[House Prints, 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]




                           [COMMITTEE PRINT]


 
              THE USE AND APPLICATION OF THE LINE ITEM VETO

                               __________

                        HOUSE COMMITTEE ON RULES

                            JANUARY 2, 1997






            For sale by the U.S. Government Printing Office
 Superintendent of Documents, Congressional Sales Office, Washington, 
                               D.C. 20402



Regarding the veto power . . .
    ``But the power in question has a further use. It not only 
serves as a shield to the executive, but it furnishes an 
additional security against the enaction of improper laws. It 
establishes a salutary check upon the legislative body, 
calculated to guard the community against the effects of 
faction, precipitancy, or of any impulse unfriendly to the 
public good, which may happen to influence a majority of that 
body . . . The primary inducement to conferring the power in 
question upon the executive is to enable him to defend himself; 
the secondary one is to increase the chances in favor of the 
community against the passing of bad laws, through haste, 
inadvertence, or design. The oftener the measure is brought 
under examination, the greater the diversity in the situations 
of those who are to examine it, the less must be the danger of 
those errors which flow from want of due deliberation, or of 
those missteps which proceed from the contagion of some common 
passion or interest.''

                                        Alexander Hamilton,
                                                    Spring of 1788,
                                             The Federalist Papers,
                                                          Number 73



                            C O N T E N T S

                                 ________
                                                                   Page
   I. Introduction...............................................     1
  II. Requirements For Use of the Line Item Veto.................     2
        A. Targets of the Line Item Veto are carefully defined...     2
        B. The President must first sign the legislation.........     4
        C. There is a time limit.................................     4
        D. The President's special message must contain certain 
            information..........................................     4
        E. A cancellation is effective unless disapproved........     5
        F. Savings from cancellations must be used for deficit 
            reduction............................................     5
 III. The Congressional Response.................................     5
        A. Congressional referral of the President's special 
            message..............................................     6
        B. The format of a disapproval bill is specified.........     6
        C. There are restrictions on the use of the expedited 
            procedures...........................................     9
        D. Consideration in the House............................     9
            1. Introducing a disapproval bill....................    10
            2. Committee referral and consideration..............    10
            3. Obtaining House floor consideration...............    10
            4. House floor consideration.........................    11
            5. Amending the disapproval bill.....................    11
            6. Voting on a disapproval bill......................    15
        E. Consideration in the Senate...........................    15
        F. A conference report on a disapproval bill.............    15
        G. Consideration of a Presidential veto of a disapproval 
            bill.................................................    16
  IV. Checklist For Congressional Response in the House..........    16
Figure 3: Chart of Congressional Consideration of a Disapproval 
  Bill...........................................................    18
Table 1: Explanations of Steps of Congressional Consideration....    20



                            I. Introduction

    On April 9, 1996, President Clinton signed into law the 
Line Item Veto Act of 1996. Public Law 104-130 delegates to the 
President carefully defined authority to cancel dollar amounts 
of discretionary spending, items of new direct spending, and 
limited tax benefits. Its provisions take effect on January 1, 
1997, and sunset on December 31, 2004.
    The Line Item Veto Act establishes clear boundaries and 
requirements for the use of this new authority by the 
President. It also outlines expedited legislative procedures 
for congressional action to disapprove the President's line 
item veto.
    The Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 already 
delegates authority to the President to rescind appropriated 
funds with congressional approval. The Line Item Veto Act 
establishes a new Part C under Title X which supplements the 
existing rescission authority (Part B of Title X) with this new 
cancellation authority. The existing rescission authority is 
based on an approval model while the new line item veto 
authority is based on a disapproval model.
    The basic premises behind the Line Item Veto Act are fairly 
well understood: (1) to help reduce the federal deficit by 
providing the President with the authority to cancel specific 
spending and tax provisions within a large bill he has signed 
into law; and (2) to shift the bias in the legislative process 
away from spending and toward saving by requiring congressional 
disapproval in order to nullify a President's line item veto. 
The concept of the line item veto has long been supported by a 
majority of the American people.
    Despite the clarity of purpose behind the line item veto, 
the mechanics of its implementation are of necessity somewhat 
more complicated and are, therefore, less well understood. The 
federal budget process is highly technical and involves a 
delicate balance between the executive and legislative branches 
of government. Much care was taken to ensure that the line item 
veto is properly integrated into that process and does not 
unduly upset that balance.
    In addition, while 43 state governors have used some form 
of the line item veto, it has never before been used at the 
federal level. As a result, Members of Congress, Administration 
officials, and the public will all be traveling on new ground 
as this important budgetary tool takes effect.
    The House Rules Committee played a significant role in 
crafting the Line Item Veto Act, exercising its original 
jurisdiction throughout the process of House passage and 
conference with the Senate. In addition, the Committee intends 
to provide ongoing oversight over the application of the line 
item veto authority. The Committee presents this document as a 
guide to the use and application of the line item veto, with a 
particular focus on the procedural requirements of Public Law 
104-130. This document addresses the basic questions pertaining 
to the operation of the line item veto and is not intended to 
be an exhaustive analysis of all possible issues raised by the 
new law.

             II. Requirements For Use of the Line Item Veto

         A. Targets of the line item veto are carefully defined

    The line item veto authority may only be used to cancel, in 
whole: (1) dollar amounts of discretionary budget authority; 
(2) items of new direct spending; and (3) limited tax benefits. 
Each of these terms is expressly defined by the Line Item Veto 
Act. The line item veto authority is only applicable to laws 
that contain one or more provisions falling within the 
definition of the three terms. In order to prevent an endless 
loop, the President may not use the line item veto authority on 
any law disapproving a President's cancellation(s).
Dollar Amount of Discretionary Budget Authority
    In defining ``dollar amount of discretionary budget 
authority'', the Line Item Veto Act allows the President to 
cancel the entire dollar amount of budget authority specified 
in an appropriation law or required to be made available by a 
specific proviso in an appropriation law if a specific dollar 
amount is not included. For example, in the appropriation law 
that includes funding for the Army Corps of Engineers, the 
statute might require that $1 billion be spent on a dredging 
project. Alternatively, the statute might require that a 
particular dredging project be completed without specifying the 
dollar amount necessary. Under the Line Item Veto Act, the 
President could cancel the entire funding for the project in 
either case.
    The President may also cancel an entire dollar amount of 
budget authority represented separately in any table, chart or 
explanatory text in the statement of managers accompanying the 
conference report on an appropriation law. If the statement of 
managers incorporates by reference a table, chart or an 
explanatory text in a related House or Senate report, the 
President may cancel an entire dollar amount detailed in such a 
chart, table or text in that ``governing report''.
    In addition, the President may cancel the entire dollar 
amount of budget authority required to be made available for a 
specific program, project or activity in a law other than an 
appropriation law. For example, if a Coast Guard authorization 
law specifically requires the purchase of a new particular type 
of cutter and the subsequent appropriation law includes a lump 
sum of funding for the purchase of all new Coast Guard cutters, 
then the President may cancel from that appropriation law the 
dollar amount necessary to purchase the particular cutter that 
was previously mandated to be purchased. In other words, the 
President may ``look through'' an appropriation law to an 
underlying statute in the case where that statute requires that 
funding for a specific program, project or activity be made 
available.
    The President may also cancel the entire dollar amount of 
budget authority specified by a provision in an appropriation 
law that requires the procurement of a specified number of 
items at a certain cost. In calculating this amount, the 
President must estimate the cost of one such item and multiply 
it by the number of items specified. For instance, an 
appropriation law may include $10 billion for the purchase of a 
certain type of plane. If so, the President may cancel the 
entire dollar amount for those planes. If the law specifies no 
dollar amount but requires the purchase of ten such planes, 
then the President may also cancel the dollar amount necessary 
to carry out that provision.
    The express intent of this definition is to provide the 
President the ability to cancel entire dollar amounts, even if 
not specified as a dollar amount in the appropriation law 
itself, as long as the dollar amount can be clearly identified.
    The definition of ``dollar amount of discretionary budget 
authority'' specifically excludes any restriction, condition or 
limitation in an appropriation law or the accompanying 
statement of managers. The cancellation authority may not be 
used to change, alter, modify, or terminate any policy included 
in the law by Congress, other than by canceling a dollar amount 
in order to reduce the federal deficit. Specific examples of 
what qualifies as a dollar amount of discretionary budget 
authority can be found on pages 30-36 of the conference report 
on S. 4, the Line Item Veto Act (H. Rept. 104-491).

Item of New Direct Spending

    In defining ``item of new direct spending'', the Line Item 
Veto Act provides the President with the authority to cancel 
budget authority provided by law (other than an appropriation 
law), new entitlement authority, and changes in the food stamp 
program. The President may only cancel a provision of law that 
results in an increase in spending relative to the baseline. 
This does not mean that legislation must result in a net 
increase in spending in order to be subject to the cancellation 
authority. A provision of law that increases direct spending 
would be subject to the line item veto regardless of whether or 
not it is offset by another provision that reduces direct 
spending or increases revenues in the same law. The President 
may not seek to cancel a provision that does not lead to an 
increase in direct spending nor may he apply the line item veto 
to previously enacted laws. This primarily applies in cases 
where Congress is expanding an existing entitlement or creating 
a new one.

Limited Tax Benefit

    The Line Item Veto Act defines the term ``limited tax 
benefit'' as any revenue losing provision amending the Internal 
Revenue Code that provides in any fiscal year a Federal tax 
deduction, credit, exclusion or preference to 100 or fewer 
beneficiaries or a provision that provides transitional relief 
to 10 or fewer beneficiaries. In addition, the definition is 
further narrowed by listing certain instances in which a 
provision shall not be treated as a limited tax benefit. 
Further, the Line Item Veto Act directs the Joint Committee on 
Taxation (JCT) to prepare a statement in which the JCT will 
apply the definition of ``limited tax benefit'' to qualifying 
provisions in tax and reconciliation bills. The Act further 
provides that, if a committee on conference on a revenue or 
reconciliation bill includes the statement of the JCT in the 
bill, then the President may only use the line item veto 
authority to cancel provisions that have been identified by the 
JCT as limited tax benefits. If the committee on conference 
does not include the JCT statement in the bill sent to the 
President, then the President may use the line item veto 
authority to cancel any provision which meets the definition of 
a limited tax benefit. In this way, the Line Item Veto Act 
addresses the issue of who makes the judgment call about what 
is and what is not a limited tax benefit subject to the line 
item veto. The JCT has developed a committee staff report 
further detailing what constitutes a limited tax benefit and 
the role of the JCT in the determination process.

            B. The President must first sign the legislation

    As prescribed by Article I, section 7 of the Constitution, 
the President may sign or veto legislation or allow it to 
become law without his signature.
    If the President wishes to use the line item veto authority 
to cancel a spending or tax provision from a law, he must first 
sign the legislation. The line item veto authority is not 
available to the President for use on legislation that he 
allows to become law without his signature or on legislation 
that becomes law over his veto.

                        C. There is a time limit

    The Constitution grants the President 10 days (excluding 
Sundays) in which to sign or veto legislation.
    Use of the line item veto is only available to the 
President within 5 days of his signature of legislation 
(excluding Sundays). If the President chooses to use the line 
item veto authority, he must send a special message to both 
Houses of Congress within that 5-day period.

  D. The President's special message must contain certain information

    The President is required to send Congress a separate 
special message for each law from which he seeks to cancel 
provisions using the line item veto authority. That special 
message must include:
           a list, with reference numbers, of each 
        dollar amount of discretionary budget authority, item 
        of new direct spending, or limited tax benefit he seeks 
        to cancel;
           determinations that the cancellations will 
        reduce the federal budget deficit, not impair any 
        essential government functions, and not harm the 
        national interest;
           the reasons for the cancellation(s);
           the estimated fiscal, economic, and 
        budgetary impact of the cancellations, to the maximum 
        extent practicable;
           all facts, circumstances and considerations 
        relating to the cancellation and, to the maximum extent 
        practicable, the estimated effect of the cancellation 
        upon the objects, purposes, and programs for which the 
        canceled authority was originally provided;
           the adjustments that will be made to the 
        discretionary spending limits and an evaluation of the 
        effects of those adjustments on sequestration 
        procedures;
           if applicable, any account, department, or 
        establishment and the specific project for which the 
        canceled budget authority was originally provided;
           if applicable, the specific states and 
        Congressional districts affected by the cancellation; 
        and
           if applicable, the total number of 
        cancellations imposed during the current session of 
        Congress impacting the states and Congressional 
        districts affected.

           E. A cancellation is effective unless disapproved

    Once the Congress has received the President's special 
message, the cancellation(s) takes effect. The cancellation 
remains in effect unless a disapproval bill is enacted into 
law. If a disapproval bill is enacted into law, the 
cancellation is nullified, making the dollar amount of 
discretionary budget authority, item of new direct spending, or 
limited tax benefit effective as of the date of enactment of 
the original law from which the cancellation was made.

    F. Savings from cancellations must be used for deficit reduction

    The Line Item Veto Act requires the Office of Management 
and Budget (OMB) to make adjustments to the discretionary 
spending limits for budget authority and outlays to reflect 
cancellations of dollar amounts of discretionary budget 
authority. These adjustments of the spending caps are ``locked-
in'' ten days after the end of the period provided for the 
expedited congressional consideration of a disapproval bill, 
unless a disapproval bill has been enacted into law within that 
time. This type of ``lockbox'' mechanism ensures that savings--
both budget authority and related outlay reductions--from a 
cancellation may not be used to fund any other program. If the 
cancellation(s) is not disapproved within the specified time 
period, the funds are locked away for deficit reduction. If the 
cancellation(s) is disapproved, the lockboxed funds are 
available for expenditure.
    For cancellations of items of new direct spending and 
limited tax benefits, the Line Item Veto Act requires OMB to 
include a calculation of the deficit decrease resulting from 
such cancellations in its required periodic sequestration 
reports. The decreases are not, however, reflected on the PAYGO 
scorecard (a running account of new revenues and entitlement 
spending in a fiscal year). In this way, deficit reduction 
attributed to the cancellations may not be used to offset 
deficit increases attributable to other actions.
    These deficit reduction or ``lockbox'' procedures are 
incorporated into the existing procedures governing 
discretionary spending limits and pay-as-you-go requirements 
under the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act.

                    III. The Congressional Response

    While the President is delegated this new, limited 
authority, Congress has also created a specific process to 
review the President's actions. The Line Item Veto Act 
establishes certain expedited procedures for congressional 
consideration of the items canceled by the President. Expedited 
procedures provide a special process for accelerated 
congressional consideration of legislation. Congress has 
enacted expedited procedures for the consideration of 
disapproval bills in the past--for example, in the War Powers 
Resolution, the Trade Act of 1974 and the Arms Control and 
Disarmament Act. Consequently, there is precedent for the 
expedited procedures contained in the Line Item Veto Act.
    In order for the President's cancellation to be overturned, 
one of three things must occur: either, (1) a bill disapproving 
the President's cancellation must be signed into law; (2) a 
bill disapproving the President's cancellations must become law 
without the President's signature; or (3) a veto of such a bill 
must be overridden by the constitutionally required two-thirds 
majority of both Houses of Congress.

      A. Congressional referral of the President's special message

    When Congress receives a special message, that message is 
referred to the Budget Committees of both Houses and the 
relevant authorizing or appropriating committees of each House. 
The special message is also required to be printed as a 
document of the House of Representatives and printed in the 
Federal Register for public availability.

            B. The format of a disapproval bill is specified

    In order to qualify as a disapproval bill that is subject 
to the expedited procedures under the Line Item Veto Act, a 
bill disapproving the President's cancellations must be drafted 
in a specified manner. Restrictions also are placed on what may 
be included in a disapproval bill in order to minimize any 
abuse of the expedited procedures granted these bills. A 
disapproval bill must be drafted according to the following 
structural example:





    A disapproval bill must contain the exact title and 
legislative language (lines 1-4) as in the example and cannot 
include anything else in order to qualify as a disapproval bill 
eligible for the expedited procedures. The statute limits the 
use of the expedited procedures to only those bills which 
disapprove any or all of the President's cancellations. This 
helps to ensure that matters outside the scope of the 
cancellations are not added to a disapproval bill and that the 
expedited process granted such disapproval bills is not subject 
to abuse or expansion. The lettered blank spaces refer to 
specific details regarding the particular special message by 
the President. The details are to be filled in the following 
manner.
    Blank space (A) must be filled in with the date of the 
transmission of the relevant special message of the President 
and the public law to which the message relates. This is to 
ensure that the disapproval bill's title refers to a particular 
special message of the President and a particular public law.
    Blank space (B) is where the sponsor and any cosponsors of 
the disapproval bill are listed. This is the same as current 
practice for all other bills introduced in the House.
    Blank space (C) is where the committee or committees of 
jurisdiction to which the disapproval bill is referred are 
listed. This also follows the normal process. The committee is 
not specified in this example disapproval bill in order to 
demonstrate that a disapproval bill may often be referred to 
more than one committee depending on the subject matter of the 
cancellation. This referral process is discussed further in the 
section below entitled ``committee referral and 
consideration.''
    Blank space (D) must be filled in with a list by reference 
number of one or more cancellations contained in the 
President's special message as referenced in the title of the 
disapproval bill. In the House, in order to qualify for the 
expedited procedures, a disapproval bill must contain a list by 
reference number of all of the cancellations contained in the 
President's special message. That list may be altered on the 
floor of the House during consideration, but in order to 
qualify for the expedited procedures, a House disapproval bill 
when introduced must disapprove each of the President's 
cancellations. In the Senate, a disapproval bill may qualify 
for the expedited procedures even if it does not disapprove 
upon introduction every one of the President's cancellations.
    Blank space (E) must be filled in with the appropriate date 
of the transmission of the President's special message. This is 
similar to the requirements for inclusion of the date of 
transmission in the title of the disapproval bill.
    Blank space (F) must be filled in with the public law 
number to which the special message relates. Again this is 
similar to the requirements for the title.
    Furthermore, in order to qualify as a disapproval bill as 
defined by the Line Item Veto Act, the bill must only 
disapprove one or more Presidential cancellations of dollar 
amounts of discretionary budget authority, items of new direct 
spending or limited tax benefits contained in a special message 
by the President.

    C. There are restrictions on the use of the expedited procedures

    Congress has thirty calendar days of session in which to 
consider a disapproval bill under the expedited procedures. A 
``calendar day of session'' is defined as only those days on 
which both the House and the Senate are in session. This 
definition excludes periods of recess and adjournment by either 
House. It is assumed that Congress will want to act quickly to 
consider a disapproval bill and the expedited procedures are 
intended to provide both Houses of Congress with the 
flexibility to schedule consideration of a disapproval bill 
during a busy legislative session.
    In the House, a disapproval bill may qualify for expedited 
procedures only during this thirty calendar days of session 
time period. Once the time period expires, the expedited 
procedures are no longer operative. In order for a disapproval 
bill to be considered by the House after the 30-day period, the 
normal House rules would apply. This most often would involve 
the Rules Committee granting a special rule providing for the 
consideration of a disapproval bill. It should also be noted 
that the Rules Committee may at any time, both before and after 
the expiration of the thirty calendar days of session, report a 
special rule providing for the consideration of the disapproval 
bill. Should the House consider a disapproval bill under such a 
special rule, the use of the expedited procedures for further 
consideration of a disapproval bill relating to the same 
special message is not allowed.
    If a disapproval bill considered by the House under the 
expedited procedures is defeated, any subsequent disapproval 
bill relating to the same special message of the President is 
ineligible for consideration under the expedited procedures. An 
exception exists in the case of a need for House consideration 
of a Senate-passed disapproval bill.
    The Senate is not similarly constrained by the time period. 
In the Senate, a disapproval bill which began consideration 
under these expedited procedures may continue under such 
procedures even if the time period expires. In such a case, a 
special rule may need to be granted by the Rules Committee for 
further House consideration of a disapproval bill.
    In the event of a final congressional adjournment before 
the expiration of the thirty calendar days of session period, a 
new disapproval bill with respect to the same message may be 
introduced within the first five calendar days of session of 
the next Congress and the thirty calendar days of session 
period for congressional consideration would begin anew. This 
new bill would qualify for the expedited procedures.

                     D. Consideration in the House

    The Line Item Veto Act establishes expedited procedures 
specifically tailored to provide any Member of the House of 
Representatives the opportunity to obtain congressional 
consideration of a bill disapproving a President's 
cancellations. However, the procedures do not guarantee that 
any one Member can get a floor vote on a particular 
cancellation. Allowing 435 Members unchecked access to floor 
time would prove quite unwieldy and unmanageable. Nevertheless, 
the expedited procedures do provide adequate opportunity for 
any Member who can muster a minimum level of support from 
colleagues to obtain consideration of a disapproval bill by the 
full House. Furthermore, these expedited procedures in no way 
prevent the Rules Committee from aiding a disapproval bill in 
this process or from altering the manner in which a disapproval 
bill is considered on the floor.

                   1. Introducing a disapproval bill

    As was discussed earlier, in order for a disapproval bill 
to qualify for the expedited procedures, it must meet the 
definition and format of a disapproval bill. However, in the 
House it must also meet another requirement. A disapproval bill 
must also be introduced in the House no later than the fifth 
calendar day of session following the receipt of the 
President's special message. Any disapproval bill meeting these 
two requirements qualifies for expedited consideration. A 
disapproval bill introduced after the fifth calendar day of 
session would be subject to the normal rules of the House 
concerning the consideration of a bill.

                2. Committee referral and consideration

    Upon introduction, a disapproval bill is referred, subject 
to the discretion of the Speaker, to the appropriate committee 
or committees of jurisdiction under normal House procedure. For 
example, a disapproval bill relating to the cancellation of an 
appropriation of discretionary budget authority may be referred 
to the Committee on Appropriations for consideration. On the 
other hand, a disapproval bill relating to the cancellation of 
an item of new direct spending involving Medicare may be 
referred to both the Committee on Ways and Means and the 
Committee on Commerce.
    A disapproval bill qualifying for expedited procedures is 
subject to accelerated committee consideration. Any committee 
or committees to which such a disapproval bill has been 
referred has seven calendar days of session after the date of 
the bill's introduction in which to report the disapproval 
bill. The committee is not allowed to amend the disapproval 
bill but may report it with or without recommendation.

                 3. Obtaining House floor consideration

    A disapproval bill is eligible for House floor 
consideration under the expedited procedures in two ways. 
First, the committee or committees of jurisdiction may report 
the disapproval bill within seven calendar days of session, 
thereby making it eligible for floor consideration under the 
expedited procedures.
    Second, if a committee or committees to which a disapproval 
bill has been referred fails to report the bill within the 
seven calendar days of session time period, any Member of the 
House may move to discharge the committee or committees from 
further consideration of the bill. However, the Member making 
the motion to discharge must be in favor of the disapproval 
bill and can only offer the motion one calendar day after the 
day on which that Member declares to the House his intention to 
offer such a discharge motion. A motion to discharge a 
committee is not in order if that committee has already 
reported a disapproval bill with respect to the same message. 
In other words, once a committee has reported a disapproval 
bill, with or without recommendation, it is not in order for a 
Member to seek to discharge another disapproval bill relating 
to the same special message. The one day notice requirement is 
needed to maintain the majority leadership's ability to set the 
daily legislative schedule. This one day notice requirement 
also provides all Members of the House with an opportunity to 
review the disapproval bill and the issues involved before its 
actual consideration.
    The motion to discharge is a privileged motion debatable 
for one hour equally divided and controlled by a proponent and 
an opponent. After completion of debate a vote on the motion 
occurs without any intervening motion. After the vote, a motion 
to reconsider the vote is not in order. Also, once a motion to 
discharge a disapproval bill has been considered by the House 
and either adopted or rejected, no other motion to discharge a 
disapproval bill with respect to the same message is in order 
under the expedited procedures. The House at this point has 
already declared its position on whether or not to consider a 
particular disapproval bill. If the motion is adopted, the 
expedited procedures for the affected bill continue. If the 
motion is rejected, the expedited procedures become 
inoperative.
    Of course, a special rule can always be granted by the 
Rules Committee to grant floor consideration of a disapproval 
bill.

                      4. house floor consideration

    House floor consideration of a disapproval bill follows a 
process similar to that given a bill through a special rule 
granted by the Rules Committee. Once a disapproval bill has 
been discharged or reported, it is in order to move that the 
House resolve into the Committee of the Whole House on the 
State of the Union for consideration of the disapproval bill. 
If the bill has been reported and has laid over at least one 
calendar day prior to its consideration by the full House then 
all points of order are waived against the disapproval bill and 
against its consideration. This is intended to provide Members 
with at least one day between the conclusion of committee 
action and floor consideration to review the disapproval bill. 
General debate on the disapproval bill is confined to an hour 
equally divided and controlled by a proponent and an opponent 
of the bill.

                    5. amending the disapproval bill

    Upon conclusion of general debate, the disapproval bill is 
considered as having been read for amendment under the five 
minute rule. Only one motion to rise from the Committee of the 
Whole is allowed unless that motion is offered by the manager 
of the bill.
    Certain requirements are placed on the amending process. Up 
to this point the expedited procedures have not allowed the 
disapproval bill to be amended. However, on the House floor the 
opportunity for amendment exists. In order to offer an 
amendment, a Member must establish that forty-nine other 
Members of the House support the amendment, a quorum being 
present. This process is similar to that contained in other 
disapproval procedures and provides for a ``temperature check'' 
to determine whether or not there is sufficient support to 
justify the use of House floor time for consideration of the 
amendment. If the Member seeking to offer the amendment cannot 
muster the required level of support, that Member may not offer 
the amendment. If the level of support is sufficient, the 
amendment may be debated under the five minute rule.
    It is important to note that restrictions are also placed 
on the type of amendments that may be offered. Only amendments 
to strike the reference number of a cancellation(s) from a 
disapproval bill are in order. This amendment process allows 
Members wishing to narrow the focus of the disapproval bill to 
strike the cancellation(s) they do not wish to disapprove. 
Those references they do wish to disapprove would remain. In 
other words, this is a process that allows Members to isolate a 
specific cancellation for an up or down vote. Since this is a 
disapproval process, removing a reference number from the 
disapproval bill is tantamount to agreeing with the President's 
cancellation of that item.
    The expedited procedures protect all allowable amendments 
from any further substantive amendment and limit the total time 
for the amendment process to one hour, excluding the time for 
recorded votes and quorum calls. It is conceivable that the 
entire hour of time allowed for amendments could be consumed by 
the consideration of only one amendment.





                    6. voting on a disapproval bill

    At the conclusion of consideration of the bill for 
amendment the Committee will rise and report the bill back to 
the House. Amendments adopted to the disapproval bill in the 
Committee of the Whole are still subject to adoption either 
separately or en bloc in the House. A motion to reconsider the 
vote on final passage is not in order.
    It is important to recognize that the Line Item Veto Act is 
premised on an enhanced rescission model and so the actual 
significance of the final passage vote can be confusing. A vote 
in favor of the disapproval bill is a vote to reverse the 
deficit reduction the President sought--i.e. to increase 
spending or allow a limited tax benefit to take effect. A vote 
against the disapproval bill is a vote to agree with the 
President's cancellation(s).

                     E. Consideration in the senate

    Expedited procedures for the consideration of a disapproval 
bill in the Senate are also provided by the Line Item Veto Act. 
They help ensure that a disapproval bill approved by the House 
will not get bottled up in the legislative process of the 
Senate. While the Senate is quite different from the House in 
its rules and procedures, these special procedures provide some 
degree of assurance to the House that the Senate will consider 
a House-passed disapproval. For a more detailed analysis of the 
Senate procedures see pages 27-28 of the conference report on 
S. 4 (H. Rept. 104-491).

              F. A conference report on a disapproval bill

    Due to the different House and Senate expedited procedures 
for consideration of a disapproval bill, it is quite possible 
that the House and the Senate will not pass the same version of 
a disapproval bill and that a conference will be necessary. The 
expedited procedures also attempt, to the greatest extent 
possible, to accelerate the consideration of a disapproval bill 
by a committee of conference. Under the regular order there are 
no rules governing the conduct of a conference committee. 
However, numerous rules in both the House and Senate govern the 
floor consideration of a conference report.
    Under the expedited procedures, a conference report on a 
disapproval bill can be considered by the House provided the 
conference report has been available to the House for at least 
one day prior. Debate on the conference report and any 
amendments in disagreement each is limited to one hour and is 
equally divided between a proponent and an opponent. The 
conference report may only include those cancellations which 
were in either the House version or Senate version of the 
disapproval bill or both. A motion to recommit and a motion to 
reconsider the vote on final adoption are not in order. This 
process is expedited from the regular process in order to 
maintain Congress' ability to complete consideration of the 
disapproval bill within the thirty calendar day of session time 
period.
    Upon passage of a conference report on a disapproval bill, 
the bill is sent to the President for signature or veto just 
like any other bill.

     G. Consideration of a presidential veto of a disapproval bill

    If the President were to veto a disapproval bill, both the 
House and the Senate would have to muster a two-thirds majority 
override vote to pass the bill as required by Article I, 
Section 7, Clause 2 of the Constitution. It is presumed that, 
if the President canceled the items from the original bill, a 
bill to disapprove those cancellations would be vetoed by that 
same President.
    The two-thirds majority override vote is the hammer in the 
line item veto process that tilts the scales of the budget and 
rescissions process against spending taxpayer dollars and 
extending limited tax benefits. Spending money, increasing the 
deficit, and allowing limited tax benefits to take effect are 
likely to be more difficult to do as a result of the line item 
veto.

         IV. Checklist For Congressional Response in the House

         How can a Member reverse a President's line item veto?

     Introduce a disapproval bill
          Be sure it is in the proper form (it must include all 
        cancellations from the President's special message)
          To qualify for expedited procedures, introduce it 
        within 5 calendar days of session (days both the House 
        and Senate are in session)
     Secure floor consideration
          If the committee(s) of jurisdiction report(s) within 
        7 calendar days of session, a Member may move to bring 
        the bill up on the floor after one day of layover
          If the committee(s) of jurisdiction fail(s) to report 
        within the 7 calendar days of session, a Member may 
        announce his intention to move to discharge the 
        committee(s) of jurisdiction. That announcement must 
        occur at least one calendar day prior to the motion to 
        discharge
     Amend the bill
          The only amendments in order on the floor are those 
        that seek to strike one or more reference numbers for 
        cancellations from the bill
          In order to offer an amendment, a Member must secure 
        the support of 49 of his colleagues, a quorum being 
        present
          Members may seek to narrow the focus of the 
        disapproval bill in order to isolate one provision and 
        increase support for the bill's passage. (Determining 
        how to use the amendment process is a strategic 
        decision based on a calculation of how best to 
        disapprove a cancellation of the provision you care 
        most about)
     The House and Senate must agree on the same 
disapproval bill and send it to the President
     The President may sign the disapproval bill, allow 
it to become law without a signature or veto the disapproval 
bill
     If the bill is vetoed, the Congress must muster a 
vote of two-thirds of both Houses to override

     What happens to the canceled provision(s) during this process?

     The cancellation is effective upon receipt by 
Congress of the President's special message
     If a disapproval bill is enacted into law, the 
cancellation is null and void and the provision(s) that had 
been canceled take effect as of the date of enactment of the 
original law from which they were canceled
     If a disapproval bill is not enacted into law 
within the 30 calendar days of session provided for expedited 
Congressional consideration, the canceled provision remains 
canceled and ten days later the lockbox mechanism takes effect 
to ensure that the deficit reduction occurs

                    What does a Member's vote mean?

     A disapproval bill seeks to reverse the 
President's cancellation(s)
     Voting for a disapproval bill means you oppose the 
President's cancellation(s); it means you wish to spend the 
money or extend the limited tax benefit(s) affected by the 
cancellation(s)
     Voting against a disapproval bill means you 
support the President's cancellation(s) and wish to reduce the 
deficit by saving the money or denying the limited tax 
benefit(s) affected by the cancellation
     Voting for an amendment to a disapproval bill that 
strikes references to one or several cancellation(s) means that 
you agree with the President's cancellation of those specific 
programs referenced

            What is the benefit of the expedited procedures?

     Congress may, at any time, pass a disapproval bill 
relating to a President's use of the line item veto authority. 
However, because the cancellation(s) remain(s) in effect until 
a disapproval bill is enacted and because of the lockbox 
mechanism (which is necessary to ensure that the line item veto 
is used for deficit reduction), it makes sense to seek 
disapproval in an expedited manner
     In addition, the expedited procedures ensure that 
Congress has the ability to enact a disapproval bill in a 
timely manner, even though the bias in this process is tilted 
toward savings and deficit reduction.





     TABLE 1.--EXPLANATIONS OF STEPS OF CONGRESSIONAL CONSIDERATION     
         Reference numbers correspond to the numbers in figure 3        
------------------------------------------------------------------------
 Step                                                                   
  No.                 Further explanation of actions taken              
------------------------------------------------------------------------
   (1) President signs original appropriation, authorization or         
        reconciliation bill into law as authorized under Article I of   
        the Constitution.                                               
   (2) President cancels ``items'' in the original bill and sends       
        Congress a special cancellation message within five calendar    
        days (excluding Sundays) of the signature of the original       
        bill. ``Items'' are defined by the act to only include dollar   
        amounts of discretionary budget authority, items of new direct  
        spending or limited tax benefits.                               
   (3) The special message is received by both the House and Senate on  
        the same day. The special message is referred to the House      
        Budget Committee and to the appropriate committee(s) of         
        jurisdiction in the House. The special message is printed as a  
        document of the House of Representatives. The special message   
        is also printed in the Federal Register.                        
   (4) The special message is also referred to the Senate Budget        
        Committee and the appropriate committee (s) of jurisdiction in  
        the Senate.                                                     
   (5) The cancellations take effect when the special message of the    
        President has been received by Congress. The 30 day time clock  
        for Congressional consideration starts the first calendar day   
        of session after the date of the President's submission of the  
        special message. A calendar day of session is a day in which    
        both the House and the Senate are in session.                   
  (6A) A disapproval bill is introduced after the fifth calendar day    
        of session and therefore does not qualify for the expedited     
        procedures. The bill would be subject to the normal House       
        rules for the consideration of a bill.                          
  (6B) A disapproval bill is introduced no later than the fifth         
        calendar day of session, in order to qualify for the expedited  
        procedures and is referred to the appropriate committee(s).     
        The introduced bill in the House must disapprove all of the     
        cancellations in the President's message when introduced in     
        order to qualify for the expedited procedures.                  
  (6C) A disapproval bill is not introduced and the President's         
        cancellation stands.                                            
   (7) By the seventh calendar day of session after its introduction,   
        the disapproval bill must be reported without amendment and     
        with or without recommendation from the committee(s) in order   
        to qualify for the expedited procedures. Once reported and any  
        report on such a bill has laid over (for availability) for at   
        least one day, the bill is eligible for House floor             
        consideration.                                                  
   (8) One or more of the committees to which the disapproval bill may  
        choose not to act on the bill.                                  
   (9) If a committee or committees do not report the bill within the   
        specified time period, any Member of the House in support of    
        the bill may move to discharge those committees from further    
        consideration of the bill. This motion can only be made one     
        day after the Member making the motion has announced to the     
        House that he intends to do so. All points of order are waived  
        against the motion. The motion is debatable for one hour        
        equally divided and controlled and is not amendable. Only one   
        motion to discharge is allowed for floor consideration for      
        each disapproval bill. For example, if such a motion is         
        defeated, it is not in order to consider another motion to      
        discharge for that bill.                                        
  (10) Once committee(s) have either reported or been discharged from   
        further consideration, the bill is eligible for consideration   
        by the House under expedited procedures with certain            
        restrictions. The bill is debatable for one hour equally        
        divided and controlled. All points of order are waived against  
        the bill except that relating to the layover requirement.       
 (10A) The Line Item Veto Act provides expedited consideration of the   
        disapproval bill in the Senate. For further details regarding   
        these procedures consult pages 27-28 of the conference report   
        on Public Law 104-491.                                          
 (10B) The disapproval bill is eligible for amendment on the floor of   
        the House. The disapproval bill has not been amendable up to    
        this point in the expedited procedures. Any Member who can      
        demonstrate the support of 49 other Members, a quorum being     
        present, for an amendment may offer that amendment. However,    
        amendments to the bill can only strike a reference number(s)    
        from the disapproval bill. The bill is read for amendment       
        under the five minute rule and the entire time period for the   
        amendment process is limited to 1 hour.                         
  (11) If the Senate completes consideration of a disapproval bill and  
        it is different than that passed by the House, there may be a   
        conference with the Senate to resolve the disagreement. If the  
        Senate passed version is identical to that passed by the        
        House, the bill is ready to go to the President for signature.  
  (12) If there is disagreement between the two houses, a conference    
        is to be convened promptly.                                     
  (13) Consideration of any conference report and any amendment in      
        disagreement on a disapproval bill is also given expedited      
        consideration in the House. Such conference reports and         
        amendments are each debatable for one hour equally divided and  
        controlled. Upon passage the bill proceeds to the Senate or to  
        the President.                                                  
  (14) Consideration of any conference report on a disapproval bill is  
        also given expedited consideration in the Senate. Refer to      
        page 28 of the conference report on Public Law 104-491 for      
        further details.                                                
  (15) Upon passage of both Houses, the disapproval bill is sent to     
        the President for signature. The President has the              
        Constitutional ten calendar days in which to make this          
        decision.                                                       
  (16) If the President signs the disapproval bill, the disapproved     
        cancellations do not take effect.                               
  (17) If the President vetoes the disapproval bill, Congress needs a   
        two-thirds majority of both Houses to override the veto. If     
        override occurs, the cancellations are nullified. If override   
        fails, the cancellations remain in effect.                      
------------------------------------------------------------------------


                             
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