[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2 Engrossed in House (EH)]
1st Session
H. R. 2
_______________________________________________________________________
AN ACT
To establish a procedure to safeguard the surpluses of the Social
Security and Medicare hospital insurance trust funds.
107th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 2
_______________________________________________________________________
AN ACT
To establish a procedure to safeguard the surpluses of the Social
Security and Medicare hospital insurance trust funds.
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 ``Social Security and Medicare Lock-
Box Act of 2001''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.
(a) Findings.--The Congress finds that--
(1) the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 and strong economic
growth have ended decades of deficit spending;
(2) the Government is able to meet its current obligations
without using the social security and medicare surpluses;
(3) fiscal pressures will mount as an aging population
increases the Government's obligations to provide retirement
income and health services;
(4) social security and medicare hospital insurance
surpluses should be used to reduce the debt held by the public
until legislation is enacted that reforms social security and
medicare;
(5) preserving the social security and medicare hospital
insurance surpluses would restore confidence in the long-term
financial integrity of social security and medicare; and
(6) strengthening the Government's fiscal position through
debt reduction would increase national savings, promote
economic growth, and reduce its interest payments.
(b) Purpose.--It is the purpose of this Act to--
(1) prevent the surpluses of the social security and
medicare hospital insurance trust funds from being used for any
purpose other than providing retirement and health security;
and
(2) use such surpluses to pay down the national debt until
such time as medicare and social security reform legislation is
enacted.
SEC. 3. PROTECTION OF SOCIAL SECURITY AND MEDICARE SURPLUSES.
(a) Protection of Social Security and Medicare Surpluses.--Title
III of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 is amended by adding at the
end the following new section:
``lock-box for social security and hospital insurance surpluses
``Sec. 316. (a) 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, or 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
subparagraph 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) the enactment of that bill or
resolution, as reported;
``(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.
``(b) Enforcement.--
``(1) Budgetary levels with respect to concurrent
resolutions on the budget.--For purposes of enforcing any point
of order under subsection (a)(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
subsection (a)(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.
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.--Outlays (or receipts)
for any fiscal year resulting from social security or
medicare reform legislation in excess of the amount of
outlays (or less than the amount of receipts) for that
fiscal year set forth in the most recently agreed to
concurrent resolution on the budget or the section
302(a) allocation for such legislation, as applicable,
shall not be taken into account for purposes of
enforcing any point of order under subsection (a)(2).
``(3) Disclosure of hi Surplus.--For purposes of enforcing
any point of order under subsection (a), 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.
``(c) 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 (b)(2)(A).
``(d) 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
316(a) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, 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 316(a) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, this
Act constitutes social security reform legislation.'.
``(e) Waiver and Appeal.--Subsection (a) may be waived or suspended
in the Senate only by an affirmative vote of three-fifths of the
Members, duly chosen and sworn. An affirmative vote of three-fifths of
the Members of the Senate, duly chosen and sworn, shall be required in
the Senate to sustain an appeal of the ruling of the Chair on a point
of order raised under this section.
``(f) 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) Conforming Amendment.--The item relating to section 316 in the
table of contents set forth in section 1(b) of the Congressional Budget
and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 is amended to read as follows:
``Sec. 316. Lock-box for social security and hospital insurance
surpluses.''.
SEC. 4. PRESIDENTS' BUDGET.
(a) Protection of Social Security and Medicare Surpluses.--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 a detailed proposal for social security reform
legislation or medicare reform legislation.
(b) Effective Date.--Subsection (a) shall cease to have any force
or effect upon the enactment of social security reform legislation and
medicare reform legislation as defined by section 316(d) of the
Congressional Budget Act of 1974.
Passed the House of Representatives February 13, 2001.
Attest:
Clerk.