RAFT Act of 2021
Bill: H.R.915 | Sponsor: Rep. Burchett, Tim (R-TN)
Policy area: Economics and Public Finance

Summary:
Reforming America's Fiscal Toolkit Act of 2021 or the RAFT Act of 2021
This bill modifies the federal budget process to provide for the establishment of a target for the ratio of the public debt to the estimated gross domestic product (GDP).
Specifically, the bill requires congressional budget resolutions to include a recommended ratio of public debt to GDP. In addition, congressional budget resolutions for even-numbered fiscal years must either (1) instruct one or more congressional committees to recommend changes in existing laws necessary to achieve the target ratio, or (2) request the establishment of a Joint Select Committee on Fiscal Responsibility to make the recommendations.
The bill also sets forth requirements for (1) establishing the Joint Select Committee on Fiscal Responsibility if it is requested, and (2) considering the recommendations of the joint committee or other congressional committees using expedited legislative procedures in the Senate.

To amend the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to provide for procedures 
 to meet a target ratio of public debt to gross domestic product, and 
                          for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Reforming America's Fiscal Toolkit 
Act of 2021'' or the ``RAFT Act of 2021''.

SEC. 2. RATIO OF PUBLIC DEBT TO GDP INCLUDED IN CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 
              ON THE BUDGET.

    (a) In General.--Section 301(a) of the Congressional Budget Act of 
1974 is amended by striking ``and'' at the end of paragraph (6), by 
striking the period and inserting ``; and'' at the end of paragraph 
(7), and by adding after paragraph (7) the following:
            ``(8) the recommended ratio of the public debt to the 
        estimated gross domestic product.''.
    (b) Definition of Gross Domestic Product.--Section 3 of the 
Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 is amended by 
adding at the end the following new paragraph:
            ``(12) The term `gross domestic product' means the gross 
        domestic product of the United States, as determined by the 
        Bureau of Economic Analysis of the Department of Commerce.''.

SEC. 3. INSTRUCTIONS TO COMMITTEES ON MEETING TARGET RATIO OF PUBLIC 
              DEBT TO GDP INCLUDED IN CONCURRENT RESOLUTION ON THE 
              BUDGET.

    (a) In General.--Title III of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 
is amended by adding at the end the following:

  ``instructions for ratio of the public debt to the estimated gross 
                            domestic product

    ``Sec. 316.  (a) In General.--A concurrent resolution on the budget 
for an even-numbered fiscal year shall either--
    ``(1) include instructions to one or more committees to determine 
and recommend changes in existing law necessary to achieve the ratio of 
the public debt to the estimated gross domestic product as set forth in 
that resolution; or
    ``(2) request that the Speaker and the minority leader of the House 
of Representatives and majority and minority leaders of the Senate 
publish a statement in the Congressional Record establishing the Joint 
Select Committee on Fiscal Responsibility under section 317.
    ``(b) Compliance.--The committee or committees (as the case may be) 
receiving instructions as described in subsection (a) shall be deemed 
to have complied with the required net reduction in the public debt set 
forth in such instructions, as required by subsection (a), if--
            ``(1) the amount of changes are not less than 80 percent of 
        the total amount of changes assigned to the committee or 
        committees (as the case may be) in such instructions necessary 
        to achieve the reduction in the debt; and
            ``(2) the chair of the Committees on the Budget of the 
        House of Representatives or the Senate, as applicable, submits 
        a statement to the Congressional Record certifying that 
        paragraph (1) has been complied with.
    ``(c) Failure To Comply.--The Committee on the Budget of the House 
of Representatives or the Senate shall recommend changes in existing 
law necessary to achieve changes specified by directives described in 
subsection (a) contained in a concurrent resolution on the budget if a 
minority of the committees so instructed fail to submit recommended 
changes to its Committee on the Budget pursuant to its instruction.
    ``(d) CBO Estimates.--The Congressional Budget Office shall provide 
estimates of the legislative text considered under this section in 
accordance with sections 308(a) and 201(f).
    ``(e) Legislative Procedure.--If a concurrent resolution containing 
directives to one or more committees to determine and recommend changes 
in laws, bills, or resolutions is agreed to in accordance with 
subsection (a), and--
            ``(1) only one committee of the House or the Senate is 
        directed to determine and recommend changes, that committee 
        shall promptly make such determination and recommendations and 
        report to its House legislation containing such 
        recommendations; or
            ``(2) more than one committee of the House or the Senate is 
        directed to determine and recommend changes, each such 
        committee so directed shall promptly make such determination 
        and recommendations and submit such recommendations to the 
        Committee on the Budget of its House, which upon receiving all 
        such recommendations, shall report to its House legislation 
        carrying out all such recommendations.
    ``(f) Expedited Consideration in the Senate.--
            ``(1) Motion to proceed.--Notwithstanding Rule XXII of the 
        Standing Rules of the Senate, it is in order, not later than 3 
        days of session after the date on which a bill is reported 
        pursuant to subsection (e) from all committees to which it was 
        referred, for the majority leader of the Senate or the majority 
        leader's designee to move to proceed to the consideration of 
        the bill. It shall also be in order for any Member of the 
        Senate to move to proceed to the consideration of the bill at 
        any time after the conclusion of such 2-day period. A motion to 
        proceed is in order even though a previous motion to the same 
        effect has been disagreed to. All points of order against the 
        motion to proceed to the bill are waived. The motion to proceed 
        is not debatable. The motion is not subject to a motion to 
        postpone. A motion to reconsider the vote by which the motion 
        is agreed to or disagreed to shall not be in order. If a motion 
        to proceed to the consideration of the bill is agreed to, the 
        bill shall remain the unfinished business until disposed of.
            ``(2) Consideration.--All points of order against the bill 
        and against consideration of the bill are waived. Consideration 
        of the bill and of all debatable motions and appeals in 
        connection therewith shall not exceed a total of 20 hours which 
        shall be divided equally between the majority and minority 
        leaders or their designees. A motion further to limit debate on 
        the bill is in order, shall require an affirmative vote of 
        three-fifths of the Members duly chosen and sworn, and is not 
        debatable. Any debatable motion or appeal is debatable for not 
        to exceed 1 hour, to be divided equally between those favoring 
        and those opposing the motion or appeal. All time used for 
        consideration of the bill, including time used for quorum calls 
        and voting, shall be counted against the total 20 hours of 
        consideration.
            ``(3) Amendments.--It shall not be in order in the Senate 
        to offer any amendments.
            ``(4) Vote on passage.--Passage of the bill shall require 
        an affirmative vote of a simple majority of the Members, duly 
        chosen and sworn.
            ``(5) Rulings of the chair on procedure.--Appeals from the 
        decisions of the Chair relating to the application of the rules 
        of the Senate, as the case may be, to the procedure relating to 
        a bill shall be decided without debate.
    ``(g) Consideration by the Senate.--
            ``(1) In general.--If, before passing the bill under this 
        section, the Senate receives from the House of Representatives 
        a bill--
                    ``(A) the bill of the House shall not be referred 
                to a committee of jurisdiction; and
                    ``(B) the procedure in the Senate shall be the same 
                as if no bill had been received from the House until 
                the vote on passage, when the bill received from the 
                House shall supplant the bill of the Senate.
            ``(2) Rules to coordinate action.--
                    ``(A) Treatment of bill.--If the Senate fails to 
                introduce or consider a bill under this section, the 
                bill of the House of Representatives shall be entitled 
                to expedited floor procedures.
                    ``(B) Vetoes.--If the President vetoes the bill, 
                debate on a veto message in the Senate under this 
                section shall be 1 hour equally divided between the 
                majority and minority leaders or their designees.

           ``joint select committee on fiscal responsibility

    ``Sec. 317.  (a) Establishment.--If by the earlier of the date that 
a statement is published under section 316(a)(2) or the date that is 
the last day of the first session of any Congress (beginning with the 
One Hundred Seventeenth Congress) a bill is not enacted into law 
pursuant to section 316, there is established a joint committee of 
Congress to be known as the `Joint Select Committee on Fiscal 
Responsibility'.
    ``(b) Definitions.--In this section:
            ``(1) Joint committee.--The term `joint committee' means 
        the Joint Select Committee on Fiscal Responsibility established 
        under subsection (a).
            ``(2) Joint committee bill.--The term `joint committee 
        bill' means a bill consisting of the legislative text of the 
        joint committee recommended under subsection (d)(1)(B).
    ``(c) Duties; Compliance; Recommendations.--
            ``(1) Duties.--The duty of the joint committee shall be to 
        recommend changes in existing law to achieve the ratio of the 
        public debt to the estimated gross domestic product in the most 
        recently adopted concurrent resolution on the budget.
            ``(2) Compliance.--The joint committee shall be deemed to 
        have complied with the required net reduction in the public 
        debt set forth in the instructions in the most recently adopted 
        concurrent resolution on the budget, as required by section 316 
        of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 (as added by section 
        301(b)(1))--
                    ``(A) if the amount of changes are not less than 80 
                percent of the total amount of changes necessary to 
                achieve the reduction in the debt; and
                    ``(B) the chairs of the Committees on the Budget of 
                the House of Representatives and the Senate jointly 
                submit a statement to the Congressional Record 
                certifying that subparagraph (A) has been complied 
                with.
    ``(d) Report, Recommendations, and Legislative Text.--
            ``(1) In general.--By April 30 of an odd-numbered year, the 
        joint committee shall vote on--
                    ``(A) a report that contains a detailed statement 
                of the findings, conclusions, and recommendations of 
                the joint committee and an estimate of the 
                Congressional Budget Office pursuant to paragraph (6); 
                and
                    ``(B) legislative text to carry out such 
                recommendations as described in the duties set forth in 
                subsection (c)(1).
            ``(2) Approval.--The report of the joint committee and the 
        legislative text described in paragraph (1) shall only be 
        approved upon receiving the votes of--
                    ``(A) a majority of joint committee members 
                appointed by the Speaker of the House of 
                Representatives and the leader of the Senate of the 
                same political party as the Speaker; and
                    ``(B) a majority of joint committee members 
                appointed by the minority leader of the House of 
                Representatives and the leader of the Senate of the 
                same political party as the minority leader of the 
                House of Representatives.
            ``(3) Additional views.--A member of the joint committee 
        who gives notice of an intention to file supplemental, 
        minority, or additional views at the time of the final joint 
        committee vote on the approval of the report and legislative 
        language under paragraph (2) shall be entitled to 2 calendar 
        days after the day of such notice in which to file such views 
        in writing with the co-chairs. Such views shall then be 
        included in the joint committee report and printed in the same 
        volume, or part thereof, and their inclusion shall be noted on 
        the cover of the report. In the absence of timely notice, the 
        joint committee report may be printed and transmitted 
        immediately without such views.
            ``(4) Transmission of report and legislative text.--If the 
        report and legislative text are approved by the joint committee 
        pursuant to paragraph (2), then not later than 10 days after 
        the date of such approval, the joint committee shall submit its 
        report and legislative text described in paragraph (1) to the 
        Speaker of the House of Representatives and the majority and 
        minority leaders of each House of Congress.
            ``(5) Report and legislative language to be made public.--
        Upon the approval or disapproval of the joint committee report 
        and legislative text pursuant to paragraph (2), the joint 
        committee shall promptly make the full report and legislative 
        text, and a record of the vote, available to the public.
            ``(6) CBO estimates.--The Congressional Budget Office shall 
        provide estimates of the legislative text considered under 
        paragraph (1) in accordance with sections 308(a) and 201(f).
            ``(7) Legislative procedure.--The procedures under section 
        316 shall apply to any legislative text submitted under 
        paragraph (1), except that subsection (f)(4) of such section 
        shall be applied by substituting `three-fifths' for `a simple 
        majority'.
    ``(e) Membership.--
            ``(1) In general.--The joint committee shall be composed of 
        16 members appointed pursuant to paragraph (2).
            ``(2) Appointment.--Members of the joint committee shall be 
        as follows:
                    ``(A) Four members from among Members of the 
                Senate, of which one shall be a member of the Committee 
                on Finance and one shall be a member of the Committee 
                on the Budget, appointed by the majority leader of the 
                Senate.
                    ``(B) Four members from among Members of the 
                Senate, of which one shall be a member of the Committee 
                on Finance and one shall be a member of the Committee 
                on the Budget, appointed by the minority leader of the 
                Senate.
                    ``(C) Four members from among Members of the House 
                of Representatives, of which one shall be a member of 
                the Committee on Ways and Means and one shall be a 
                member of the Committee on the Budget, appointed by the 
                Speaker of the House of Representatives.
                    ``(D) Four members from among Members of the House 
                of Representatives, of which one shall be a member of 
                the Committee on Ways and Means and one shall be a 
                member of the Committee on the Budget, appointed by the 
                Speaker of the House of Representatives after 
                consultation with the minority leader of the House of 
                Representatives.
            ``(3) Deadline.--Members of the joint committee shall be 
        appointed not later than 15 calendar days after the date of the 
        establishment of the joint committee under this section. Any 
        vacancy occurring in the membership of the joint committee 
        shall be filled in the same manner in which the original 
        appointment was made.
            ``(4) Co-chairs.--Two of the appointed members of the joint 
        committee will serve as co-chairs, one of which shall be a 
        member of the House of Representatives and one of which shall 
        be a member of the Senate. One co-chair shall be appointed by 
        the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the leader in 
        the Senate of the same political party as the Speaker. The 
        other co-chair shall be appointed by the minority leader of the 
        House of Representatives and the leader in the Senate of the 
        same political party as the minority leader of the House. The 
        co-chairs shall be appointed not later than 14 calendar days 
        after the members of the joint committee are appointed under 
        this subsection.
            ``(5) Vacancies.--Any vacancy in the joint committee shall 
        not affect its powers, but shall be filled not later than 14 
        calendar days after the date on which the vacancy occurs, in 
        the same manner as the original appointment was made. If a 
        member of the joint committee ceases to be a Member of the 
        House of Representatives or the Senate, as the case may be, the 
        member is no longer a member of the joint committee and a 
        vacancy shall exist.
    ``(f) Hearings and Meetings.--
            ``(1) In general.--The joint committee may, for the purpose 
        of carrying out this section, hold such hearings and meetings, 
        sit and act at such times and places, require attendance of 
        witnesses and production of books, papers, and documents, take 
        such testimony, receive such evidence, and administer such 
        oaths as the joint committee considers advisable.
            ``(2) Hearing and meeting procedures and responsibilities 
        of co-chairs.--
                    ``(A) Hearings.--The co-chairs of the joint 
                committee shall make a public announcement of the date, 
                place, time, and subject matter of any hearing to be 
                conducted, not less than 7 days in advance of such 
                hearing, unless the co-chairs determine that there is 
                good cause to begin such hearing at an earlier date.
                            ``(i) Equal representation of witnesses.--
                        Each co-chair shall be entitled to select an 
                        equal number of witnesses for each hearing held 
                        by the joint committee.
                            ``(ii) Written statement.--A witness 
                        appearing before the joint committee shall file 
                        a written statement of proposed testimony at 
                        least 2 calendar days before the appearance of 
                        the witness, unless the requirement is waived 
                        by the co-chairs, following their determination 
                        that there is good cause for failure to comply 
                        with such requirement.
                    ``(B) Meetings.--The co-chairs of the joint 
                committee shall make a public announcement of the date, 
                place, and time of any public meeting to be held, not 
                less than 48 hours in advance of that meeting.
            ``(3) Member involvement.--If the co-chairs are unable to 
        agree on a date, place, time, or subject matter with respect to 
        a hearing or meeting, a majority of the members of the joint 
        committee may decide (in writing) such issue and notify all 
        such members of the decision.
    ``(g) Technical Assistance.--Upon written request of the co-chairs, 
a Federal agency, including legislative branch agencies, shall provide 
technical assistance to the joint committee in order for the joint 
committee to carry out its duties.
    ``(h) Staffing.--To enable the joint committee to carry out the 
purposes of this section, the joint committee shall use the services of 
existing staff of the House of Representatives and the Senate.
    ``(i) Expenses.--Expenses of the joint committee shall be paid 
from--
            ``(1) the applicable accounts of the House of 
        Representatives upon vouchers signed by the co-chair of the 
        joint committee who is appointed by the Speaker; and
            ``(2) the contingent fund of the Senate from the 
        appropriations account `Miscellaneous Items', subject to the 
        rules and regulations of the Senate.
    ``(j) Termination.--The joint committee shall cease to exist 30 
days after legislative text is submitted under subsection (d)(1).''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of contents set forth in section 
1(b) of the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 (2 
U.S.C. 621 note) is amended by inserting after the item relating to 
section 315 the following new items:

``316. Instructions for ratio of the public debt to the estimated gross 
                            domestic product.
``317. Joint Select Committee on Fiscal Responsibility.''.
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