[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2372 Introduced in Senate (IS)]








109th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2372

 To amend the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 
    to provide for the expedited consideration of certain proposed 
 cancellations of appropriations, new direct spending, and limited tax 
                               benefits.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 6, 2006

   Mr. Kerry introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
                referred to the Committee on the Budget

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 
    to provide for the expedited consideration of certain proposed 
 cancellations of appropriations, new direct spending, and limited tax 
                               benefits.

    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 ``Expedited Budget Item Veto Review 
Act of 2006''.

SEC. 2. EXPEDITED CONSIDERATION OF CANCELLATION OF CERTAIN PROPOSED 
              BUDGET ITEMS.

    (a) In General.--Part B of title X of the Congressional Budget and 
Impoundment Control Act of 1974 (2 U.S.C. 681 et seq.) is amended by 
redesignating sections 1013 through 1017 as sections 1014 through 1018, 
respectively, and inserting after section 1012 the following new 
section:

   ``expedited consideration of cancellation of certain budget items

    ``Sec. 1013. (a) Proposed Budget Item Cancellations.--
            ``(1) In general.--In addition to the method of rescinding 
        budget authority specified in section 1012, the President may 
        suspend and propose for cancellation, at the time and in the 
        manner provided in subsection (b)--
                    ``(A) any dollar amount of discretionary budget 
                authority;
                    ``(B) any item of new direct spending; or
                    ``(C) any limited tax benefit.
            ``(2) Availability.--Items described in subparagraphs (A) 
        through (C) of paragraph (1) made available under this section 
        may not be proposed for suspension and cancellation again under 
        this section or section 1012.
    ``(b) Transmittal of Special Message.--
            ``(1) In general.--Not later than 3 calendar days after the 
        date of enactment of the law to which the suspension applies, 
        the President may transmit to Congress a special message 
        suspending items provided in that Act described in 
        subparagraphs (A) through (C) of subsection (a)(1) and 
        proposing to cancel those items and include with that special 
        message a draft bill for each item that, if enacted, would only 
        cancel that item. That bill shall clearly identify the item 
        that is proposed to be cancelled.
            ``(2) Application.--In the case of a proposed cancellation, 
        the special message shall also include--
                    ``(A) for every item a determination that such 
                cancellation will--
                            ``(i) reduce the Federal budget deficit;
                            ``(ii) not impair any essential Government 
                        functions; and
                            ``(iii) not harm the national interest; and
                    ``(B) any account, department, or establishment of 
                the Government for which budget authority was to have 
                been available for obligation and the specific project 
                or governmental functions involved;
                    ``(C) the specific States and congressional 
                districts, if any, affected by the cancellation; and
                    ``(D) the total number of cancellations imposed 
                during the current session of Congress on States and 
                congressional districts identified in subparagraph (C).
            ``(3) Budget authority.--Each special message shall 
        specify, with respect to the budget authority proposed to be 
        cancelled, the matters referred to in paragraphs (1) through 
        (5) of section 1012(a).
    ``(c) Procedures for Expedited Consideration.--
            ``(1) In general.--
                    ``(A) Introduction.--Before the close of the second 
                legislative day of the House of Representatives after 
                the date of receipt of a special message transmitted to 
                Congress under subsection (b), the majority leader or 
                minority leader of the House of Representatives shall 
                introduce (by request) the draft bill accompanying that 
                special message. If the bill is not introduced as 
                provided in the preceding sentence, then, on the third 
                legislative day of the House of Representatives after 
                the date of receipt of that special message, any Member 
                of that House may introduce the bill.
                    ``(B) Referral.--The bill shall be referred to the 
                appropriate committee of the House of Representatives. 
                The committee shall report the bill without substantive 
                revision, and with or without recommendation. The bill 
                shall be reported not later than the seventh 
                legislative day of that House after the date of receipt 
                of that special message. If the committee fails to 
                report the bill within that period, that committee 
                shall be automatically discharged from consideration of 
                the bill, and the bill shall be placed on the 
                appropriate calendar.
                    ``(C) Vote on final passage.--A vote on final 
                passage of the bill referred to in subparagraph (B) 
                shall be taken in the House of Representatives on or 
                before the close of the 10th legislative day of that 
                House after the date of the introduction of the bill in 
                that House. If the bill is passed, the Clerk of the 
                House of Representatives shall cause the bill to be 
                engrossed, certified, and transmitted to the Senate 
                within one calendar day of the day on which the bill is 
                passed.
            ``(2) Procedures in the house.--
                    ``(A) Motion to proceed.--A motion in the House of 
                Representatives to proceed to the consideration of a 
                bill under this section shall be highly privileged and 
                not debatable. An amendment to the motion shall not be 
                in order, nor shall it be in order to move to 
                reconsider the vote by which the motion is agreed to or 
                disagreed to.
                    ``(B) Debate.--Debate in the House of 
                Representatives on a bill under this section shall not 
                exceed 4 hours, which shall be divided equally between 
                those favoring and those opposing the bill. A motion 
                further to limit debate shall not be debatable. It 
                shall not be in order to move to recommit a bill under 
                this section or to move to reconsider the vote by which 
                the bill is agreed to or disagreed to.
                    ``(C) Appeals.--Appeals from decisions of the Chair 
                relating to the application of the Rules of the House 
                of Representatives to the procedure relating to a bill 
                under this section shall be decided without debate.
            ``(3) Procedures in the senate.--
                    ``(A) Referral.--A bill transmitted to the Senate 
                pursuant to paragraph (1)(C) shall be referred to the 
                appropriate committee. The committee shall report the 
                bill without substantive revision and with or without 
                recommendation. The bill shall be reported not later 
                than the seventh legislative day of the Senate after it 
                receives the bill. A committee failing to report the 
                bill within such period shall be automatically 
                discharged from consideration of the bill, and the bill 
                shall be placed upon the appropriate calendar.
                    ``(B) Final passage.--A vote on final passage of a 
                bill transmitted to the Senate shall be taken on or 
                before the close of the 10th legislative day of the 
                Senate after the date on which the bill is transmitted.
                    ``(C) Motions and debate.--
                            ``(i) Motions.--A motion in the Senate to 
                        proceed to the consideration of a bill under 
                        this section shall be privileged and not 
                        debatable. An amendment to the motion shall not 
                        be in order, nor shall it be in order to move 
                        to reconsider the vote by which the motion is 
                        agreed to or disagreed to.
                            ``(ii) Debate on bill.--Debate in the 
                        Senate on a bill under this section, and all 
                        debatable motions and appeals in connection 
                        therewith, shall not exceed 10 hours. The time 
                        shall be equally divided between, and 
                        controlled by, the majority leader and the 
                        minority leader or their designees.
                            ``(iii) Debate on motions.--Debate in the 
                        Senate on any debatable motion or appeal in 
                        connection with a bill under this section shall 
                        be limited to not more than 1 hour, to be 
                        equally divided between, and controlled by, the 
                        mover and the manager of the bill, except that 
                        in the event the manager of the bill is in 
                        favor of any such motion or appeal, the time in 
                        opposition thereto, shall be controlled by the 
                        minority leader or his designee. Such leaders, 
                        or either of them, may, from time under their 
                        control on the passage of a bill, allot 
                        additional time to any Senator during the 
                        consideration of any debatable motion or 
                        appeal.
                            ``(iv) Motion to limit debate.--A motion in 
                        the Senate to further limit debate on a bill 
                        under this section is not debatable. A motion 
                        to recommit a bill under this section is not in 
                        order.
    ``(d) Amendments and Divisions Prohibited.--No amendment to a bill 
considered under this section shall be in order in either the House of 
Representatives or the Senate. It shall not be in order to demand a 
division of the question in the House of Representatives (or in a 
Committee of the Whole) or in the Senate. No motion to suspend the 
application of this subsection shall be in order in either House, nor 
shall it be in order in either House to suspend the application of this 
subsection by unanimous consent.
    ``(e) Requirement to Make Available for Obligation.--Any budget 
item proposed to be cancelled in a special message transmitted to 
Congress under subsection (b) shall be made available for obligation or 
take effect on--
            ``(1) the earlier of--
                    ``(A) the day after the date upon which the House 
                of Representatives defeats the bill transmitted with 
                that special message rescinding the amount proposed to 
                be rescinded; or
                    ``(B) the day after the date upon which the Senate 
                rejects a bill that makes rescissions to carry out the 
                applicable special message of the President; or
            ``(2) the effective date of the provision if such effective 
        date occurs after the applicable date in paragraph (1).
    ``(f) Identification of Limited Tax Benefits.--
            ``(1) Statement by joint tax committee.--
                    ``(A) Review.--The Joint Committee on Taxation 
                shall review any revenue or reconciliation bill or 
                joint resolution which includes any amendment to the 
                Internal Revenue Code of 1986 that is being prepared 
                for filing by a committee of conference of the 2 
                Houses, and shall identify whether such bill or joint 
                resolution contains any limited tax benefits.
                    ``(B) Statement.--The Joint Committee on Taxation 
                shall provide to the committee of conference a 
                statement identifying any such limited tax benefits or 
                declaring that the bill or joint resolution does not 
                contain any limited tax benefits. Any such statement 
                shall be made available to any Member of Congress by 
                the Joint Committee on Taxation immediately upon 
                request.
            ``(2) Statement included in legislation.--
                    ``(A) Requirement.--Notwithstanding any other rule 
                of the House of Representatives or any rule or 
                precedent of the Senate, any revenue or reconciliation 
                bill or joint resolution which includes any amendment 
                to the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 reported by a 
                committee of conference of the 2 Houses may include, as 
                a separate section of such bill or joint resolution, 
                the information contained in the statement of the Joint 
                Committee on Taxation, but only in the manner set forth 
                in subparagraph (B).
                    ``(B) Content.--The separate section permitted 
                under subparagraph (A) shall read as follows: `Section 
                1021(a)(3) of the Congressional Budget and Impoundment 
                Control Act of 1974 shall ____ apply to ______.', with 
                the blank spaces being filled in with--
                            ``(i) in any case in which the Joint 
                        Committee on Taxation identifies limited tax 
                        benefits in the statement required under 
                        paragraph (1), the word `only' in the first 
                        blank space and a list of all of the specific 
                        provisions of the bill or joint resolution 
                        identified by the Joint Committee on Taxation 
                        in such statement in the second blank space; or
                            ``(ii) in any case in which the Joint 
                        Committee on Taxation declares that there are 
                        no limited tax benefits in the statement 
                        required under paragraph (1), the word `not' in 
                        the first blank space and the phrase `any 
                        provision of this Act' in the second blank 
                        space.
            ``(3) President's authority.--If any revenue or 
        reconciliation bill or joint resolution is signed into law 
        pursuant to Article I, section 7, of the Constitution of the 
        United States--
                    ``(A) with a separate section described in 
                paragraph (2)(ii), then the President may use the 
                authority granted in this section only to suspend and 
                propose to cancel any limited tax benefit in that law, 
                if any, identified in such separate section; or
                    ``(B) without a separate section described in 
                paragraph (2)(ii), then the President may use the 
                authority granted in this section to suspend and 
                propose to cancel any limited tax benefit in that law 
                that meets the definition in subsection (g).
            ``(4) Congressional identifications of limited tax 
        benefits.--There shall be no judicial review of the 
        congressional identification under paragraphs (1) and (2) of a 
        limited tax benefit in a conference report.
    ``(g) Definitions.--In this section:
            ``(1) Appropriation law.--The term `appropriation law' 
        means an Act referred to in section 105 of title 1, United 
        States Code, including any general or special appropriation 
        Act, or any Act making supplemental, deficiency, or continuing 
        appropriations, that has been signed into law pursuant to 
        Article I, section 7, of the Constitution of the United States.
            ``(2) Calendar day.--The term `calendar day' means a 
        standard 24-hour period beginning at midnight.
            ``(3) Cancel.--The term `cancel' or `cancellation' means--
                    ``(A) with respect to any dollar amount of 
                discretionary budget authority, to rescind;
                    ``(B) with respect to any item of new direct 
                spending--
                            ``(i) that is budget authority provided by 
                        law (other than an appropriation law), to 
                        prevent such budget authority from having legal 
                        force or effect;
                            ``(ii) that is entitlement authority, to 
                        prevent the specific legal obligation of the 
                        United States from having legal force or 
                        effect; or
                            ``(iii) through the Food Stamp Program, to 
                        prevent the specific provision of law that 
                        results in an increase in budget authority or 
                        outlays for that program from having legal 
                        force or effect; and
                    ``(C) with respect to a limited tax benefit, to 
                prevent the specific provision of law that provides 
                such benefit from having legal force or effect.
            ``(4) Direct spending.--The term `direct spending' means--
                    ``(A) budget authority provided by law (other than 
                an appropriation law);
                    ``(B) entitlement authority; and
                    ``(C) the Food Stamp Program.
            ``(5) Disapproval bill.--The term `disapproval bill' means 
        a bill or joint resolution which only disapproves 1 or more 
        cancellations of dollar amounts of discretionary budget 
        authority, items of new direct spending, or limited tax 
        benefits in a special message transmitted by the President 
        under this part and--
                    ``(A) the title of which is as follows: `A bill 
                disapproving the cancellations transmitted by the 
                President on ____', the blank space being filled in 
                with the date of transmission of the relevant special 
                message and the public law number to which the message 
                relates;
                    ``(B) which does not have a preamble; and
                    ``(C) which provides only the following after the 
                enacting clause: `That Congress disapproves of 
                cancellations ____', the blank space being filled in 
                with a list by reference number of 1 or more 
                cancellations contained in the President's special 
                message, `as transmitted by the President in a special 
                message on ____', the blank space being filled in with 
                the appropriate date, `regarding ____', the blank space 
                being filled in with the public law number to which the 
                special message relates.
            ``(6) Dollar amount of discretionary budget authority.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Except as provided in 
                subparagraph (B), the term `dollar amount of 
                discretionary budget authority' means the entire dollar 
                amount of budget authority--
                            ``(i) specified in an appropriation law, or 
                        the entire dollar amount of budget authority 
                        required to be allocated by a specific proviso 
                        in an appropriation law for which a specific 
                        dollar figure was not included;
                            ``(ii) represented separately in any table, 
                        chart, or explanatory text included in the 
                        statement of managers or the governing 
                        committee report accompanying such law;
                            ``(iii) required to be allocated for a 
                        specific program, project, or activity in a law 
                        (other than an appropriation law) that mandates 
                        the expenditure of budget authority from 
                        accounts, programs, projects, or activities for 
                        which budget authority is provided in an 
                        appropriation law;
                            ``(iv) represented by the product of the 
                        estimated procurement cost and the total 
                        quantity of items specified in an appropriation 
                        law or included in the statement of managers or 
                        the governing committee report accompanying 
                        such law; and
                            ``(v) represented by the product of the 
                        estimated procurement cost and the total 
                        quantity of items required to be provided in a 
                        law (other than an appropriation law) that 
                        mandates the expenditure of budget authority 
                        from accounts, programs, projects, or 
                        activities for which budget authority is 
                        provided in an appropriation law.
                    ``(B) Exclusion.--The term `dollar amount of 
                discretionary budget authority' does not include--
                            ``(i) direct spending;
                            ``(ii) budget authority in an appropriation 
                        law which funds direct spending provided for in 
                        other law;
                            ``(iii) any existing budget authority 
                        rescinded or canceled in an appropriation law; 
                        or
                            ``(iv) any restriction, condition, or 
                        limitation in an appropriation law or the 
                        accompanying statement of managers or committee 
                        reports on the expenditure of budget authority 
                        for an account, program, project, or activity, 
                        or on activities involving such expenditure.
            ``(7) Item of new direct spending.--The term `item of new 
        direct spending' means any specific provision of law that is 
        estimated to result in an increase in budget authority or 
        outlays for direct spending relative to the most recent levels 
        calculated pursuant to section 257 of the Balanced Budget and 
        Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985.
            ``(8) Legislative day.--The term `legislative day' means, 
        with respect to either House of Congress, any calendar day 
        during which that House is in session.
            ``(9) Limited tax benefit.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The term `limited tax benefit' 
                means--
                            ``(i) any negative revenue provision which 
                        provides a Federal tax deduction, credit, 
                        exclusion, or preference to 100 or fewer 
                        beneficiaries under the Internal Revenue Code 
                        of 1986 in any fiscal year for which the 
                        provision is in effect; and
                            ``(ii) any Federal tax provision which 
                        provides temporary or permanent transitional 
                        relief for 10 or fewer beneficiaries in any 
                        fiscal year from a change to the Internal 
                        Revenue Code of 1986.
                    ``(B) Negative revenue.--A provision shall not be 
                treated as described in subparagraph (A)(i) if the 
                effect of that provision is that--
                            ``(i) all persons in the same industry or 
                        engaged in the same type of activity receive 
                        the same treatment;
                            ``(ii) all persons owning the same type of 
                        property, or issuing the same type of 
                        investment, receive the same treatment; or
                            ``(iii) any difference in the treatment of 
                        persons is based solely on--
                                    ``(I) in the case of businesses and 
                                associations, the size or form of the 
                                business or association involved;
                                    ``(II) in the case of individuals, 
                                general demographic conditions, such as 
                                income, marital status, number of 
                                dependents, or tax return filing 
                                status;
                                    ``(III) the amount involved; or
                                    ``(IV) a generally-available 
                                election under the Internal Revenue 
                                Code of 1986.
                    ``(C) Special benefit.--A provision shall not be 
                treated as described in subparagraph (A)(ii) if--
                            ``(i) it provides for the retention of 
                        prior law with respect to all binding contracts 
                        or other legally enforceable obligations in 
                        existence on a date contemporaneous with 
                        congressional action specifying such date; or
                            ``(ii) it is a technical correction to 
                        previously enacted legislation that is 
                        estimated to have no revenue effect.
                    ``(D) Construction.--For purposes of subparagraph 
                (A)--
                            ``(i) all businesses and associations which 
                        are related within the meaning of sections 
                        707(b) and 1563(a) of the Internal Revenue Code 
                        of 1986 shall be treated as a single 
                        beneficiary;
                            ``(ii) all qualified plans of an employer 
                        shall be treated as a single beneficiary;
                            ``(iii) all holders of the same bond issue 
                        shall be treated as a single beneficiary; and
                            ``(iv) if a corporation, partnership, 
                        association, trust or estate is the beneficiary 
                        of a provision, the shareholders of the 
                        corporation, the partners of the partnership, 
                        the members of the association, or the 
                        beneficiaries of the trust or estate shall not 
                        also be treated as beneficiaries of such 
                        provision.
                    ``(E) Negative revenue provision.--For purposes of 
                this paragraph, the term `negative revenue provision' 
                means any provision which results in a reduction in 
                Federal tax revenues for any 1 of the 2 following 
                periods--
                            ``(i) the first fiscal year for which the 
                        provision is effective; or
                            ``(ii) the period of the 5 fiscal years 
                        beginning with the first fiscal year for which 
                        the provision is effective.
                    ``(F) Other terms.--The terms used in this 
                paragraph shall have the same meaning as those terms 
                have generally in the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, 
                unless otherwise expressly provided.
            ``(10) OMB.--The term `OMB' means the Director of the 
        Office of Management and Budget.''.
    (b) Exercise of Rulemaking Powers.--Section 904 of such Act (2 
U.S.C. 621 note) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``and 1017'' in subsection (a) and 
        inserting ``1013, and 1018''; and
            (2) by striking ``section 1017'' in subsection (d) and 
        inserting ``sections 1013 and 1018''.
    (c) Conforming Amendments.--
            (1) Section 1011 of such Act (2 U.S.C. 682(5)) is amended--
                    (A) in paragraph (4), by striking ``1013'' and 
                inserting ``1014''; and
                    (B) in paragraph (5)--
                            (i) by striking ``1016'' and inserting 
                        ``1017''; and
                            (ii) by striking ``1017(b)(1)'' and 
                        inserting ``1018(b)(1)''.
            (2) Section 1015 of such Act (2 U.S.C. 685) (as 
        redesignated by section 2(a)) is amended--
                    (A) by striking ``1012 or 1013'' each place it 
                appears and inserting ``1012, 1013, or 1014'';
                    (B) in subsection (b)(1), by striking ``1012'' and 
                inserting ``1012 or 1013'';
                    (C) in subsection (b)(2), by striking ``1013'' and 
                inserting ``1014''; and
                    (D) in subsection (e)(2)--
                            (i) by striking ``and'' at the end of 
                        subparagraph (A);
                            (ii) by redesignating subparagraph (B) as 
                        subparagraph (C);
                            (iii) by striking ``1013'' in subparagraph 
                        (C) (as so redesignated) and inserting 
                        ``1014''; and
                            (iv) by inserting after subparagraph (A) 
                        the following new subparagraph:
                    ``(B) he has transmitted a special message under 
                section 1013 with respect to a proposed rescission; 
                and''.
            (3) Section 1016 of such Act (2 U.S.C. 686) (as 
        redesignated by section 2(a)) is amended by striking ``1012 or 
        1013'' each place it appears and inserting ``1012, 1013, or 
        1014''.
    (d) Clerical Amendments.--The table of sections for subpart B of 
title X of such Act is amended--
            (1) by redesignating the items relating to sections 1013 
        through 1017 as items relating to sections 1014 through 1018; 
        and
            (2) by inserting after the item relating to section 1012 
        the following new item:

``Sec. 1013. Proposed budget item suspensions.''.

SEC. 3. APPLICATION.

    Section 1013 of the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control 
Act of 1974 (as added by section 2) shall apply to budget, spending, 
and revenue items that are enacted during the One Hundred Ninth 
Congress and thereafter.
                                 <all>