[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 276 Introduced in House (IH)]

111th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 276

       To provide earmark reform in the House of Representatives.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 23, 2009

Mr. Nunes submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the 
 Committee on Rules, and in addition to the Committee on Standards of 
  Official Conduct, for a period to be subsequently determined by the 
  Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall 
           within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
       To provide earmark reform in the House of Representatives.

    Resolved,
    Section 1.  Clause 3 of rule XII is amended by inserting ``(a)'' 
after ``3.'' and by adding at the end the following new paragraphs:
    ``(b) With respect to any request for a congressional earmark, 
limited tax benefit, or limited tariff benefit within the meaning of 
clause 9 of rule XXI, the Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner 
making such request shall submit a petition to the Speaker under this 
clause requesting that congressional earmark, limited tax benefit, or 
limited tariff benefit. That petition shall include--
            ``(1) the name of the Member, Delegate, or Resident 
        Commissioner;
            ``(2) in the case of a congressional earmark, the name and 
        address of the intended recipient or, if there is no 
        specifically intended recipient, the intended location of the 
        activity;
            ``(3) in the case of a limited tax or tariff benefit, 
        identification of the individual or entities reasonably 
        anticipated to benefit, to the extent known to the Member, 
        Delegate, or Resident Commissioner;
            ``(4) the purpose of such congressional earmark or limited 
        tax or tariff benefit;
            ``(5) any legislative or report language necessary to 
        execute the congressional earmark, limited tax benefit, or 
        limited tariff benefit, if applicable; and
            ``(6) a certification that the Member, Delegate, or 
        Resident Commissioner or spouse has no financial interest in 
        such congressional earmark or limited tax or tariff benefit.
Any petition submitted pursuant to this paragraph shall be referred to 
the appropriate committees of jurisdiction. A Member, Delegate, or 
Resident Commissioner may not submit more than 10 petitions under this 
paragraph during any session of Congress.
    ``(c) Within two calendar days after the referral of a petition 
pursuant to paragraph (b), the Clerk shall make the full text of such 
petition available in a searchable, sortable, and downloadable online 
database available to the public, unless the subject of the petition 
relates to classified information.''.
    Sec. 2.  Clause 9 of rule XXI is amended to read as follows:
    ``9. (a) It shall not be in order to consider--
            ``(1) a bill or joint resolution reported by a committee 
        unless the report includes a list of congressional earmarks, 
        limited tax benefits, and limited tariff benefits in the bill 
        or in the report (and the name of any Member, Delegate, or 
        Resident Commissioner who submitted a request to the committee 
        for each respective item included in such list) or a statement 
        that the proposition contains no congressional earmarks, 
        limited tax benefits, or limited tariff benefits;
            ``(2) a bill or joint resolution not reported by a 
        committee unless the chairman of each committee of initial 
        referral has caused a list of congressional earmarks, limited 
        tax benefits, and limited tariff benefits in the bill (and the 
        name of any Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner who 
        submitted a request to the committee for each respective item 
        included in such list) or a statement that the proposition 
        contains no congressional earmarks, limited tax benefits, or 
        limited tariff benefits to be printed in the Congressional 
        Record prior to its consideration;
            ``(3) an amendment to a bill or joint resolution as 
        designated in a report of the Committee on Rules to accompany a 
        resolution prescribing a special order of business unless the 
        proponent has caused a list of congressional earmarks, limited 
        tax benefits, and limited tariff benefits in the amendment (and 
        the name of any Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner who 
        submitted a request to the proponent for each respective item 
        included in such list) or a statement that the proposition 
        contains no congressional earmarks, limited tax benefits, or 
        limited tariff benefits to be printed in the Congressional 
        Record prior to its consideration;
            ``(4) a conference report to accompany a bill or joint 
        resolution unless the joint explanatory statement prepared by 
        the managers on the part of the House and the managers on the 
        part of the Senate includes a list of congressional earmarks, 
        limited tax benefits, and limited tariff benefits in the 
        conference report or joint statement (and the name of any 
        Member, Delegate, Resident Commissioner, or Senator who 
        submitted a request to the House or Senate committees of 
        jurisdiction for each respective item included in such list) or 
        a statement that the proposition contains no congressional 
        earmarks, limited tax benefits, or limited tariff benefits; or
            ``(5) any measure or matter (including any accompanying 
        report or joint statement) described in this paragraph, or any 
        amendment thereto which contains--
                    ``(A) a congressional earmark, limited tax benefit, 
                or limited tariff benefit which was not the subject of 
                a petition submitted to the Speaker and made available 
                by the Clerk pursuant to clause 3 of rule XII at least 
                5 legislative days prior to the request for such 
                earmark, limited tax benefit, or limited tariff 
                benefit;
                    ``(B) more than two congressional earmarks, limited 
                tax benefits, or limited tariff benefits proposed by 
                any Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner; and
                    ``(C) total new budget authority, credit authority, 
                and other spending authority for all congressional 
                earmarks contained in that measure (including any 
                accompanying report or joint statement) proposed by 
                members of each committee of initial referral of such 
                measure that exceeds 200 percent of the total new 
                budget authority, credit authority, and other spending 
                authority as estimated by the Committee on the Budget 
                for all earmarks contained in that measure (including 
                any accompanying report or joint statement) proposed by 
                nonmembers of those committees.
    ``(b) It shall not be in order to consider a rule or order that 
waives the application of paragraph (a). As disposition of a point of 
order under this paragraph, the Chair shall put the question of 
consideration with respect to the rule or order that waives the 
application of paragraph (a). The question of consideration shall be 
debatable for 10 minutes by the Member initiating the point of order 
and for 10 minutes by an opponent, but shall otherwise be decided 
without intervening motion except one that the House adjourn.
    ``(c) In order to be cognizable by the Chair, a point of order 
raised under paragraphs (a)(1) through (4) may be based only on the 
failure of a report, submission to the Congressional Record, or joint 
explanatory statement to include a list required by paragraph (a) or a 
statement that the proposition contains no congressional earmarks, 
limited tax benefits, or limited tariff benefits except with respect to 
a conference report to accompany a regular general appropriation bill, 
in which case the point of order shall be disposed of by the question 
of consideration under the same terms as specified in paragraph (b).
    ``(d) For the purpose of this clause--
            ``(1) the term `congressional earmark' means a provision or 
        report language included primarily at the request of a Member, 
        Delegate, Resident Commissioner, or Senator providing, 
        authorizing or recommending a specific amount of discretionary 
        budget authority, credit authority, or other spending authority 
        for a contract, loan, loan guarantee, grant, loan authority, or 
        other expenditure with or to an entity, or targeted to a 
        specific State, locality or Congressional district, other than 
        through a statutory or administrative formula-driven or 
        competitive award process, but such term does not include a 
        Presidential earmark as defined by this clause;
            ``(2) the term `limited tax benefit' means--
                    ``(A) any revenue-losing provision that--
                            ``(i) provides a Federal tax deduction, 
                        credit, exclusion, or preference to 10 or fewer 
                        beneficiaries under the Internal Revenue Code 
                        of 1986; and
                            ``(ii) contains eligibility criteria that 
                        are not uniform in application with respect to 
                        potential beneficiaries of such provision; or
                    ``(B) any Federal tax provision which provides one 
                beneficiary temporary or permanent transition relief 
                from a change to the Internal Revenue Code of 1986;
            ``(3) the term `limited tariff benefit' means a provision 
        modifying the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States 
        in a manner that benefits 10 or fewer entities; and
            ``(4) the term `Presidential earmark' means any provision 
        or report language to maintain or increase the funding for any 
        budgeted program, project, or activity or any provision or 
        report language for any program, project, or activity that is 
        specifically authorized by law, included in the most recent 
        budget submission of the President under section 1105(a) of 
        title 31, United States Code, or jointly certified, in writing, 
        by the Speaker and the minority leader to be for national 
        security purposes.''.
    Sec. 3.  Clause 17 of rule XXIII is amended to read as follows:
    ``17. A Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner may not request 
a congressional earmark, limited tax benefit, or limited tariff benefit 
unless that Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner has first 
submitted a petition to the House pursuant to clause 3(b) of rule 
XII.''.
    Sec. 4.  The amendments made by this resolution shall take effect 
at the beginning of the second session of Congress.
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