[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2496 Introduced in House (IH)]

112th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2496

  To specify that in the event that the debt ceiling is reached, the 
  United States shall prioritize the payment of pay and allowances to 
members of the Armed Forces, including reserve components thereof, and 
the payment of obligations on the public debt, and to appropriate such 
 funds as may be necessary to ensure that members of the Armed Forces, 
   including reserve components thereof, continue to receive pay and 
   allowances for active service performed when a funding gap occurs.


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                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 12, 2011

    Mr. King of Iowa (for himself, Mr. Gohmert, and Mrs. Bachmann) 
 introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
Ways and Means, and in addition to the Committees on Armed Services and 
  Transportation and Infrastructure, 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

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To specify that in the event that the debt ceiling is reached, the 
  United States shall prioritize the payment of pay and allowances to 
members of the Armed Forces, including reserve components thereof, and 
the payment of obligations on the public debt, and to appropriate such 
 funds as may be necessary to ensure that members of the Armed Forces, 
   including reserve components thereof, continue to receive pay and 
   allowances for active service performed when a funding gap occurs.

    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 ``Payment Reliability for our 
Obligations to Military and Investors to Secure Essential Stability 
Act'' or the ``PROMISES Act''.

SEC. 2. PRIORITY OF PAYMENTS IF THE DEBT CEILING IS REACHED.

    In the event that the debt of the United States Government, as 
defined in section 3101 of title 31, United States Code, reaches the 
statutory limit, amounts necessary for obligations incurred by the 
Government of the United States shall be made available to the 
following obligations before all other obligations and shall be made 
available as prioritized in the following order (with items listed in 
descending order of prioritization):
            (1) Such amounts as the Secretary of Defense (and the 
        Secretary of Homeland Security in the case of the Coast Guard) 
        determines to be necessary to continue to provide pay and 
        allowances (without interruption) to members of the Army, Navy, 
        Air Force, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard, including reserve 
        components thereof, who perform active service.
            (2) Amounts necessary to carry out the authority of the 
        Department of the Treasury provided in section 3123 of title 
        31, United States Code, to pay with legal tender the principal 
        and interest on debt held by the public.

SEC. 3. EMERGENCY APPROPRIATION OF FUNDS TO PROVIDE PAY AND ALLOWANCES 
              FOR MEMBERS OF THE ARMED FORCES DURING FUNDING GAP 
              IMPACTING THE DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE OR DEPARTMENT OF 
              HOMELAND SECURITY.

    (a) Appropriation of Funds for Military Pay and Allowances.--During 
a funding gap impacting the Armed Forces, the Secretary of the Treasury 
shall make available to the Secretary of Defense (and the Secretary of 
Homeland Security in the case of the Coast Guard), out of any amounts 
in the general fund of the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, such 
amounts as the Secretary of Defense (and the Secretary of Homeland 
Security in the case of the Coast Guard) determines to be necessary to 
continue to provide pay and allowances (without interruption) to 
members of the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard, 
including reserve components thereof, who perform active service during 
the funding gap.
    (b) Funding Gap Defined.--In this section, the term ``funding gap'' 
means any period of time after the beginning of a fiscal year for which 
interim or full-year appropriations for the personnel accounts of the 
Armed Forces for that fiscal year have not been enacted.
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