[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.J. Res. 52 Introduced in House (IH)]







105th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. J. RES. 52

 Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States with 
          respect to tax limitations and the balanced budget.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           February 12, 1997

 Mr. Barton of Texas (for himself, Mr. Hall of Texas, Mr. Shadegg, Mr. 
Taylor of Mississippi, Mr. Saxton, Mr. Condit, Mr. Crane, Mr. Andrews, 
    Mr. Hunter, Mr. Goode, Mr. Aderholt, Mr. Armey, Mr. Bachus, Mr. 
 Ballenger, Mr. Barr of Georgia, Mr. Barrett of Nebraska, Mr. Bartlett 
of Maryland, Mr. Bass, Mr. Bilbray, Mr. Bliley, Mr. Blunt, Mr. Boehner, 
Mr. Bonilla, Mr. Bono, Mr. Brady, Mr. Bryant, Mr. Bunning, Mr. Burr of 
  North Carolina, Mr. Burton of Indiana, Mr. Callahan, Mr. Camp, Mr. 
Cannon, Mr. Chabot, Mr. Chambliss, Mrs. Chenoweth, Mr. Christensen, Mr. 
Coble, Mr. Coburn, Mr. Collins, Mr. Combest, Mr. Cook, Mr. Cooksey, Mr. 
 Cox of California, Mr. Crapo, Mrs. Cubin, Mr. Cunningham, Mr. Deal of 
    Georgia, Mr. DeLay, Mr. Doolittle, Mrs. Emerson, Mr. English of 
Pennsylvania, Mr. Ensign, Mr. Ewing, Mr. Foley, Mrs. Fowler, Mr. Fox of 
 Pennsylvania, Mr. Gibbons, Mr. Gingrich, Mr. Goodlatte, Mr. Goodling, 
   Mr. Goss, Mr. Graham, Ms. Granger, Mr. Greenwood, Mr. Hansen, Mr. 
   Hastert, Mr. Hayworth, Mr. Hefley, Mr. Herger, Mr. Hilleary, Mr. 
  Hoekstra, Mr. Horn, Mr. Hulshof, Mr. Inglis of South Carolina, Mr. 
 Istook, Mr. Sam Johnson of Texas, Mr. Jones, Mr. Kasich, Mrs. Kelly, 
   Mr. Kingston, Mr. Kolbe, Mr. LaHood, Mr. Largent, Mr. Latham, Mr. 
LaTourette, Mr. Lewis of California, Mr. Lewis of Kentucky, Mr. Linder, 
 Mr. LoBiondo, Mr. Lucas of Oklahoma, Mr. Manzullo, Mr. McCollum, Mr. 
 McCrery, Mr. McHugh, Mr. McIntosh, Mr. McKeon, Mr. Metcalf, Mr. Mica, 
 Mr. Miller of Florida, Ms. Molinari, Mr. Ney, Mr. Norwood, Mr. Oxley, 
Mr. Packard, Mr. Peterson of Pennsylvania, Mr. Pickering, Mr. Ramstad, 
   Mr. Riggs, Mr. Rogan, Mr. Rohrabacher, Mr. Royce, Mr. Salmon, Mr. 
 Sanford, Mr. Scarborough, Mr. Bob Schaffer of Colorado, Mr. Sessions, 
 Mr. Shimkus, Mr. Skeen, Mr. Smith of New Jersey, Mr. Smith of Texas, 
 Mrs. Smith of Washington, Mr. Smith of Michigan, Mr. Snowbarger, Mr. 
 Solomon, Mr. Souder, Mr. Stearns, Mr. Stump, Mr. Talent, Mr. Tauzin, 
Mr. Taylor of North Carolina, Mr. Thornberry, Mr. Tiahrt, Mr. Wamp, Mr. 
 Watkins, Mr. Watts of Oklahoma, Mr. Weldon of Florida, Mr. Weldon of 
Pennsylvania, Mr. Young of Alaska, Mr. Klug, and Mr Spence) introduced 
the following joint resolution; which was referred to the Committee on 
                             the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                            JOINT RESOLUTION


 
 Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States with 
          respect to tax limitations and the balanced budget.

    Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United 
States of America in Congress assembled (two-thirds of each House 
concurring therein), 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 Constitution when 
ratified by the legislatures of three-fourths of the several States 
within seven years after the date of its submission for ratification:

                              ``Article--

    ``Section 1. Prior to each fiscal year, the President shall 
transmit to Congress a proposed statement of receipts and outlays for 
such fiscal year in which outlays are not greater than receipts and 
Congress shall, by law, adopt a statement of receipts and outlays for 
such fiscal year in which outlays are not greater than receipts. 
Congress may, by law, amend that statement provided revised outlays are 
not greater than revised receipts. Congress may provide in that 
statement for a specific excess of outlays over receipts by a vote 
directed solely to that subject in which two-thirds of the whole number 
of each House agree to such excess. Congress and the President shall 
ensure that actual outlays do not exceed the outlays set forth in such 
statement.
    ``Section 2. The limit on the debt of the United States held by the 
public shall not be increased, unless two-thirds of the whole number of 
each House shall provide by law for such an increase by a rollcall 
vote.
    ``Section 3. Total receipts shall include all receipts of the 
United States except those derived from borrowing and total outlays 
shall include all outlays of the United States except those for the 
repayment of debt principal.
    ``Section 4. A bill to increase the internal revenue shall require 
for final adoption in each House the concurrence of two-thirds of the 
whole number of that House, unless that bill is determined at the time 
of adoption, in a reasonable manner prescribed by law, not to increase 
the internal revenue by more than a de minimis amount.
    ``Section 5. The Congress may waive the requirements of this 
article when a declaration of war is in effect. The Congress may also 
waive this article when the United States is engaged in military 
conflict which causes an imminent and serious 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 
increase in the internal revenue enacted under such a waiver shall be 
effective for not longer than two years.
    ``Section 6. Congress shall enforce and implement this article by 
appropriate legislation.
    ``Section 7. The provisions of this article respecting the internal 
revenue shall take effect upon the ratification of this article, and 
the remaining provisions of this article shall take effect for the 
fiscal year 2002 or for the second fiscal year beginning after its 
ratification, whichever is later.''.
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