Administrative Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2021
Bill: S.1482 | Sponsor: Sen. Braun, Mike (R-IN)
Policy area: Government Operations and Politics

Summary:
Administrative Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2021
This bill provides statutory authority for the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) requirement that federal agencies must submit at least one proposal for reducing direct spending before taking a discretionary administrative action that increases direct spending. Further, an agency must submit to the OMB its legal basis for concluding that a proposed administrative action is nondiscretionary and, therefore, not subject to this requirement.

To increase Government accountability for administrative actions by 
              reinvigorating administrative Pay-As-You-Go.

    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 ``Administrative Pay-As-You-Go Act of 
2021''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act--
            (1) the term ``administrative action'' includes the 
        issuance of a rule, demonstration, program notice, or guidance 
        by an agency;
            (2) the term ``agency''--
                    (A) means--
                            (i) an ``Executive agency'', as defined 
                        under section 105 of title 5, United States 
                        Code; or
                            (ii) a ``military department'', as defined 
                        under section 102 of title 5, United States 
                        Code; and
                    (B) does not include the Government Accountability 
                Office;
            (3) the term ``covered discretionary administrative 
        action'' means a discretionary administrative action that would 
        effect direct spending;
            (4) the term ``direct spending'' has the meaning given that 
        term in section 250(c) of the Balanced Budget and Emergency 
        Deficit Control Act of 1985 (2 U.S.C. 900(c));
            (5) the term ``Director'' means the Director of the Office 
        of Management and Budget;
            (6) the term ``discretionary administrative action''--
                    (A) means any administrative action that is not 
                required by statute; and
                    (B) includes an administrative action required by 
                statute for which an agency has discretion in the 
                manner in which to implement the administrative action; 
                and
            (7) the term ``increase direct spending'' means that the 
        amount of direct spending would increase relative to--
                    (A) the most recently submitted projection of the 
                amount of direct spending under current law under--
                            (i) the budget of the President submitted 
                        under section 1105 of title 31, United States 
                        Code; or
                            (ii) the supplemental summary of the budget 
                        submitted under section 1106, of title 31, 
                        United States Code;
                    (B) with respect to a discretionary administrative 
                action that is incorporated into the applicable 
                projection described in subparagraph (A) and for which 
                a proposal has not been submitted under section 
                4(a)(2)(A), a projection of the amount of direct 
                spending if no administrative action were taken; or
                    (C) with respect to a discretionary administrative 
                action described in paragraph (6)(B), a projection of 
                the amount of direct spending under the least costly 
                implementation option that meets the requirements under 
                the statute.

SEC. 3. FINDINGS; PURPOSES.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
            (1) In May 2005, the Office of Management and Budget 
        implemented a budget-neutrality requirement for executive 
        branch administrative actions affecting direct spending.
            (2) This mechanism, commonly referred to as 
        ``Administrative Pay-As-You-Go'', requires each agency to 
        include 1 or more proposals for reducing direct spending 
        whenever an agency proposes to undertake a discretionary 
        administrative action that would increase direct spending.
            (3) In practice, however, agencies have applied this 
        requirement with varying degrees of stringency, sometimes 
        resulting in higher direct spending.
    (b) Purposes.--The purposes of this Act are to--
            (1) institutionalize and reinvigorate Administrative Pay-
        As-You-Go to keep direct spending under control;
            (2) control Federal spending and restore the Nation's 
        fiscal security; and
            (3) ensure that agencies consider the costs of their 
        administrative actions, take steps to offset those costs, and 
        curtail costly administrative actions.

SEC. 4. REQUIREMENTS FOR ADMINISTRATIVE ACTIONS THAT EFFECT DIRECT 
              SPENDING.

    (a) Discretionary Administrative Actions.--
            (1) In general.--Before an agency may undertake any covered 
        discretionary administrative action, the head of the agency 
        shall submit to the Director for review written notice 
        regarding the proposed covered discretionary administrative 
        action, which shall include an estimate of the budgetary 
        effects of the proposed covered discretionary administrative 
        action.
            (2) Increasing direct spending.--
                    (A) In general.--If an agency proposes to take a 
                covered discretionary administrative action that would 
                increase direct spending, the written notice submitted 
                by the head of the agency under paragraph (1) shall 
                include a proposal to undertake 1 or more other 
                administrative actions that would provide a reduction 
                in direct spending comparable to the increase in direct 
                spending attributable to the covered discretionary 
                administrative action.
                    (B) Review.--
                            (i) In general.--The Director shall have 
                        the discretion to determine whether the 
                        reduction in direct spending proposed by an 
                        agency under subparagraph (A) is comparable to 
                        the increase in direct spending attributable to 
                        the covered discretionary administrative action 
                        to which the proposal relates, taking into 
                        account the magnitude of the reduction and the 
                        increase and any other factors the Director 
                        determines appropriate.
                            (ii) No offset.--If the written notice 
                        regarding a proposed covered discretionary 
                        administrative action that would increase 
                        direct spending does not include a proposal to 
                        offset the increased direct spending, the 
                        Director shall return the proposal to the 
                        agency for resubmission in accordance with this 
                        Act.
    (b) Nondiscretionary Actions.--If an agency determines that a 
proposed administrative action that would increase direct spending is 
required by statute and therefore is not a covered discretionary 
administrative action, before the agency takes further action with 
respect to the proposed administrative action, the head of the agency 
shall--
            (1) submit to the Director a written opinion by the general 
        counsel of the agency, or the equivalent employee of the 
        agency, explaining that legal conclusion; and
            (2) consult with the Director regarding implementation of 
        the proposed administrative action.
    (c) Projections.--Any projection for purposes of this Act shall be 
conducted in accordance with Office of Management and Budget Circular 
A-11, or any successor thereto.

SEC. 5. ISSUANCE OF ADMINISTRATIVE GUIDANCE.

     Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act, 
the Director shall issue instructions regarding the implementation of 
this Act, including how proposed covered discretionary administrative 
actions that increase direct spending and non-tax receipts will be 
evaluated.

SEC. 6. WAIVER.

     The Director may waive the requirements of section 4 if the 
Director concludes that the waiver is necessary--
            (1) for the delivery of essential services;
            (2) for effective program delivery; or
            (3) because a waiver is otherwise warranted by the public 
        interest.
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