1.Short title; table of
contents
(a)This Act may be cited
as the Federal Realignment and Closure
Commission Act
.
(b)The table of contents for this Act is as follows:
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Definitions.
Sec. 3. Establishment of Commission.
Sec. 4. Duties of the Commission.
Sec. 5. Powers of the Commission.
Sec. 6. Commission personnel matters.
Sec. 7. Termination of the Commission.
Sec. 8. Closure and realignment of agencies and
programs.
Sec. 9. Congressional consideration of commission
recommendations.
Sec. 10. Authorization of appropriations.
2.In this Act:
(1)The term agency has the
meaning given the term Executive agency under section 105 of title
5, United States Code.
(2)The term calendar day means a calendar day other
than one on which either House is not in session because of an adjournment of
more than three days to a date certain.
3.Establishment of
Commission
(a)There
is established the Federal Realignment and Closure Commission (hereafter in
this Act referred to as the Commission).
(b)
(1)
(A)The Commission shall be composed of 6 members appointed
by the President as follows:
(i)One
in consultation with the Speaker of the House of Representatives.
(ii)One
in consultation with the minority leader of the House of
Representatives.
(iii)One in
consultation with the majority leader of the Senate.
(iv)One
in consultation with the minority leader of the Senate.
(v)Two
other members, who may not be of the same political party.
(B)The President may appoint up to 4 Members of Congress (up
to 2 from each House) as nonvoting ex officio members of the Commission.
(C)Chairman and
vice chairmanAt the time the
President appoints individuals to the Commission under this paragraph, the
President shall designate 1 such individual who shall serve as chairman and 1
such individual who shall serve as vice chairman. The chairman and vice
chairman may not be of the same political party.
(c)Period of
appointment; vacanciesMembers shall be appointed for the life of
the Commission. Any vacancy in the Commission shall not affect its powers, but
shall be filled in the same manner as the original appointment.
(d)Not later than 30 days after the date on which all
members of the Commission have been appointed, the Commission shall hold its
first meeting.
(e)The
Commission shall meet at the call of the chairman.
(f)A
majority of the members of the Commission shall constitute a quorum, but a
lesser number of members may hold hearings.
4.
(a)Systematic
Assessment of Programs by the Commission
(1)Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of
this Act, the Commission shall establish a systematic method for assessing the
effectiveness and accountability of agency programs in accordance with
paragraph (2) and divide the programs into three approximately equal budgetary
groupings based on the size of the budget and number of personnel of the agency
program.
(2)The method established under paragraph (1)
shall—
(A)recognize
different types of Federal programs;
(B)assess programs
based on the achievement of performance goals (as defined under section
1115(g)(4) of title 31, United States Code);
(C)assess programs
based in part on the adequacy of the program’s performance measures, financial
management, and other factors;
(D)assess programs
based in part on whether the program has fulfilled the legislative intent
surrounding the creation of the program, taking into account any change in
legislative intent during the program’s existence; and
(E)assess programs
based in part on collaborative analysis, with the program or agency, of program
policy and goals which may not fit into easily measurable performance
goals.
(3)Comptroller
general recommendationsThe Comptroller General of the United
States shall—
(A)assist the
Commission, to the extent requested, in the Commission’s evaluation of agencies
and programs under subsection (b)(1); and
(B)by no later than
March 30 of each year in which an evaluation is carried out under subsection
(b)(1), submit to the Commission a report containing the Comptroller General’s
recommendations for the agencies and programs that should be realigned or
eliminated within the grouping evaluated that year.
(b)Evaluation,
Plan, and Recommendations
(1)Subject
to subsection (e), during each of 2012, 2013, and 2014, the Commission shall
evaluate all agencies, and programs within those agencies, in a grouping
identified in the assessment under subsection (a), with one grouping evaluated
each year over those three years, using the criteria under paragraph (3). In
carrying out the evaluation, the Commission shall consider the report of the
Comptroller General submitted under subsection (a)(3).
(2)Not later than June 30 of a year in which an
evaluation is carried out under paragraph (1), the Commission shall, with
respect to the evaluation carried out during that year, submit to the President
and Congress a plan with recommendations of the agencies and programs that
should be realigned or eliminated within the grouping evaluated that
year.
(3)
(A)If
2 or more agencies or programs are performing the same essential function and
the function can be consolidated or streamlined into a single agency or
program, the Commission shall recommend that the agencies or programs be
realigned.
(B)The Commission may recommend the realignment or
elimination of any agency or program that has wasted Federal funds by—
(i)egregious
spending;
(ii)mismanagement of
resources and personnel; or
(iii)use of such
funds for personal benefit or the benefit of a special interest group.
(C)Outdated,
irrelevant, or failedThe Commission shall recommend the
elimination of any agency or program that—
(i)has
completed its intended purpose;
(ii)has
become irrelevant; or
(iii)has failed to
meet its objectives.
(4)Relocation of
federal employeesThe plan under paragraph (2) shall provide that
if the position of an employee of an agency is eliminated as a result of the
implementation of the plan, the affected agency shall make reasonable efforts
to relocate such employee to another position within the agency or within
another Federal agency.
(5)The plan under paragraph (2) shall provide that all funds
saved by the implementation of the plan shall be used for deficit
reduction.
(6)Information to
Members of CongressAfter June 30 of each year in which the
Commission submits a plan and recommendations to the President and Congress
under this subsection, the Commission shall promptly provide, upon request, to
any Member of Congress information used by the Commission in making its
recommendations.
(c)Consideration of
suggestions from public through web siteIn carrying out its
duties under this Act, the Commission shall—
(1)establish a Web
site for the purpose of allowing any member of the public to submit suggestions
to the Commission for its consideration; and
(2)consider each such
suggestion submitted through the Web site.
(d)
(1)The President
shall, by no later than August 15 of a year in which the Commission carries out
an evaluation under subsection (b)(1), transmit to the Commission and to
Congress a report containing the President's approval or disapproval of the
Commission's plan and recommendations.
(2)If the President
approves all the plan and recommendations of the Commission, the President
shall transmit a copy of such plan and recommendations to Congress, together
with a certification of such approval.
(3)If the President
disapproves the plan and recommendations of the Commission, in whole or in
part, the President shall transmit to the Commission and Congress the reasons
for that disapproval. The Commission shall then transmit to the President, by
no later than September 15 of the year in which the evaluation was carried out,
a revised list of recommendations for the closure or realignment of agencies
and programs.
(4)If the President
approves all of the revised plan and recommendations of the Commission
transmitted to the President under paragraph (3), the President shall transmit
a copy of such revised plan and recommendations to Congress, together with a
certification of such approval.
(5)If the President
does not transmit to Congress an approval and certification described in
paragraph (2) or (4) by October 15 of any year in which the Commission has
transmitted its plan and recommendations to the President under this section,
the process by which agencies and programs may be selected for realignment or
elimination under this Act with respect to that year shall be
terminated.
(e)Carryforward of
grouping and evaluationIf the process by which agencies and
programs may be selected for realignment or elimination under this Act with
respect to a year is terminated under subsection (d)(5)—
(1)if the termination
occurs in 2012 or 2013, the grouping of agencies and programs evaluated that
year shall be included in the grouping evaluated under subsection (b)(1) in the
following year; and
(2)if the termination
occurs in 2014, the grouping of agencies and programs evaluated that year shall
be subject again during the next year to the process by which agencies and
programs may be selected for realignment or elimination under this Act as
provided in this section.
5.
(a)
(1)The Commission or, at its direction, any subcommittee or
member of the Commission, may, for the purpose of carrying out this Act—
(A)hold such
hearings, sit and act at such times and places, take such testimony, receive
such evidence, and administer such oaths as any member of the Commission
considers advisable;
(B)require, by
subpoena or otherwise, the attendance and testimony of such witnesses as any
member of the Commission considers advisable; and
(C)require, by
subpoena or otherwise, the production of such books, records, correspondence,
memoranda, papers, documents, tapes, and other evidentiary materials relating
to any matter under investigation by the Commission.
(2)Any member of Congress may testify before the Commission
or attend any proceedings or deliberations of the Commission.
(3)All testimony before the Commission shall be under
oath.
(b)Issuance and
Enforcement of Subpoenas
(1)Subpoenas
issued under subsection (a) shall bear the signature of the chairman of the
Commission and shall be served by any person or class of persons designated by
the chairman for that purpose.
(2)In
the case of contumacy or failure to obey a subpoena issued under subsection
(a), the United States district court for the judicial district in which the
subpoenaed person resides, is served, or may be found, may issue an order
requiring such person to appear at any designated place to testify or to
produce documentary or other evidence. Any failure to obey the order of the
court may be punished by the court as a contempt of that court.
(c)Information From
Federal AgenciesThe Commission may secure directly from any
Federal department or agency such information as the Commission considers
necessary to carry out this Act. Upon request of the chairman of the
Commission, the head of such department or agency shall furnish such
information to the Commission.
(d)The Commission may use the United States mails in the
same manner and under the same conditions as other departments and agencies of
the Federal Government.
6.Commission
personnel matters
(a)
(1)Except as provided under subsection (b), each member of
the Commission who is not an officer or employee of the Federal Government
shall not be compensated.
(2)Federal officers
or employeesAll members of the Commission who are officers or
employees of the United States shall serve without compensation in addition to
that received for their services as officers or employees of the United
States.
(b)The members of the Commission shall be allowed travel
expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence, at rates authorized for
employees of agencies under subchapter I of chapter 57 of title 5, United
States Code, while away from their homes or regular places of business in the
performance of services for the Commission.
(c)
(1)The chairman of the Commission may, without regard to the
civil service laws and regulations, appoint and terminate an executive director
and such other additional personnel as may be necessary to enable the
Commission to perform its duties. The employment of an executive director shall
be subject to confirmation by the Commission.
(2)Upon
the approval of the chairman, the executive director may fix the compensation
of the executive director and other personnel without regard to chapter 51 and
subchapter III of chapter 53 of title 5, United States Code, relating to
classification of positions and General Schedule pay rates, except that the
rate of pay for the executive director and other personnel may not exceed the
maximum rate payable for a position at GS–15 of the General Schedule under
section 5332 of such title.
(3)Personnel as
federal employees
(A)The executive director and any personnel of the
Commission who are employees shall be employees under section 2105 of title 5,
United States Code, for purposes of chapters 63, 81, 83, 84, 85, 87, 89, and 90
of that title.
(B)Subparagraph (A) shall not be construed to apply to
members of the Commission.
(d)Detail of
Government EmployeesAny Federal Government employee may be
detailed to the Commission without reimbursement, and such detail shall be
without interruption or loss of civil service status or privilege.
(e)As a condition of
appointment to or employment with the Commission, the members and staff of the
Commission shall hold appropriate security clearances for access to any
classified briefing, records, and materials that may be reviewed by the
Commission or its staff and shall follow the guidance and practices on security
under applicable Executive orders and agency directives.
(f)Upon the request of
the Commission, the Librarian of Congress shall provide to the Commission, on a
reimbursable basis, administrative support services, research services, and
research staff necessary for the Commission to carry out its responsibilities
under this Act.
(g)Procurement of
Temporary and Intermittent ServicesThe chairman of the
Commission may procure temporary and intermittent services under section
3109(b) of title 5, United States Code, at rates for individuals which do not
exceed the daily equivalent of the annual rate of basic pay prescribed for
level V of the Executive Schedule under section 5316 of such title.
7.Termination of
the CommissionThe Commission
shall terminate 120 days after the date on which the Commission submits the
final plan and recommendations under section 3(b).
8.Closure and
realignment of agencies and programs
(a)Subject to subsection (b), the President shall—
(1)eliminate all
agencies and programs recommended for elimination by the Commission in each
report submitted to Congress by the President under section 3(d);
(2)realign all
agencies and programs recommended for realignment by such Commission in each
such report;
(3)initiate all such
eliminations and realignments no later than 2 years after the date on which the
President submits a report to Congress under section 3(d) containing the
recommendations for such eliminations or realignments; and
(4)complete all such
eliminations and realignments no later than the end of the 6-year period
beginning on the date on which the President submits the report under section
3(d) containing the recommendations for such closures or realignments.
(b)Congressional
disapproval
(1)The President may
not carry out any elimination or realignment recommended in a report submitted
by the President pursuant to section 3(d) if a joint resolution is enacted, in
accordance with the provisions of section 9, disapproving such recommendations
before the earlier of—
(A)the end of the
45-day period beginning on the date on which the President submits such report;
or
(B)the adjournment of
Congress sine die for the session during which such report is submitted.
(2)For purposes of
paragraph (1) of this subsection and subsections (a) and (c) of section 9, the
days on which either House of Congress is not in session because of adjournment
of more than 3 days to a day certain shall be excluded in the computation of a
period.
9.Congressional
consideration of commission recommendations
(a)For purposes of section 8(b), the term joint
resolution means only a joint resolution which is introduced within the
10-day period beginning on the date on which the President submits the report
to Congress under section 3(d), and—
(1)which does not
have a preamble;
(2)the matter after
the resolving clause of which is as follows: That Congress disapproves
the recommendations of the Federal Realignment and Closure Commission as
submitted by the President on
, the blank space being filled in with
the appropriate date; and
(3)the title of which
is as follows: Joint resolution disapproving the recommendations of the
Federal Realignment and Closure Commission.
.
(b)A
resolution described in subsection (a) that is introduced in the House of
Representatives shall be referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government
Reform of the House of Representatives. A resolution described in subsection
(a) introduced in the Senate shall be referred to the Committee on Homeland
Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate.
(c)If
the committee to which a resolution described in subsection (a) is referred has
not reported such a resolution (or an identical resolution) by the end of the
20-day period beginning on the date on which the President submits the report
to Congress under section 3(d), such committee shall be, at the end of such
period, discharged from further consideration of such resolution, and such
resolution shall be placed on the appropriate calendar of the House
involved.
(d)
(1)On or after the
third day after the date on which the committee to which such a resolution is
referred has reported, or has been discharged (under subsection (c)) from
further consideration of, such a resolution, it is in order (even though a
previous motion to the same effect has been disagreed to) for any Member of the
respective House to move to proceed to the consideration of the resolution. A
member may make the motion only on the day after the calendar day on which the
Member announces to the House concerned the Member’s intention to make the
motion, except that, in the case of the House of Representatives, the motion
may be made without such prior announcement if the motion is made by direction
of the committee to which the resolution was referred. The motion is highly
privileged in the House of Representatives and is privileged in the Senate and
is not debatable. The motion is not subject to amendment, or to a motion to
postpone, or to a motion to proceed to the consideration of other business. A
motion to reconsider the vote by which the motion is agreed to or disagreed to
shall not be in order. If a motion to proceed to the consideration of the
resolution is agreed to, the respective House shall immediately proceed to
consideration of the joint resolution without intervening motion, order, or
other business, and the resolution shall remain the unfinished business of the
respective House until disposed of.
(2)Debate on the
resolution, and on all debatable motions and appeals in connection therewith,
shall be limited to not more than 2 hours, which shall be divided equally
between those favoring and those opposing the resolution. An amendment to the
resolution is not in order. A motion further to limit debate is in order and
not debatable. A motion to postpone, or a motion to proceed to the
consideration of other business, or a motion to recommit the resolution is not
in order. A motion to reconsider the vote by which the resolution is agreed to
or disagreed to is not in order.
(3)Immediately
following the conclusion of the debate on a resolution described in subsection
(a) and a single quorum call at the conclusion of the debate if requested in
accordance with the rules of the appropriate House, the vote on final passage
of the resolution shall occur.
(4)Appeals from the
decisions of the Chair relating to the application of the rules of the Senate
or the House of Representatives, as the case may be, to the procedure relating
to a resolution described in subsection (a) shall be decided without
debate.
(e)Consideration by
other House
(1)If, before the
passage by one House of a resolution of that House described in subsection (a),
that House receives from the other House a resolution described in subsection
(a), then the following procedures shall apply—
(A)the resolution of
the other House shall not be referred to a committee and may not be considered
in the House receiving it except in the case of final passage as provided in
subparagraph (B)(ii); and
(B)with respect to a
resolution described in subsection (a) of the House receiving the resolution
(i) the procedure in that House shall be the same as if no resolution had been
received from the other House; but (ii) the vote on final passage shall be on
the resolution of the other House.
(2)Upon disposition
of the resolution received from the other House, it shall no longer be in order
to consider the resolution that originated in the receiving House.
(f)Rules of the
Senate and HouseThis section is enacted by Congress—
(1)as an exercise of
the rulemaking power of the Senate and House of Representatives, respectively,
and as such it is deemed a part of the rules of each House, respectively, but
applicable only with respect to the procedure to be followed in that House in
the case of a resolution described in subsection (a), and it supersedes other
rules only to the extent that it is inconsistent with such rules; and
(2)with full
recognition of the constitutional right of either House to change the rules (so
far as relating to the procedure of that House) at any time, in the same
manner, and to the same extent as in the case of any other rule of that
House.
10.Authorization of
appropriationsThere are
authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary for each of fiscal
years 2012 through 2015 for carrying out this Act.