[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 24 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







109th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 24

  To establish an emergency reserve fund to provide timely financial 
     assistance in response to domestic disasters and emergencies.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            January 24, 2005

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

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To establish an emergency reserve fund to provide timely financial 
     assistance in response to domestic disasters and emergencies.

    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 ``Emergency Reserve Fund Act of 
2005''.

SEC. 2. EMERGENCY RESERVE FUND.

    (a) Establishment.--There is established in the Treasury of the 
United States, under the office of the Secretary of the Treasury, an 
Emergency Reserve Fund (referred to in this Act as the ``Fund''). The 
Fund shall be available to provide financial resources to respond to 
domestic disasters and emergencies described in subsection (c).
    (b) Appropriations.--
            (1) In general.--The Fund shall consist of such sums as are 
        appropriated in accordance with this subsection.
            (2) Definition.--For purposes of this subsection, the term 
        ``operating expenditures'' means an amount equal to the average 
        domestic, non-defense, discretionary spending by the Federal 
        Government spending for each of the last 5 years.
            (3) Deposits into fund.--On October 1 of each fiscal year, 
        the Secretary of the Treasury shall make a cash deposit into 
        the Fund of--
                    (A) an amount sufficient to bring the Fund balance 
                up to 1.2 percent of the operating expenditures; or
                    (B) such an amount as may be required to replenish 
                the Fund.
            (4) Replenishment.--There shall be appropriated, for each 
        fiscal year, sufficient amounts to the Fund to replenish any 
        amount allocated from the Fund during the preceding fiscal year 
        so that--
                    (A) not less than 50 percent of any amount 
                allocated in the preceding fiscal year or the amount 
                necessary to restore the Fund to the 1.2 percent 
                required balance, whichever is less, is replenished by 
                the end of the first fiscal year following each such 
                allocation; and
                    (B) 100 percent of the amount allocated or the 
                amount necessary to restore the Fund to the 1.2 percent 
                required balance, whichever is less, is replenished by 
                the end of the second fiscal year following each such 
                allocation.
            (5) Additional appropriations.--
                    (A) In general.--It shall not be in order in the 
                Senate to consider any appropriation beyond the levels 
                described in paragraphs (2) and (3).
                    (B) Supermajority waiver and appeal.--This 
                paragraph may be waived or suspended in the Senate only 
                by an affirmative vote of \ 2/3\ of the Members, duly 
                chosen and sworn. An affirmative vote of \2/3\ 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.
    (c) Use of Funds.--Amounts in the Fund shall only be available to 
meet the emergency funding requirements for particular domestic 
disasters and security emergencies--
            (1) as designated by a joint resolution of Congress; or
            (2) as declared by the President pursuant to the Robert T. 
        Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act.

SEC. 3. PERMANENT APPROPRIATION.

    Section 1305 of title 31, United States Code, is amended by adding 
at the end the following:
            ``(11) Emergency reserve fund.--To make payments into the 
        Emergency Reserve Fund in accordance with the Emergency Reserve 
        Fund Act of 2005.''.

SEC. 4. CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET PROCESS.

    (a) Budget Resolutions.--Section 301(a) of the Congressional Budget 
Act of 1974 (2 U.S.C. 632(a)) is amended--
            (1) by redesignating paragraphs (6) and (7) as paragraphs 
        (7) and (8) respectively; and
            (2) by inserting after paragraph (5) the following:
            ``(6) total new budget authority and total budget outlays 
        for emergency funding requirements for domestic disasters and 
        emergencies, which shall be transferred to the Emergency 
        Reserve Fund established under section 2 of the Emergency 
        Reserve Fund Act of 2005.''.
    (b) Adjustment for Emergency Appropriations.--Section 251(b)(2) of 
the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (2 U.S.C. 
901(b)(2)) is amended--
            (1) by striking subparagraph (A); and
            (2) by redesignating subparagraphs (B) through (G) as 
        subparagraphs (A) through (F).

SEC. 5. REPORTING.

    Not later than November 30, 2006, and annually thereafter, the 
Director of the Office of Management and Budget shall submit a report 
to the Senate and the House of Representatives that lists the amounts 
expended from the Fund for the prior fiscal year for each disaster or 
emergency pursuant to section 2(c).
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