[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5173 Engrossed in House (EH)]


  2d Session

                               H. R. 5173

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT

   To provide for reconciliation pursuant to sections 103(b)(2) and 
213(b)(2)(C) of the concurrent resolution on the budget for fiscal year 
 2001 to reduce the public debt and to decrease the statutory limit on 
                            the public debt.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
106th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 5173

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT


 
   To provide for reconciliation pursuant to sections 103(b)(2) and 
213(b)(2)(C) of the concurrent resolution on the budget for fiscal year 
 2001 to reduce the public debt and to decrease the statutory limit on 
                            the public debt.

    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 ``Debt Relief Lock-box Reconciliation 
Act for Fiscal Year 2001''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.

    (a) Findings.--The Congress finds that--
            (1) fiscal discipline, resulting from the Balanced Budget 
        Act of 1997, and strong economic growth have ended decades of 
        deficit spending and have produced budget surpluses without 
        using the social security surplus;
            (2) fiscal pressures will mount in the future as the aging 
        of the population increases budget obligations;
            (3) until Congress and the President agree to legislation 
        that saves social security and medicare, the social security 
        and medicare surpluses should be used to reduce the debt held 
        by the public;
            (4) until Congress and the President agree on significant 
        tax reductions, amounts dedicated for that purpose shall be 
        used to reduce the debt held by the public;
            (5) strengthening the Government's fiscal position through 
        public debt reduction increases national savings, promotes 
        economic growth, reduces interest costs, and is a constructive 
        way to prepare for the Government's future budget obligations; 
        and
            (6) it is fiscally responsible and in the long-term 
        national economic interest to use a portion of the nonsocial 
        security and nonmedicare surpluses to reduce the debt held by 
        the public.
    (b) Purpose.--It is the purpose of this Act to--
            (1) reduce the debt held by the public by $240,000,000,000 
        in fiscal year 2001 with the goal of eliminating this debt by 
        2012;
            (2) decrease the statutory limit on the public debt; and
            (3) ensure that the social security and hospital insurance 
        trust funds shall not be used for other purposes.

                    TITLE I--DEBT REDUCTION LOCK-BOX

SEC. 101. ESTABLISHMENT OF PUBLIC DEBT REDUCTION PAYMENT ACCOUNT.

    (a) In General.--Subchapter I of chapter 31 of title 31, United 
States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new section:
``Sec. 3114. Public debt reduction payment account
    ``(a) There is established in the Treasury of the United States an 
account to be known as the Public Debt Reduction Payment Account 
(hereinafter in this section referred to as the `account').
    ``(b) The Secretary of the Treasury shall use amounts in the 
account to pay at maturity, or to redeem or buy before maturity, any 
obligation of the Government held by the public and included in the 
public debt. Any obligation which is paid, redeemed, or bought with 
amounts from the account shall be canceled and retired and may not be 
reissued. Amounts deposited in the account are appropriated and may 
only be expended to carry out this section.
    ``(c) There is hereby appropriated into the account on October 1, 
2000, or the date of enactment of this Act, whichever is later, out of 
any money in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, $42,000,000,000 
for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2001. The funds appropriated 
to this account shall remain available until expended.
    ``(d) The appropriation made under subsection (c) shall not be 
considered direct spending for purposes of section 252 of Balanced 
Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985.
    ``(e) Establishment of and appropriations to the account shall not 
affect trust fund transfers that may be authorized under any other 
provision of law.
    ``(f) The Secretary of the Treasury and the Director of the Office 
of Management and Budget shall each take such actions as may be 
necessary to promptly carry out this section in accordance with sound 
debt management policies.
    ``(g) Reducing the debt pursuant to this section shall not 
interfere with the debt management policies or goals of the Secretary 
of the Treasury.''.
    (b) Conforming Amendment.--The chapter analysis for chapter 31 of 
title 31, United States Code, is amended by inserting after the item 
relating to section 3113 the following:

``3114. Public debt reduction payment account.''.

SEC. 102. REDUCTION OF STATUTORY LIMIT ON THE PUBLIC DEBT.

    Section 3101(b) of title 31, United States Code, is amended by 
inserting ``minus the amount appropriated into the Public Debt 
Reduction Payment Account pursuant to section 3114(c)'' after 
``$5,950,000,000,000''.

SEC. 103. OFF-BUDGET STATUS OF PUBLIC DEBT REDUCTION PAYMENT ACCOUNT.

    Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the receipts and 
disbursements of the Public Debt Reduction Payment Account established 
by section 3114 of title 31, United States Code, shall not be counted 
as new budget authority, outlays, receipts, or deficit or surplus for 
purposes of--
            (1) the budget of the United States Government as submitted 
        by the President,
            (2) the congressional budget, or
            (3) the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act 
        of 1985.

SEC. 104. REMOVING PUBLIC DEBT REDUCTION PAYMENT ACCOUNT FROM BUDGET 
              PRONOUNCEMENTS.

    (a) In General.--Any official statement issued by the Office of 
Management and Budget, the Congressional Budget Office, or any other 
agency or instrumentality of the Federal Government of surplus or 
deficit totals of the budget of the United States Government as 
submitted by the President or of the surplus or deficit totals of the 
congressional budget, and any description of, or reference to, such 
totals in any official publication or material issued by either of such 
Offices or any other such agency or instrumentality, shall exclude the 
outlays and receipts of the Public Debt Reduction Payment Account 
established by section 3114 of title 31, United States Code.
    (b) Separate Public Debt Reduction Payment Account Budget 
Documents.--The excluded outlays and receipts of the Public Debt 
Reduction Payment Account established by section 3114 of title 31, 
United States Code, shall be submitted in separate budget documents.

SEC. 105. REPORTS TO CONGRESS.

    (a) Reports of the Secretary of the Treasury.--(1) Within 30 days 
after the appropriation is deposited into the Public Debt Reduction 
Payment Account under section 3114 of title 31, United States Code, the 
Secretary of the Treasury shall submit a report to the Committee on 
Ways and Means of the House of Representatives and the Committee on 
Finance of the Senate confirming that such account has been established 
and the amount and date of such deposit. Such report shall also include 
a description of the Secretary's plan for using such money to reduce 
debt held by the public.
    (2) Not later than October 31, 2002, the Secretary of the Treasury 
shall submit a report to the Committee on Ways and Means of the House 
of Representatives and the Committee on Finance of the Senate setting 
forth the amount of money deposited into the Public Debt Reduction 
Payment Account, the amount of debt held by the public that was 
reduced, and a description of the actual debt instruments that were 
redeemed with such money.
    (b) Report of the Comptroller General of the United States.--Not 
later than November 15, 2002, the Comptroller General of the United 
States shall submit a report to the Committee on Ways and Means of the 
House of Representatives and the Committee on Finance of the Senate 
verifying all of the information set forth in the reports submitted 
under subsection (a).

            TITLE II--SOCIAL SECURITY AND MEDICARE LOCK-BOX

SEC. 201. PROTECTION OF SOCIAL SECURITY AND MEDICARE SURPLUSES.

    (a) Protection of Social Security and Medicare Surpluses.--Section 
201 of the concurrent resolution on the budget for fiscal year 2001 (H. 
Con. Res. 290, 106th Congress) is amended as follows:
            (1) In the section heading, by inserting ``and medicare'' 
        before ``surpluses''.
            (2)(A) In subsection (a)(2), by inserting ``and the 
        Hospital Insurance Trust Fund has been running a surplus for 
        the last 2 years'' after ``years''.
            (B) In subsection (a)(4), by inserting ``and the Hospital 
        Insurance Trust Fund surplus will be $32 billion'' after 
        ``billion''.
            (C) In subsection (a)(5), by striking ``the'' the second 
        place it appears, and by inserting ``and Hospital Insurance 
        Trust Fund'' before ``surpluses''.
            (D) In subsection (a)(6), by inserting ``and medicare'' 
        after ``security''.
            (E) In subsection (a)(7), by inserting ``and hospital 
        insurance'' after ``security''.
            (3) By striking subsection (c) and inserting the following 
        new subsection:
    ``(c) Lock-box for Social Security and Hospital Insurance 
Surpluses.--
            ``(1) Concurrent resolutions on the budget.--
                    ``(A) In general.--It shall not be in order in the 
                House of Representatives or the Senate to consider any 
                concurrent resolution on the budget, an amendment 
                thereto, or conference report thereon, that would set 
                forth a surplus for any fiscal year that is less than 
                the surplus of the Federal Hospital Insurance Trust 
                Fund for that fiscal year.
                    ``(B) Exception.--(i) Subparagraph (A) shall not 
                apply to the extent that a violation of such subsection 
                would result from an assumption in the resolution, 
                amendment, or conference report, as applicable, of an 
                increase in outlays or a decrease in revenue relative 
                to the baseline underlying that resolution for social 
                security reform legislation or medicare reform 
                legislation for any such fiscal year.
                    ``(ii) If a concurrent resolution on the budget or 
                an amendment thereto or conference report thereon would 
                be in violation of subparagraph (A) because of an 
                assumption of an increase in outlays or a decrease in 
                revenue relative to the baseline underlying that 
                resolution for social security reform legislation or 
                medicare reform legislation for any such fiscal year, 
                then that resolution shall include a statement 
                identifying any such increase in outlays or decrease in 
                revenue.
            ``(2) Spending and tax legislation.--
                    ``(A) In general.--It shall not be in order in the 
                House of Representatives or the Senate to consider any 
                bill, joint resolution, amendment, motion, or 
                conference report if--
                            ``(i)(I) in the House, the enactment of 
                        that bill or resolution as reported; or
                            ``(II) in the Senate, the enactment of that 
                        bill or resolution;
                            ``(ii) the adoption and enactment of that 
                        amendment; or
                            ``(iii) the enactment of that bill or 
                        resolution in the form recommended in that 
                        conference report,
                would cause the surplus for any fiscal year covered by 
                the most recently agreed to concurrent resolution on 
                the budget to be less than the surplus of the Federal 
                Hospital Insurance Trust Fund for that fiscal year.
                    ``(B) Exception.--Subparagraph (A) shall not apply 
                to social security reform legislation or medicare 
                reform legislation.''.
            (4) By redesignating subsections (e) and (f) as subsections 
        (h) and (i), respectively, and inserting after subsection (d) 
        the following new subsections:
    ``(e) Enforcement.--
            ``(1) Budgetary levels with respect to concurrent 
        resolutions on the budget.--For purposes of enforcing any point 
        of order under subsection (c)(1), the surplus for any fiscal 
        year shall be--
                    ``(A) the levels set forth in the later of the 
                concurrent resolution on the budget, as reported, or in 
                the conference report on the concurrent resolution on 
                the budget; and
                    ``(B) adjusted to the maximum extent allowable 
                under all procedures that allow budgetary aggregates to 
                be adjusted for legislation that would cause a decrease 
                in the surplus for any fiscal year covered by the 
                concurrent resolution on the budget (other than 
                procedures described in paragraph (2)(A)(ii)).
            ``(2) Current levels with respect to spending and tax 
        legislation.--
                    ``(A) In general.--For purposes of enforcing any 
                point of order under subsection (c)(2), the current 
                levels of the surplus for any fiscal year shall be--
                            ``(i) calculated using the following 
                        assumptions--
                                    ``(I) direct spending and revenue 
                                levels at the baseline levels 
                                underlying the most recently agreed to 
                                concurrent resolution on the budget; 
                                and
                                    ``(II) for the budget year, 
                                discretionary spending levels at 
                                current law levels and, for outyears, 
                                discretionary spending levels at the 
                                baseline levels underlying the most 
                                recently agreed to concurrent 
                                resolution on the budget; and
                            ``(ii) adjusted for changes in the surplus 
                        levels set forth in the most recently agreed to 
                        concurrent resolution on the budget pursuant to 
                        procedures in such resolution that authorize 
                        adjustments in budgetary aggregates for updated 
                        economic and technical assumptions in the mid-
                        session report of the Director of the 
                        Congressional Budget Office.
                    ``(iii) Such revisions shall be included in the 
                first current level report on the congressional budget 
                submitted for publication in the Congressional Record 
                after the release of such mid-session report.
                    ``(B) Budgetary Treatment.--For purposes of 
                enforcing any point of order under subsection (c)(2), 
                changes in outlays or receipts resulting from social 
                security reform legislation or medicare reform 
                legislation shall not be counted in calculating the 
                surplus for any fiscal year.
            ``(3) Disclosure of HI Surplus.--For purposes of enforcing 
        any point of order under subsection (c), the surplus of the 
        Federal Hospital Insurance Trust Fund for a fiscal year shall 
        be the levels set forth in the later of the report accompanying 
        the concurrent resolution on the budget (or, in the absence of 
        such a report, placed in the Congressional Record prior to the 
        consideration of such resolution) or in the joint explanatory 
        statement of managers accompanying such resolution.
    ``(f) Additional Content of Reports Accompanying Budget Resolutions 
and of Joint Explanatory Statements.--The report accompanying any 
concurrent resolution on the budget and the joint explanatory statement 
accompanying the conference report on each such resolution shall 
include the levels of the surplus in the budget for each fiscal year 
set forth in such resolution and of the surplus or deficit in the 
Federal Hospital Insurance Trust Fund, calculated using the assumptions 
set forth in subsection (e)(2)(A).
    ``(g) Definitions.--As used in this section:
            ``(1) The term `medicare reform legislation' means a bill 
        or a joint resolution to save Medicare that includes a 
        provision stating the following: `For purposes of section 
        201(c) of the concurrent resolution on the budget for fiscal 
        year 2001, this Act constitutes medicare reform legislation.
            ``(2) The term `social security reform legislation' means a 
        bill or a joint resolution to save social security that 
        includes a provision stating the following: `For purposes of 
        section 201(c) of the concurrent resolution on the budget for 
        fiscal year 2001, this Act constitutes social security reform 
        legislation.'.''.
            (5) In the first sentence of subsection (i) (as 
        redesignated), by striking ``(1)''.
            (6) At the end, by adding the following new subsection:
    ``(j)  Effective Date.--This section shall cease to have any force 
or effect upon the enactment of social security reform legislation and 
medicare reform legislation.''.
    (b) Protection of Social Security and Medicare Surpluses.--(1) If 
the budget of the United States Government submitted by the President 
under section 1105(a) of title 31, United States Code, recommends an 
on-budget surplus for any fiscal year that is less than the surplus of 
the Federal Hospital Insurance Trust Fund for that fiscal year, then it 
shall include proposed legislative language for social security reform 
legislation or medicare reform legislation.
    (2) Paragraph (1) shall cease to have any force or effect upon the 
enactment of social security reform legislation and medicare reform 
legislation as defined by section 201(g) of the concurrent resolution 
on the budget for fiscal year 2001 (H. Con. Res 290, 106th Congress).
    (c) Conforming Amendment.--The item relating to section 201 in the 
table of contents set forth in section 1(b) of the concurrent 
resolution on the budget for fiscal year 2001 (H. Con. Res 290, 106th 
Congress) is amended to read as follows:

``Sec. 201. Protection of social security and medicare surpluses.''.

SEC. 202. REMOVING SOCIAL SECURITY FROM BUDGET PRONOUNCEMENTS.

    (a) In General.--Any official statement issued by the Office of 
Management and Budget, the Congressional Budget Office, or any other 
agency or instrumentality of the Federal Government of surplus or 
deficit totals of the budget of the United States Government as 
submitted by the President or of the surplus or deficit totals of the 
congressional budget, and any description of, or reference to, such 
totals in any official publication or material issued by either of such 
Offices or any other such agency or instrumentality, shall exclude the 
outlays and receipts of the old-age, survivors, and disability 
insurance program under title II of the Social Security Act (including 
the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund and the Federal 
Disability Insurance Trust Fund) and the related provisions of the 
Internal Revenue Code of 1986.
    (b) Separate Social Security Budget Documents.--The excluded 
outlays and receipts of the old-age, survivors, and disability 
insurance program under title II of the Social Security Act shall be 
submitted in separate Social Security budget documents.

            Passed the House of Representatives September 18, 2000.

            Attest:

                                                                 Clerk.