I 
112TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 3494 
To restore faith and trust in the United States economy and financial system 
by reducing Federal spending, reducing the size of the Federal workforce, 
liquidating certain property and assets of the Federal Government, and 
for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
NOVEMBER 18, 2011 
Mr. HECK introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 
on Oversight and Government Reform, and in addition to the Committees 
on Appropriations, the Budget, and Natural Resources, for a period to 
be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consider-
ation of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee 
concerned 
A BILL 
To restore faith and trust in the United States economy 
and financial system by reducing Federal spending, re-
ducing the size of the Federal workforce, liquidating 
certain property and assets of the Federal Government, 
and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; FINDINGS. 
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 
‘‘Restoring America’s Faith and Trust Act’’. 
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(b) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 
(1) 
The 
Federal 
budget 
deficit 
has 
unsustainably been more than $1 trillion for each of 
fiscal years 2009, 2010, and 2011. 
(2) The credit rating of the debt of the United 
States has been downgraded from AAA to AA+ by 
Standard and Poor’s. 
(3) The United States needs to take necessary 
and immediate action to stabilize the debt burden of 
the Federal government. 
(4) Congress is obligated to enact policy that 
restores America’s faith and trust. 
SEC. 2. REDUCTION OF FEDERAL SPENDING. 
(a) RESCISSIONS.— 
(1) FISCAL YEAR 2012.—Of the discretionary 
budget authority provided for fiscal year 2012 in all 
appropriations Acts, 50 percent of the amount that 
exceeds the discretionary budget authority for fiscal 
year 2006 in all appropriations Acts is rescinded. 
(2) FISCAL YEAR 2013.—On October 1, 2012, of 
the discretionary budget authority provided for fiscal 
year 2013 in all appropriations Acts, any amount 
that exceeds the discretionary budget authority pro-
vided for fiscal year 2006 in all appropriations Acts 
is rescinded. 
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(3) FISCAL YEAR 2014.—On October 1, 2013, of 
the discretionary budget authority provided for fiscal 
year 2014 in all appropriations Acts, any amount 
that exceeds the discretionary budget authority pro-
vided for fiscal year 2006 in all appropriations Acts 
is rescinded. 
(b) SUBSEQUENT APPROPRIATION LAWS.—In the 
case of any fiscal year 2012, 2013, or 2014 appropriation 
Act enacted after the enactment of this section, any rescis-
sion required by subsections (a)(1), (a)(2), or (a)(3) shall 
take effect immediately after the enactment of such Act. 
(c) OMB REPORT.—Within 30 days after the enact-
ment of any fiscal year 2012, 2013, or 2014 appropria-
tions Act, the Director of the Office of Management and 
Budget shall submit to the Committees on Appropriations 
of the House of Representatives and the Senate a report 
specifying the account and amount of each rescission made 
pursuant to subsection (a). 
(d) LIMITATION ON SPENDING INCREASES.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—For any fiscal year begin-
ning after fiscal year 2013, the total new budget au-
thority provided for such fiscal year shall not in-
crease from the previous fiscal year level at a rate 
that is greater than the percentage by which the 
gross domestic product of the United States in-
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creases from such previous year. If there is no in-
crease in gross domestic product, the total new 
budget authority for a fiscal year shall not be higher 
than the previous fiscal year level. 
(2) MEASUREMENT OF GDP.—For purposes of 
applying paragraph (1) to a fiscal year, the Bureau 
of Economic Analysis of the Department of Com-
merce shall determine the gross domestic product 
before the start of the second quarter of the previous 
fiscal year. 
SEC. 
3. 
REDUCTION 
OF 
THE 
FEDERAL 
WORKFORCE 
THROUGH VOLUNTARY SEPARATION. 
(a) LIMITATION.—The President, through the Office 
of Management and Budget (in consultation with the Of-
fice of Personnel Management), shall take appropriate 
measures to ensure that the total number of Federal em-
ployees (as determined under subsection (b)) shall not ex-
ceed the total number of Federal employees as of October 
1, 2007 (as so determined). The reduction of employees 
from the civil service (as that term is defined in section 
2101 of title 5, United States Code) required under this 
subsection shall be achieved only through voluntary sepa-
ration of such an employee. Nothing in this section shall 
be construed to prevent an agency from separating an em-
ployee for any other permissible reason. 
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(b) MONITORING AND NOTIFICATION.—The Office of 
Management and Budget (in consultation with the Office 
of Personnel Management)— 
(1) shall continuously monitor all agencies and 
make a determination, as of 90 days after the date 
of enactment of this section, and the last day of 
each quarter of each fiscal year beginning thereafter, 
as to whether or not the total number of Federal 
employees exceeds the maximum number allowable 
under subsection (a); and 
(2) whenever a determination under paragraph 
(1) is made that the total number of Federal em-
ployees exceeds the maximum number allowable 
under subsection (a), shall provide written notice to 
that effect to the President and Congress within 14 
days after the last day of the quarter to which such 
determination relates. 
(c) COMPLIANCE.—Whenever the Office of Manage-
ment and Budget provides written notice under subsection 
(b)(2) that the total number of Federal employees exceeds 
the maximum number allowable under subsection (a), no 
agency may thereafter appoint any employee to fill any 
vacancy within such agency until the Office of Manage-
ment and Budget provides written notice to the President 
and Congress of a determination under subsection (b)(1) 
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that the total number of Federal employees no longer ex-
ceeds the maximum number allowable under subsection 
(a). Any notice under the preceding sentence shall be pro-
vided within 14 days after the last day of the quarter to 
which the determination relates. 
(d) WAIVER.— 
(1) EMERGENCIES.—This section may be 
waived upon a determination by the President 
that— 
(A) the existence of a state of war or other 
national security concern so requires; or 
(B) the existence of an extraordinary 
emergency threatening life, health, public safe-
ty, property, or the environment so requires. 
(2) AGENCY
EFFICIENCY
OR
CRITICAL
MIS-
SION.—This section may be waived, with respect to 
a particular position or category of positions in an 
agency, upon a determination by the President and 
Congress that the efficiency of the agency or the 
performance of a critical agency mission so requires. 
(e) COUNTING RULE.—For purposes of this section, 
any determination of the number of employees in an agen-
cy shall be expressed on a full-time equivalent basis. 
(f) LIMITATION ON PROCUREMENT OF SERVICE CON-
TRACTS.—The President, through the Office of Manage-
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ment and Budget (in consultation with the Office of Per-
sonnel Management), shall take appropriate measures to 
ensure that there is no increase in the procurement of 
service contracts by reason of the enactment of this sec-
tion, except— 
(1) in cases in which a cost comparison dem-
onstrates that such contracts would be to the finan-
cial advantage of the Government; 
(2) in the case of an extraordinary emergency 
threatening life, health, public safety, property, or 
the environment; or 
(3) in cases in which agency efficiency or the 
performance of a critical agency mission so requires. 
(g) REGULATIONS.—Any regulations necessary to 
carry out this section may be prescribed by the President 
or his designee. 
(h) DEFINITIONS.—For the purpose of this section— 
(1) the term ‘‘total number of Federal employ-
ees’’ means the total number of Federal employees 
in all agencies; 
(2) the term ‘‘Federal employee’’ means an em-
ployee as defined by section 2105 of title 5, United 
States Code; and 
(3) the term ‘‘agency’’ means an Executive 
agency as defined by section 105 of title 5, United 
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States Code, excluding the Government Account-
ability Office. 
SEC. 4. FEDERAL REAL PROPERTY DISPOSAL PROGRAM. 
(a) EXPEDITED DISPOSAL OF REAL PROPERTY.— 
The Administrator of General Services (in this section re-
ferred to as the ‘‘Administrator’’), in consultation with the 
Director of the Office of Management and Budget (in this 
section referred to as the ‘‘Director’’), shall conduct a pro-
gram, to be known as the ‘‘Federal Real Property Disposal 
Program’’, under which surplus real property may be dis-
posed of in accordance with this section. 
(b) SURPLUS PROPERTY DATABASE.—Not later than 
90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 
Administrator, in consultation with the Director, shall es-
tablish and maintain a database of all surplus real prop-
erty and make such database available to the public. 
(c) DISPOSAL.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall— 
(A) not later than September 30 of each 
year, submit to Congress a report on the total 
fair market value of all surplus real property 
for that fiscal year; 
(B) based on the report submitted pursu-
ant to subparagraph (A), dispose of 97% of 
such total fair market value of surplus real 
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property under the Federal Real Property Dis-
posal Program during the following fiscal year; 
and 
(C) make such property available for sale 
to State and local governments and to the pub-
lic, in accordance with paragraph (2). 
(2) EXPEDITED DISPOSAL REQUIREMENTS.— 
(A) EXPEDITED DISPOSAL OF REAL PROP-
ERTY DEFINED.—For purposes of the Federal 
Real Property Disposal Program, an ‘‘expedited 
disposal of real property’’ is a sale of surplus 
real property for cash that is conducted pursu-
ant to the requirements of section 545 of title 
40, United States Code. 
(B) 
FAIR
MARKET
VALUE
REQUIRE-
MENT.—Real property sold under the program 
must be sold at not less than the fair market 
value as determined by the Administrator in 
consultation with the head of the executive 
agency. Costs associated with disposal may not 
exceed the fair market value of the property un-
less the Administrator approves incurring such 
costs. 
(C) 
MONETARY
PROCEEDS
REQUIRE-
MENT.—Real property may be sold under the 
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