congress and the President must find the most accurate
measure of the change in the cost of living in the United
H. Con. Res. 84—34
States, and should work in a bipartisan manner to implement
any changes that are necessary to achieve an accurate measure;
and
(3) Congress and the President must work to ensure that
the 1997 budget agreement not only keeps the unified budget
in balance after 2002, but that additional measures should
be taken to begin to achieve substantial surpluses which will
improve the economy and allow our nation to be ready for
the retirement of the baby boom generation in the year 2012.
SEC. 312. SENSE OF THE SENATE ON TACTICAL FIGHTER AIRCRAFT
PROGRAMS.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Senate finds that—
(1) the Department of Defense has proposed to modernize
the United States tactical fighter aircraft force through three
tactical fighter procurement programs, including the F/A–18
E/F aircraft program of the Navy, the F–22 aircraft program
of the Air Force, and the Joint Strike Fighter aircraft program
for the Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps;
(2) the General Accounting Office, the Congressional
Budget Office, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the
Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Technology,
and several Members of Congress have publicly stated that,
given the current Department of Defense budget for procure-
ment, the Department of Defense’s original plan to buy over
4,400 F/A–18 E/F aircraft, F–22 aircraft, and Joint Strike
Fighter aircraft at a total program cost in excess of
$350,000,000,000 was not affordable;
(3) the F/A–18 E/F, F–22, and the Joint Strike Fighter
tactical fighter programs will be competing for a limited amount
of procurement funding with numerous other aircraft acquisi-
tion programs, including the Comanche helicopter program,
the V–22 Osprey aircraft program, and the C–17 aircraft pro-
gram, as well as for the necessary replacement of other aging
aircraft such as the KC–135, the C–5A, the F–117, and the
EA–6B aircraft; and
(4) the 1997 Department of Defense Quadrennial Defense
Review has recommended reducing the F/A–18 E/F program
buy from 1,000 aircraft to 548, and reducing the F–22 program
buy from 438 to 339.
(b) SENSE OF THE SENATE.—It is the sense of the Senate that
the provisions of this resolution assume that, within 30 days, the
Department of Defense should transmit to Congress detailed
information pertaining to the implementation of this revised acquisi-
tion strategy so that the Congress can adequately evaluate the
extent to which the revised acquisition strategy is tenable and
affordable given the projected spending levels contained in this
budget resolution.
SEC. 313. SENSE OF THE SENATE REGARDING CHILDREN’S HEALTH
COVERAGE.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Senate finds that—
(1) of the estimated 10 million uninsured children in the
United States, over 1.3 million have at least one parent who
is self-employed and all other uninsured children are depend-
ents of persons who are employed by another, or unemployed;
H. Con. Res. 84—35
(2) these 1.3 million uninsured kids comprise approximately
22 percent of all children with self-employed parents, and they
are a significant 13 percent of all uninsured children;
(3) the remaining uninsured children are in families where
neither parent is self-employed and comprise 13 percent of
all children in families where neither parent is self-employed;
(4) children in families with a self-employed parent are
therefore more likely to be uninsured than children in families
where neither parent is self-employed; and
(5) the current disparity in the tax law reduces the
affordability of health insurance for the self-employed and their
families, hindering the ability of children to receive essential
primary and preventive care services.
(b) SENSE OF THE SENATE.—It is the sense of the Senate that
the provisions of this resolution assume that from resources avail-
able in this budget resolution, a portion should be set aside for
an immediate 100 percent deductibility of health insurance costs
for the self-employed. Full-deductibility of health expenses for the
self-employed would make health insurance more attractive and
affordable, resulting in more dependents being covered. The govern-
ment should not encourage parents to forgo private insurance for
a government-run program.
SEC. 314. SENSE OF THE SENATE ON A MEDICAID PER CAPITA CAP.
It is the sense of the Senate that in order to meet deficit
reduction targets in this resolution with respect to Medicaid—
(1) the per capita cap will not be used as a method for
meeting spending targets; and
(2) the per capita cap could represent a significant
structural change that might jeopardize the quality of care
for children, the disabled, and senior citizens.
SEC. 315. SENSE OF THE SENATE THAT ADDED SAVINGS GO TO DEFICIT
REDUCTION.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds that—
(1) balancing the budget will bring numerous economic
benefits for the United States economy and American workers
and families, including improved economic growth and lower
interest rates;
(2) the fiscal year 1998 budget resolution crafted pursuant
to an agreement reached between the Congress and the
Administration purports to achieve balance in the year 2002;
(3) the deficit estimates contained in this resolution may
not conform to the actual deficits in subsequent years, which
make it imperative that any additional savings are realized
be devoted to deficit reduction;
(4) the Senate’s ‘‘pay-as-you-go’’ point of order prohibits
crediting savings from updated economic or technical data as
an offset for legislation that increases the deficit, and ensures
these savings are devoted to deficit reduction; and
(5) Congress and the Administration must ensure that
the deficit levels contained in this budget are met and, if
actual deficits prove to be lower than projected, the additional
savings are used to balance the budget on or before the year
2002.
(b) SENSE OF THE SENATE.—It is the sense of the Senate that
the provisions of this resolution assume that—
H. Con. Res. 84—36
(1) legislation enacted pursuant to this resolution must
ensure that the goal of a balanced budget is achieved on or
before fiscal year 2002; and
(2) if the actual deficit is lower than the projected deficit
in any upcoming fiscal year, the added savings should be
devoted to further deficit reduction.
SEC. 316. SENSE OF THE SENATE ON FAIRNESS IN MEDICARE.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds that—
(1) the Trustees of the Medicare Trust Funds recently
announced that Medicare’s Hospital Insurance (HI) Trust Fund
is headed for bankruptcy in 2001, and in 1997, HI will run
a deficit of $26,000,000,000 and add $56,000,000,000 annually
to the Federal deficit by 2001;
(2) the Trustees also project that Supplementary Medical
Insurance (SMI), will grow twice as fast as the economy and
the taxpayers’ subsidy to keep the SMI from bankruptcy will
grow from $58,000,000,000 to $89,000,000,000 annually from
1997 through 2001;
(3) the Congressional Budget Office reports that when the
baby-boom generation begins to receive Social Security benefits
and is eligible for Medicare in 2008, the Federal budget will
face intense pressure, resulting in mounting deficits and erosion
of future economic growth;
(4) long-term solutions to address the financial and demo-
graphic problems of Medicare are urgently needed to preserve
and protect the Medicare Trust Funds;
(5) these solutions to address the financial and demographic
problems of Medicare are urgently needed to preserve and
protect the Medicare Trust Funds;
(6) reform of the Medicare Program should ensure equity
and 
fairness 
for 
all 
Medicare 
beneficiaries, 
and 
offer
beneficiaries more choice of private health plans, to promote
efficiency and enhance the quality of health care;
(7) all Americans pay the same payroll tax of 2.9 percent
to the Medicare Trust Funds, and they deserve the same choices
and services regardless of where they retire;
(8) however, under the currently adjusted-average-per-
capita cost (AAPCC), some counties receive 2.5 times more
in Medicare reimbursements than others;
(9) this inequity in Medicare reimbursement jeopardizes
the quality of Medicare services of rural beneficiaries and penal-
izes the most efficient and effective Medicare service providers;
(10) in some states, the result has been the absence of
health care choices beyond traditional, fee-for-service medicine
for Medicare beneficiaries, which in other counties and states
plan providers may be significantly over-compensated, adding
to Medicare’s fiscal instability; and
(11) ending the practice of basing payments to risk contract
plans on local fee-for-service medical costs will help correct
these inequities, mitigate unnecessary cost in the program,
and begin the serious, long-term restructuring of Medicare.
(b) SENSE OF THE SENATE.—It is the sense of the Senate that
the provisions of this resolution assume that the Finance Committee
should strongly consider the following elements for Medicare
reform—