[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 78 (Friday, May 23, 2003)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7160-S7162]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           TEXT OF AMENDMENTS

  SA 832. Mr. KENNEDY (for himself, Mrs. Clinton, Mr. Sarbanes, Mr. 
Durbin, Mr. Reed, Mr. Dayton, Ms. Cantwell, Mr. Daschle, and Mr. Reid) 
submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by him to the joint 
resolution H.J. Res. 51, increasing the statutory limit on the public 
debt; as follows:

       At the end add the following:

[[Page S7161]]

     SEC. 2. EXTENSION OF THE TEMPORARY EXTENDED UNEMPLOYMENT 
                   COMPENSATION ACT OF 2002.

       (a) In General.--Section 208 of the Temporary Extended 
     Unemployment Compensation Act of 2002 (Public Law 107-147; 
     116 Stat. 30), as amended by Public Law 108-1 (117 Stat. 3), 
     is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a)(2), by striking ``before June 1'' and 
     inserting ``on or before December 31'';
       (2) in subsection (b)(1), by striking ``May 31, 2003'' and 
     inserting ``December 31, 2003'';
       (3) in subsection (b)(2)--
       (A) in the heading, by striking ``may 31, 2003'' and 
     inserting ``december 31, 2003''; and
       (B) by striking ``May 31, 2003'' and inserting ``December 
     31, 2003''; and
       (4) in subsection (b)(3), by striking ``August 30, 2003'' 
     and inserting ``March 31, 2004''.
       (b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section 
     shall take effect as if included in the enactment of the 
     Temporary Extended Unemployment Compensation Act of 2002 
     (Public Law 107-147; 116 Stat. 21).

     SEC. 3. ADDITIONAL WEEKS OF TEMPORARY EXTENDED UNEMPLOYMENT 
                   COMPENSATION FOR EXHAUSTEES.

       (a) Additional Weeks.--Section 203 of the Temporary 
     Extended Unemployment Compensation Act of 2002 (Public Law 
     107-147; 116 Stat. 28) is amended by adding at the end the 
     following:
       ``(d) Increased Amounts in Account for Certain 
     Exhaustees.--
       ``(1) In general.--In the case of an eligible exhaustee, 
     this Act shall be applied as follows:
       ``(A) Subsection (b)(1)(A) shall be applied by substituting 
     `100 percent' for `50 percent'.
       ``(B) Subsection (b)(1)(B) shall be applied by substituting 
     `26 times' for `13 times'.
       ``(C) Subsection (c)(1) shall be applied by substituting `7 
     times the individual's average weekly benefit amount for the 
     benefit year' for `the amount originally established in such 
     account (as determined under subsection (b)(1))'.
       ``(D) Section 208(b) shall be applied--
       ``(i) in paragraph (1), as if ``, including such 
     compensation payable by reason of amounts deposited in such 
     account after such date pursuant to the application of 
     subsection (c) of such section'' were inserted before the 
     period at the end;
       ``(ii) as if paragraph (2) had not been enacted; and
       ``(iii) in paragraph (3), by substituting ``October 18, 
     2003'' for ``March 31, 2004''.
       ``(2) Eligible exhaustee defined.--For purposes of this 
     subsection, the term `eligible exhaustee' means an 
     individual--
       ``(A) to whom any temporary extended unemployment 
     compensation was payable for any week beginning before the 
     date of enactment of this subsection; and
       ``(B) who exhausted such individual's rights to such 
     compensation (by reason of the payment of all amounts in such 
     individual's temporary extended unemployment compensation 
     account, including amounts deposited in such account by 
     reason of subsection (c)) before such date of enactment.''.
       (b) Effective Date and Application.--
       (1) In general.--The amendment made by subsection (a) shall 
     apply with respect to weeks of unemployment beginning on or 
     after the date of enactment this Act.
       (2) TEUC-X amounts deposited in account prior to date of 
     enactment deemed to be the additional teuc amounts provided 
     by this section.--In applying the amendment made by 
     subsection (a) under the Temporary Extended Unemployment 
     Compensation Act of 2002 (Public Law 107-147; 116 Stat. 26), 
     the Secretary of Labor shall deem any amounts deposited into 
     an eligible exhaustee's (as defined in section 203(d)(2) of 
     the Temporary Extended Unemployment Compensation Act of 2002, 
     as added by subsection (a)) temporary extended unemployment 
     compensation account by reason of section 203(c) of such Act 
     (commonly known as ``TEUC-X amounts'') prior to the date of 
     enactment of this Act to be amounts deposited in such account 
     by reason of section 203(b) of such Act, as amended by 
     subsection (a) (commonly known as ``TEUC amounts'').
       (3) Redetermination of eligibility for augmented amounts 
     for all eligible exhaustees.--The determination of whether 
     the eligible exhaustee's (as so defined) State was in an 
     extended benefit period under section 203(c) of such Act that 
     was made prior to the date of enactment of this Act shall be 
     disregarded and the determination under such section, as 
     amended by subsection (a) with respect to eligible exhaustees 
     (as so defined), shall be made as follows:
       (A) Eligible exhaustees who received and exhausted teuc-x 
     amounts.--In the case of an eligible exhaustee whose 
     temporary extended unemployment account was augmented under 
     such section 203(c) before the date of enactment of this Act, 
     the determination shall be made as of such date of enactment.
       (B) Eligible exhaustees who exhausted teuc amounts but were 
     not eligible for teuc-x amounts.--In the case of an eligible 
     exhaustee whose temporary extended unemployment account was 
     not augmented under such section 203(c) as of the date of 
     enactment of this Act, the determination shall be made at the 
     time that the individual's account established under section 
     203 of the Temporary Extended Unemployment Compensation Act 
     of 2002 (Public Law 107-147; 116 Stat. 28), as amended by 
     subsection (a), is exhausted.

     SEC. 4. TEMPORARY AVAILABILITY OF EXTENDED UNEMPLOYMENT 
                   BENEFITS UNDER THE RAILROAD UNEMPLOYMENT 
                   INSURANCE ACT FOR EMPLOYEES WITH LESS THAN 10 
                   YEARS OF SERVICE.

       Section 2(c)(2) of the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act 
     (45 U.S.C. 352(c)(2)) is amended by adding at the end the 
     following:
       ``(D) Temporary availability of extended unemployment 
     benefits for employees with less than 10 years of service.--
       ``(i) In general.--Subject to clause (ii), in the case of 
     an employee who has less than 10 years of service (as so 
     defined), with respect to extended unemployment benefits, 
     this paragraph shall apply to such an employee in the same 
     manner as this paragraph applies to an employee who has 10 or 
     more years of service (as so defined).
       ``(ii) Application.--Clause (i) shall apply to--

       ``(I) an employee who received normal benefits for days of 
     unemployment under this Act during the period beginning on 
     July 1, 2002, and ending on November 30, 2003; and
       ``(II) days of unemployment beginning on or after the date 
     of enactment of this subparagraph.''.

                                 ______
                                 
  SA 833. Mr. BAUCUS proposed an amendment to the joint resolution H.J. 
Res. 51, increasing the statutory limit on the public debt; as follows:

       Strike ``7,384,000,000,000'' and insert 
     ``6,750,000,000,000''.
                                 ______
                                 
  SA 834. Mr. DASCHLE proposed an amendment to the joint resolution 
H.J. Res. 51, increasing the statutory limit on the public debt; as 
follows:

       At the appropriate place add the following:

     SEC.   . PROTECTING SOCIAL SECURITY BENEFICIARIES FROM COLA 
                   CUTS.

       (a) Findings.--The Senate finds that:
       (1) Social Security provides a relatively modest insurance 
     benefit for seniors--many of whom rely on Social Security for 
     part or all of their monthly income. Without Social Security, 
     forty eight percent of beneficiaries would be in poverty 
     today.
       (2) In order to protect benefit levels against inflation, 
     Social Security beneficiaries receive an annual cost-of-
     living adjustment (COLA) based on Consumer Price Index for 
     Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W).
       (3) The January 2003 COLA provided only a 1.4 percent 
     increase in Social Security benefits, increasing the average 
     monthly benefit for all retired workers by only $13 (from 
     $882 to 895).
       (4) Annual growth in Medicare premiums and out-of-pocket 
     health care costs for retired individuals on fixed incomes 
     far exceeded the small COLA increases provided to Social 
     Security beneficiaries.
       (5) Reducing COLAs will disproportionately harm low-income 
     Social Security beneficiaries and push millions of seniors 
     into poverty.
       (b) Sense of the Senate.--It is the sense of the Senate 
     that Social Security cost-of-living adjustments should not be 
     reduced.
                                 ______
                                 
  SA 835. Mr. FEINGOLD (for himself, Mr. Carper, Ms. Cantwell, and Mrs. 
Feinstein) proposed an amendment to the joint resolution H.J. Res. 51, 
increasing the statutory limit on the public debt; as follows:

       At the appropriate place, insert the following:

     SEC.   . EXTENSION OF PAY-AS-YOU-GO.

       (a) In General.--Section 275(b) of the Balanced Budget and 
     Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (2 U.S.C. 900 note) is 
     amended by striking ``2006'' and inserting ``2008''.
       (b) Extension of Pay-As-You-Go.--Section 252 of the 
     Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (2 
     U.S.C. 902) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a), by striking ``2002'' and inserting 
     ``2008''; and
       (2) in subsection (b), by striking ``2002'' and inserting 
     ``2008''.
       (c) Application.--Section 252 of the Balanced Budget and 
     Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (2 U.S.C. 902), as 
     amended by this section, shall not apply to direct spending 
     and receipts legislation enacted prior to the enactment of 
     this section.
       (d) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section 
     shall take effect September 30, 2002.
                                 ______
                                 
  SA 836. Mr. HOLLINGS proposed an amendment to the joint resolution 
H.J. Res. 51, increasing the statutory limit on the public debt; as 
follows:

       At the appropriate place, insert the following:

     SECTION 1. APPLICABILITY OF PUBLIC DEBT LIMIT TO SOCIAL 
                   SECURITY TRUST FUNDS.

       (a) Protection of Social Security Trust Funds.--
       (1) Delay or failure to invest.--No officer or employee of 
     the United States shall--
       (A) delay the deposit of any amount into (or delay the 
     credit of any amount to) any social security trust fund or 
     otherwise vary from the normal terms, procedures, or timing 
     for making such deposits or credits; or
       (B) refrain from the investment in public debt obligations 
     of amounts in any such fund.
       (2) Early redemption.--No officer or employee of the United 
     States shall redeem prior to maturity amounts in any social 
     security trust fund which are invested in public debt 
     obligations for any other purpose

[[Page S7162]]

     other than payment of benefits or administrative expenses 
     from such fund.
       (b) Definition.--In this section, the term ``public debt 
     obligation'' means any obligation subject to the public debt 
     limit established under section 3101 of title 31, United 
     States Code.

     SEC. 2. CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.

       Subsections (j), (k), and (l) of section 8348 and 
     subsections (g) and (h) of section 8438 of title 5, United 
     States Code, are repealed.
                                 ______
                                 
  SA 837. Mr. DORGAN proposed an amendment to the joint resolution H.J. 
Res. 51, increasing the statutory limit on the public debt; as follows:

       At the appropriate place, insert the following:

     SEC. ____. FOREIGN DEBT CEILING.

       (a) Findings.--Congress makes the following findings:
       (1) The United States has become the world's largest net 
     debtor Nation, having run up massive trade deficits in the 
     1990s.
       (2) At the end of 2001, the net United States foreign debt 
     stood at over $2,300,000,000,000.
       (3) The United States foreign debt position worsened in 
     2002, when the United States had a record trade deficit of 
     over $436,000,000,000, equivalent to 4.1 percent of the 
     United States GDP that year.
       (4) The large and growing United States foreign debt 
     represents claims on United States assets by foreign 
     nationals, which will eventually have to be repaid. If 
     unchecked, the foreign debt could seriously undermine our 
     children's future standard of living.
       (5) Moreover, the growing accumulation of foreign claims on 
     United States assets, including nearly $1,200,000,000,000 in 
     United States Treasury securities, makes the United States 
     economy vulnerable to the whims of foreign investors.
       (6) Congress presently places a ceiling on United States 
     public debt, but does not place a ceiling on United States 
     foreign debt.
       (7) Just as Congress recognized the importance of placing a 
     ceiling on the United States public debt, it is appropriate 
     that Congress place a limit on the United States foreign 
     debt.
       (b) Actions Triggered by United States Foreign Debt.--
       (1) In general.--Not later than the 15th day of the second 
     month after the date of enactment of this Act, and every 3 
     months thereafter, the United States Trade Representative 
     shall determine if--
       (A) the net United States foreign debt for the preceding 
     12-month period is more than 25 percent of United States GDP 
     for the same period; or
       (B) the United States trade deficit for the preceding 12-
     month period is more than 5 percent of United States GDP for 
     the same period.
       (2) Action by ustr.--Whenever an affirmative determination 
     is made under paragraph (1) (A) or (B), the United States 
     Trade Representative shall--
       (A) within 15 days of the determination, convene an 
     emergency meeting of the Trade Policy Review Group to develop 
     a plan of action to reduce the United States trade deficit; 
     and
       (B) within 45 days of the determination, present to 
     Congress a report detailing the Trade Policy Review Group's 
     trade deficit reduction plan.
       (c) Measurement of Foreign Debt.--
       (1) Statistical sources.--For purposes of the calculations 
     described in subsection (b)(1), the United States Trade 
     Representative shall rely on the most recent period for which 
     the following data, published by the Department of Commerce, 
     is available:
       (A) In the case of United States foreign debt, the United 
     States Trade Representative shall use the net international 
     investment position of the United States, with direct 
     investment positions determined at market value, as compiled 
     by the Bureau of Economic Analysis.
       (B) In the case of the United States trade deficit, the 
     United States Trade Representative shall use the goods and 
     services trade deficit data compiled by the United States 
     Census Bureau.
       (C) In the case of the United States GDP, the United States 
     Trade Representative shall use the nominal gross domestic 
     product data compiled by the Bureau of Economic Analysis.
       (2) Adjustment.--The United States Trade Representative may 
     adjust the data described in paragraph (1) to ensure that the 
     determination is made for comparable time periods.
                                 ______
                                 
  SA 838. Mr. HARKIN proposed an amendment to the joint resolution H.J. 
Res. 51, increasing the statutory limit on the public debt; as follows:

       At the appropriate place, insert:

     SEC. ____. TELL THE TRUE COST OF TAX BILLS.

       (a) In General.--If the Joint Committee on Taxation 
     prepares an estimate of any applicable proposed change in 
     Federal revenue law, the committee shall include with such 
     estimate an estimate of the decrease in Federal revenues 
     which--
       (1) in the case of an applicable proposed change described 
     in subsection (b)(1), would have occurred without regard to 
     the reduction or termination described in such subsection 
     during the portion of the period covered by the estimate 
     after the reduction or termination, and
       (2) in the case of an applicable proposed change described 
     in subsection (b)(2), will occur during the 10-fiscal year 
     period beginning with the fiscal year following the first 
     fiscal year in which the proposed change becomes fully 
     effective.
       (b) Applicable Proposed Change.--For purposes of this 
     section, the term ``applicable proposed change'' means any of 
     the following proposed changes in Federal revenue law:
       (1) Sunset or reduced changes.--Any proposed change which--
       (A) when fully effective will have an estimated decrease in 
     Federal revenues of more than $1,000,000,000 in each fiscal 
     year, and
       (B) provides for the termination of such change, or a 
     reduction in such revenue decrease, on or before the close of 
     the period covered by the estimate which the Joint Committee 
     on Taxation is otherwise preparing for such proposed change.
       (2) Delay in full effect.--Any proposed change which--
       (A) becomes fully effective at any time during the last 4 
     years of the period covered by the estimate which the Joint 
     Committee on Taxation is otherwise preparing for such 
     proposed change, and
       (B) when fully effective will have an estimated decrease in 
     Federal revenues of more than $1,000,000,000 in each fiscal 
     year.
                                 ______
                                 
  SA 839. Mr. DURBIN proposed an amendment to the joint resolution H.J. 
Res. 51, increasing the statutory limit on the public debt; as follows:

       At the end of the resolution, insert the following:

     SEC. ____. CBO REPORT ON DEBT IMPACT OF BUDGET RESOLUTION.

       Section 301 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 (2 
     U.S.C. 632) is amended by adding at the end the following:
       ``(j) CBO Debt Impact Report.--Each budget resolution 
     reported out by the Committee on the Budget of the House of 
     Representatives or the Senate shall be accompanied by a 
     report from CBO containing CBO's best estimate of the 
     following:
       ``(1) The amount of new debt subject to limit, in aggregate 
     and divided by the most recent estimate of the United States 
     population, according to the Bureau of the Census, that would 
     be created if the budget resolution is adhered to, assuming 
     reserve funds are spent and reconciliation instructions are 
     fully complied with.
       ``(2) The amount of new debt subject to limit, if any, in 
     aggregate and divided by the most recent estimate of the 
     United States population, according to the Bureau of the 
     Census, that would have been created if the budget resolution 
     simply reflected the CBO baseline without policy changes.
       ``(3) The difference between paragraphs (1) and (2).
       ``(4) Of the amount determined in paragraph (3)--
       ``(A) the amount of new debt subject to limit, in aggregate 
     and divided by the most recent estimate of the United States 
     population, according to the Bureau of the Census, that is 
     attributable to tax changes; and
       ``(B) the amount of new debt subject to limit, in aggregate 
     and divided by the most recent estimate of the United States 
     population, according to the Bureau of the Census, that is 
     attributable to policy changes other than tax changes.''.

                          ____________________