I 
119TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 37 
Proposing a Federal debt limit amendment to the Constitution of the United 
States. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JANUARY 3, 2025 
Mr. YAKYM introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 
on the Judiciary 
A BILL 
Proposing a Federal debt limit amendment to the 
Constitution of the United States. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
That the following article is proposed as an amendment 
to the Constitution of the United States, which shall be 
valid to all intents and purposes as part of the Constitu-
tion when ratified by the legislatures of three-fourths of 
the several States within 7 years after the date of its sub-
mission for ratification: 
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‘‘ARTICLE — 
‘‘SECTION 1. Total amount of debt, including debt 
held by the public and intragovernmental debt, of the 
United States Government may not be greater than 130 
percent of the Gross Domestic Product of the United 
States during the first fiscal year this article is in effect. 
Each subsequent fiscal year the limitation in the previous 
sentence shall be reduced by 1 percent until such limita-
tion is equal to 120 percent, which shall then be the limita-
tion for purposes of this section for each subsequent fiscal 
year. 
‘‘SECTION 2. Total Federal debt, including debt held 
by the public and intragovernmental debt, may not exceed 
the levels prescribed under section 1 unless three-fifths of 
the whole number of each House of Congress shall provide 
by law for a specific excess of such debt for specified rea-
sons by a rollcall vote each fiscal year. 
‘‘SECTION 3. Prior to each fiscal year, the President 
shall transmit to the Congress a proposed budget for the 
United States Government for that fiscal year, and the 
subsequent 5-year period, in which total debt does not ex-
ceed the limit set forth in section 1. 
‘‘SECTION 4. The Congress may waive the provisions 
of this article in connection with defense spending for any 
fiscal year in which a declaration of war is in effect. The 
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provisions of this article may be waived for any fiscal year 
in which the United States is directly engaged in military 
conflict which causes an imminent and serious military 
threat to national security and is so declared by a joint 
resolution, adopted by a majority of the whole number of 
each House, which becomes law. Any such waiver must 
identify and be limited to the specific excess or increase 
for that fiscal year made necessary by the identified mili-
tary conflict. 
‘‘SECTION 5. The Congress shall implement and en-
force this article by appropriate legislation, which may rely 
on estimates of outlays and receipts. 
‘‘SECTION 6. For purposes of this article, Gross Do-
mestic Product shall be the sum of personal consumption 
expenditures, investment, government spending, and net 
exports, and shall be determined by the Bureau of Eco-
nomic Analysis or any successor agency. 
‘‘SECTION 7. This article shall take effect beginning 
with the third fiscal year beginning after its ratification.’’. 
Æ 
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