[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 176 (Thursday, December 12, 2013)]
[House]
[Pages H8053-H8084]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
{time} 1630
CONTINUING APPROPRIATIONS RESOLUTION, 2014
Mr. RYAN of Wisconsin. Mr. Speaker, pursuant to House Resolution 438,
I call up the joint resolution (H.J. Res. 59) making continuing
appropriations for fiscal year 2014, and for other purposes, with the
House amendment to the Senate amendment thereto, and I have a motion at
the desk.
The Clerk read the title of the joint resolution.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Hastings of Washington). The Clerk will
designate the Senate amendment.
[[Page H8054]]
The text of the Senate amendment is as follows:
Senate amendment:
Strike all after the first word and insert the following:
the following sums are hereby appropriated, out of any money
in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, and out of
applicable corporate or other revenues, receipts, and funds,
for the several departments, agencies, corporations, and
other organizational units of Government for fiscal year
2014, and for other purposes, namely:
Sec. 101. (a) Such amounts as may be necessary, at a rate
for operations as provided in the applicable appropriations
Acts for fiscal year 2013 and under the authority and
conditions provided in such Acts, for continuing projects or
activities (including the costs of direct loans and loan
guarantees) that are not otherwise specifically provided for
in this joint resolution, that were conducted in fiscal year
2013, and for which appropriations, funds, or other authority
were made available in the following appropriations Acts:
(1) The Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug
Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2013
(division A of Public Law 113-6), except section 735.
(2) The Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies
Appropriations Act, 2013 (division B of Public Law 113-6).
(3) The Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 2013
(division C of Public Law 113-6).
(4) The Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act,
2013 (division D of Public Law 113-6).
(5) The Military Construction and Veterans Affairs, and
Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2013 (division E of
Public Law 113-6).
(6) The Full-Year Continuing Appropriations Act, 2013
(division F of Public Law 113-6).
(b) The rate for operations provided by subsection (a) for
each account shall be calculated to reflect the full amount
of any reduction required in fiscal year 2013 pursuant to--
(1) any provision of division G of the Consolidated and
Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2013 (Public Law 113-
6), including section 3004; and
(2) the Presidential sequestration order dated March 1,
2013, except as attributable to budget authority made
available by--
(A) sections 140(b) or 141(b) of the Continuing
Appropriations Resolution, 2013 (Public Law 112-175); or
(B) the Disaster Relief Appropriations Act, 2013 (Public
Law 113-2).
Sec. 102. (a) No appropriation or funds made available or
authority granted pursuant to section 101 for the Department
of Defense shall be used for: (1) the new production of items
not funded for production in fiscal year 2013 or prior years;
(2) the increase in production rates above those sustained
with fiscal year 2013 funds; or (3) the initiation,
resumption, or continuation of any project, activity,
operation, or organization (defined as any project,
subproject, activity, budget activity, program element, and
subprogram within a program element, and for any investment
items defined as a P-1 line item in a budget activity within
an appropriation account and an R-1 line item that includes a
program element and subprogram element within an
appropriation account) for which appropriations, funds, or
other authority were not available during fiscal year 2013.
(b) No appropriation or funds made available or authority
granted pursuant to section 101 for the Department of Defense
shall be used to initiate multi-year procurements utilizing
advance procurement funding for economic order quantity
procurement unless specifically appropriated later.
Sec. 103. Appropriations made by section 101 shall be
available to the extent and in the manner that would be
provided by the pertinent appropriations Act.
Sec. 104. Except as otherwise provided in section 102, no
appropriation or funds made available or authority granted
pursuant to section 101 shall be used to initiate or resume
any project or activity for which appropriations, funds, or
other authority were not available during fiscal year 2013.
Sec. 105. Appropriations made and authority granted
pursuant to this joint resolution shall cover all obligations
or expenditures incurred for any project or activity during
the period for which funds or authority for such project or
activity are available under this joint resolution.
Sec. 106. Unless otherwise provided for in this joint
resolution or in the applicable appropriations Act for fiscal
year 2014, appropriations and funds made available and
authority granted pursuant to this joint resolution shall be
available until whichever of the following first occurs: (1)
the enactment into law of an appropriation for any project or
activity provided for in this joint resolution; (2) the
enactment into law of the applicable appropriations Act for
fiscal year 2014 without any provision for such project or
activity; or (3) November 15, 2013.
Sec. 107. Expenditures made pursuant to this joint
resolution shall be charged to the applicable appropriation,
fund, or authorization whenever a bill in which such
applicable appropriation, fund, or authorization is contained
is enacted into law.
Sec. 108. Appropriations made and funds made available by
or authority granted pursuant to this joint resolution may be
used without regard to the time limitations for submission
and approval of apportionments set forth in section 1513 of
title 31, United States Code, but nothing in this joint
resolution may be construed to waive any other provision of
law governing the apportionment of funds.
Sec. 109. Notwithstanding any other provision of this
joint resolution, except section 106, for those programs that
would otherwise have high initial rates of operation or
complete distribution of appropriations at the beginning of
fiscal year 2014 because of distributions of funding to
States, foreign countries, grantees, or others, such high
initial rates of operation or complete distribution shall not
be made, and no grants shall be awarded for such programs
funded by this joint resolution that would impinge on final
funding prerogatives.
Sec. 110. This joint resolution shall be implemented so
that only the most limited funding action of that permitted
in the joint resolution shall be taken in order to provide
for continuation of projects and activities.
Sec. 111. (a) For entitlements and other mandatory payments
whose budget authority was provided in appropriations Acts
for fiscal year 2013, and for activities under the Food and
Nutrition Act of 2008, activities shall be continued at the
rate to maintain program levels under current law, under the
authority and conditions provided in the applicable
appropriations Act for fiscal year 2013, to be continued
through the date specified in section 106(3).
(b) Notwithstanding section 106, obligations for mandatory
payments due on or about the first day of any month that
begins after October 2013 but not later than 30 days after
the date specified in section 106(3) may continue to be made,
and funds shall be available for such payments.
Sec. 112. Amounts made available under section 101 for
civilian personnel compensation and benefits in each
department and agency may be apportioned up to the rate for
operations necessary to avoid furloughs within such
department or agency, consistent with the applicable
appropriations Act for fiscal year 2013, except that such
authority provided under this section shall not be used until
after the department or agency has taken all necessary
actions to reduce or defer non-personnel-related
administrative expenses.
Sec. 113. Funds appropriated by this joint resolution may
be obligated and expended notwithstanding section 10 of
Public Law 91-672 (22 U.S.C. 2412), section 15 of the State
Department Basic Authorities Act of 1956 (22 U.S.C. 2680),
section 313 of the Foreign Relations Authorization Act,
Fiscal Years 1994 and 1995 (22 U.S.C. 6212), and section
504(a)(1) of the National Security Act of 1947 (50 U.S.C.
3094(a)(1)).
Sec. 114. (a) Each amount incorporated by reference in this
joint resolution that was previously designated by the
Congress for Overseas Contingency Operations/Global War on
Terrorism pursuant to section 251(b)(2)(A) of the Balanced
Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 or as being
for disaster relief pursuant to section 251(b)(2)(D) of such
Act is designated by the Congress for Overseas Contingency
Operations/Global War on Terrorism pursuant to section
251(b)(2)(A) of such Act or as being for disaster relief
pursuant to section 251(b)(2)(D) of such Act, respectively.
(b) Of the amounts made available by section 101 for
``Social Security Administration, Limitation on
Administrative Expenses'' for the cost associated with
continuing disability reviews under titles II and XVI of the
Social Security Act and for the cost associated with
conducting redeterminations of eligibility under title XVI of
the Social Security Act, $273,000,000 is provided to meet the
terms of section 251(b)(2)(B)(ii)(III) of the Balanced Budget
and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985, as amended, and
$469,639,000 is additional new budget authority specified for
purposes of section 251(b)(2)(B) of such Act.
(c) Section 5 of Public Law 113-6 shall apply to amounts
designated in subsection (a) for Overseas Contingency
Operations/Global War on Terrorism.
Sec. 115. Section 3003 of division G of Public Law 113-6
shall be applied to funds appropriated by this joint
resolution by substituting ``fiscal year 2014'' for ``fiscal
year 2013'' each place it appears.
Sec. 116. Section 408 of the Food for Peace Act (7 U.S.C.
1736b) shall be applied by substituting the date specified in
section 106(3) of this joint resolution for ``December 31,
2012''.
Sec. 117. Amounts made available under section 101 for
``Department of Commerce--National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration--Procurement, Acquisition and Construction''
may be apportioned up to the rate for operations necessary to
maintain the planned launch schedules for the Joint Polar
Satellite System and the Geostationary Operational
Environmental Satellite system.
Sec. 118. The authority provided by sections 1205 and 1206
of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year
2012 (Public Law 112-81) shall continue in effect,
notwithstanding subsection (h) of section 1206, through the
earlier of the date specified in section 106(3) of this joint
resolution or the date of the enactment of an Act authorizing
appropriations for fiscal year 2014 for military activities
of the Department of Defense.
Sec. 119. Section 14704 of title 40, United States Code,
shall be applied to amounts made available by this joint
resolution by substituting the date specified in section
106(3) of this joint resolution for ``October 1, 2012''.
Sec. 120. Notwithstanding any other provision of this
joint resolution, except section 106, the District of
Columbia may expend local funds under the heading ``District
of Columbia Funds'' for such programs and activities under
title IV of H.R. 2786 (113th Congress), as reported by the
Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives,
at the rate set forth under ``District of Columbia Funds--
Summary of Expenses'' as included in the Fiscal Year 2014
Budget Request Act of 2013 (D.C. Act 20-127), as modified as
of the date of the enactment of this joint resolution.
Sec. 121. Notwithstanding section 101, amounts are
provided for ``The Judiciary--Courts of Appeals, District
Courts, and Other Judicial Services--Defender Services'' at a
rate for operations of $1,012,000,000.
[[Page H8055]]
Sec. 122. For the period covered by this joint resolution,
section 550(b) of Public Law 109-295 (6 U.S.C. 121 note)
shall be applied by substituting the date specified in
section 106(3) of this joint resolution for ``October 4,
2013''.
Sec. 123. The authority provided by section 532 of Public
Law 109-295 shall continue in effect through the date
specified in section 106(3) of this joint resolution.
Sec. 124. The authority provided by section 831 of the
Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 391) shall continue
in effect through the date specified in section 106(3) of
this joint resolution.
Sec. 125. (a) Any amounts made available pursuant to
section 101 for ``Department of Homeland Security--U.S.
Customs and Border Protection--Salaries and Expenses'',
``Department of Homeland Security--U.S. Customs and Border
Protection--Border Security Fencing, Infrastructure, and
Technology'', and ``Department of Homeland Security--U.S.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement--Salaries and Expenses''
shall be obligated at a rate for operations as necessary to
respectively--
(1) sustain the staffing levels of U.S. Customs and Border
Protection Officers, equivalent to the staffing levels
achieved on September 30, 2013, and comply with the last
proviso under the heading ``Department of Homeland Security--
U.S. Customs and Border Protection--Salaries and Expenses''
in division D of Public Law 113-6;
(2) sustain border security operations, including
sustaining the operation of Tethered Aerostat Radar Systems;
and
(3) sustain the staffing levels of U.S. Immigration and
Customs Enforcement agents, equivalent to the staffing levels
achieved on September 30, 2013, and comply with the sixth
proviso under the heading ``Department of Homeland Security--
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement--Salaries and
Expenses'' in division D of Public Law 113-6.
(b) The Secretary of Homeland Security shall notify the
Committees on Appropriations of the House of Representatives
and the Senate on each use of the authority provided in this
section.
Sec. 126. In addition to the amount otherwise provided by
section 101 for ``Department of the Interior--Department-wide
Programs--Wildland Fire Management'', there is appropriated
$36,000,000 for an additional amount for fiscal year 2014, to
remain available until expended, for urgent wildland fire
suppression activities: Provided, That of the funds
provided, $15,000,000 is for burned area rehabilitation:
Provided further, That such funds shall only become available
if funds previously provided for wildland fire suppression
will be exhausted imminently and the Secretary of the
Interior notifies the Committees on Appropriations of the
House of Representatives and the Senate in writing of the
need for these additional funds: Provided further, That such
funds are also available for transfer to other appropriations
accounts to repay amounts previously transferred for wildfire
suppression.
Sec. 127. In addition to the amount otherwise provided by
section 101 for ``Department of Agriculture--Forest Service--
Wildland Fire Management'', there is appropriated
$600,000,000 for an additional amount for fiscal year 2014,
to remain available until expended, for urgent wildland fire
suppression activities: Provided, That such funds shall only
become available if funds previously provided for wildland
fire suppression will be exhausted imminently and the
Secretary of Agriculture notifies the Committees on
Appropriations of the House of Representatives and the Senate
in writing of the need for these additional funds: Provided
further, That such funds are also available for transfer to
other appropriations accounts to repay amounts previously
transferred for wildfire suppression.
Sec. 128. The authority provided by section 347 of the
Department of the Interior and Related Agencies
Appropriations Act, 1999 (as contained in section 101(e) of
division A of Public Law 105-277; 16 U.S.C. 2104 note) shall
continue in effect through the date specified in section
106(3) of this joint resolution.
Sec. 129. The authority provided by subsection (m)(3) of
section 8162 of the Department of Defense Appropriations Act,
2000 (40 U.S.C. 8903 note; Public Law 106-79), as amended,
shall continue in effect through the date specified in
section 106(3) of this joint resolution.
Sec. 130. Activities authorized under part A of title IV
and section 1108(b) of the Social Security Act (except for
activities authorized in section 403(b)) shall continue
through the date specified in section 106(3) of this joint
resolution in the manner authorized for fiscal year 2013, and
out of any money in the Treasury of the United States not
otherwise appropriated, there are hereby appropriated such
sums as may be necessary for such purpose.
Sec. 131. Notwithstanding section 101, the matter under
the heading ``Department of Labor--Mine Safety and Health
Administration--Salaries and Expenses'' in division F of
Public Law 112-74 shall be applied to funds appropriated by
this joint resolution by substituting ``is authorized to
collect and retain up to $2,499,000'' for ``may retain up to
$1,499,000''.
Sec. 132. The first proviso under the heading ``Department
of Health and Human Services--Administration for Children and
Families--Low Income Home Energy Assistance'' in division F
of Public Law 112-74 shall be applied to amounts made
available by this joint resolution by substituting ``2014''
for ``2012''.
Sec. 133. Amounts provided by section 101 for ``Department
of Health and Human Services--Administration for Children and
Families--Refugee and Entrant Assistance'' may be obligated
up to a rate for operations necessary to maintain program
operations at the level provided in fiscal year 2013, as
necessary to accommodate increased demand.
Sec. 134. During the period covered by this joint
resolution, amounts provided under section 101 for
``Department of Health and Human Services--Office of the
Secretary--Public Health and Social Services Emergency Fund''
may be obligated at a rate necessary to assure timely
execution of planned advanced research and development
contracts pursuant to section 319L of the Public Health
Service Act, to remain available until expended, for expenses
necessary to support advanced research and development
pursuant to section 319L of the Public Health Service Act (42
U.S.C. 247d-7e) and other administrative expenses of the
Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority.
Sec. 135. Notwithstanding any other provision of this
joint resolution, there is appropriated for payment to Bonnie
Englebardt Lautenberg, widow of Frank R. Lautenberg, late a
Senator from New Jersey, $174,000.
Sec. 136. Notwithstanding section 101, amounts are
provided for ``Department of Veterans Affairs--Departmental
Administration--General Operating Expenses, Veterans Benefits
Administration'' at a rate for operations of $2,455,490,000.
Sec. 137. The authority provided by the penultimate
proviso under the heading ``Department of Housing and Urban
Development--Rental Assistance Demonstration'' in division C
of Public Law 112-55 shall continue in effect through the
date specified in section 106(3) of this joint resolution.
This joint resolution may be cited as the ``Continuing
Appropriations Resolution, 2014''.
Motion to Recede and Concur
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Clerk will designate the motion.
The text of the motion is as follows:
Mr. Ryan of Wisconsin moves that the House recede from its
amendment to the amendment of the Senate, and concur therein
with the amendment printed in Part A of House Report 113-290,
modified by the amendment printed in Part B of that report.
The text of the amendment is as follows:
In lieu of the matter proposed to be inserted by the Senate
insert the following:
DIVISION A--BIPARTISAN BUDGET AGREEMENT
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE AND TABLE OF CONTENTS.
(a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Bipartisan
Budget Act of 2013''.
(b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents of this Act
is as follows:
DIVISION A--BUDGET ENFORCEMENT AND DEFICIT REDUCTION
Sec. 1. Short title and table of contents.
TITLE I--BUDGET ENFORCEMENT
Subtitle A--Amendments to the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit
Control Act of 1985
Sec. 101. Amendments to the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit
Control Act of 1985.
Subtitle B--Establishing a Congressional Budget
Sec. 111. Fiscal year 2014 budget resolution.
Sec. 112. Limitation on advance appropriations in the Senate.
Sec. 113. Rule of construction in the House of Representatives.
Sec. 114. Additional Senate budget enforcement.
Sec. 115. Authority for fiscal year 2015 budget resolution in the House
of Representatives.
Sec. 116. Authority for fiscal year 2015 budget resolution in the
Senate.
Sec. 117. Exclusion of savings from PAYGO scorecards.
Sec. 118. Exercise of rulemaking powers.
Subtitle C--Technical Corrections
Sec. 121. Technical corrections to the Balanced Budget and Emergency
Deficit Control Act of 1985.
Sec. 122. Technical corrections to the Congressional Budget Act of
1974.
TITLE II--PREVENTION OF WASTE, FRAUD, AND ABUSE
Sec. 201. Improving the collection of unemployment insurance
overpayments.
Sec. 202. Strengthening Medicaid Third-Party Liability.
Sec. 203. Restriction on access to the death master file.
Sec. 204. Identification of inmates requesting or receiving improper
payments.
TITLE III--NATURAL RESOURCES
Sec. 301. Ultra-deepwater and unconventional natural gas and other
petroleum resources.
Sec. 302. Amendment to the Mineral Leasing Act.
Sec. 303. Approval of agreement with Mexico.
Sec. 304. Amendment to the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act.
Sec. 305. Federal oil and gas royalty prepayment cap.
Sec. 306. Strategic Petroleum Reserve.
TITLE IV--FEDERAL CIVILIAN AND MILITARY RETIREMENT
Sec. 401. Increase in contributions to Federal Employees' Retirement
System for new employees.
Sec. 402. Foreign Service Pension System.
Sec. 403. Annual adjustment of retired pay and retainer pay amounts for
retired members of the Armed Forces under age 62.
[[Page H8056]]
TITLE V--HIGHER EDUCATION
Sec. 501. Default reduction program.
Sec. 502. Elimination of nonprofit servicing contracts.
TITLE VI--TRANSPORTATION
Sec. 601. Aviation security service fees.
Sec. 602. Transportation cost reimbursement.
Sec. 603. Sterile areas at airports.
TITLE VII--MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS
Sec. 701. Extension of customs user fees.
Sec. 702. Limitation on allowable government contractor compensation
costs.
Sec. 703. Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation premium rate increases.
Sec. 704. Cancellation of Unobligated Balances.
Sec. 705. Conservation planning technical assistance user fees.
Sec. 706. Self plus one coverage.
(c) References.--Except as expressly provided otherwise,
any reference to ``this Act'' contained in any division of
this Act shall be treated as referring only to the provisions
of that division.
TITLE I--BUDGET ENFORCEMENT
Subtitle A--Amendments to the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit
Control Act of 1985
SEC. 101. AMENDMENTS TO THE BALANCED BUDGET AND EMERGENCY
DEFICIT CONTROL ACT OF 1985.
(a) Revised Discretionary Spending Limits.--Section 251(c)
of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of
1985 is amended by striking paragraphs (1) through (10) and
inserting the following new paragraphs:
``(1) for fiscal year 2014--
``(A) for the revised security category, $520,464,000,000
in new budget authority; and
``(B) for the revised nonsecurity category,
$491,773,000,000 in new budget authority;
``(2) for fiscal year 2015--
``(A) for the revised security category, $521,272,000,000
in new budget authority; and
``(B) for the revised nonsecurity category,
$492,356,000,000 in new budget authority;
``(3) for fiscal year 2016--
``(A) for the revised security category, $577,000,000,000
in new budget authority; and
``(B) for the revised nonsecurity category,
$530,000,000,000 in new budget authority;
``(4) for fiscal year 2017--
``(A) for the revised security category, $590,000,000,000
in new budget authority; and
``(B) for the revised nonsecurity category,
$541,000,000,000 in new budget authority;
``(5) for fiscal year 2018--
``(A) for the revised security category, $603,000,000,000
in new budget authority; and
``(B) for the revised nonsecurity category,
$553,000,000,000 in new budget authority;
``(6) for fiscal year 2019--
``(A) for the revised security category, $616,000,000,000
in new budget authority; and
``(B) for the revised nonsecurity category,
$566,000,000,000 in new budget authority;
``(7) for fiscal year 2020--
``(A) for the revised security category, $630,000,000,000
in new budget authority; and
``(B) for the revised nonsecurity category,
$578,000,000,000 in new budget authority; and
``(8) for fiscal year 2021--
``(A) for the revised security category, $644,000,000,000
in new budget authority; and
``(B) for the revised nonsecurity category,
$590,000,000,000 in new budget authority;''.
(b) Direct Spending Adjustments for Fiscal Years 2014 and
2015.--(1) Section 251A of the Balanced Budget and Emergency
Deficit Control Act of 1985, as redesignated by subsection
(d), is amended by adding at the end the following new
paragraph:
``(10) Implementing direct spending reductions for fiscal
years 2014 and 2015.--(A) OMB shall make the calculations
necessary to implement the direct spending reductions
calculated pursuant to paragraphs (3) and (4) without regard
to the amendment made to section 251(c) revising the
discretionary spending limits for fiscal years 2014 and 2015
by the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013.
``(B) Paragraph (5)(B) shall not be implemented for fiscal
years 2014 and 2015.''.
(2) Paragraph (5)(B) of section 251A of the Balanced Budget
and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985, as redesignated by
subsection (d)(2)(C) of this section, is amended by striking
``On'' and inserting ``Except as provided by paragraph (10),
on''.
(c) Extension of Direct Spending Reductions for Fiscal
Years 2022 and 2023.--Paragraph (6), as redesignated by
subsection (d)(2)(C) of this section, of section 251A of the
Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 is
amended by inserting ``(A)'' before ``On the date'' and by
adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
``(B) On the dates OMB issues its sequestration preview
reports for fiscal year 2022 and for fiscal year 2023,
pursuant to section 254(c), the President shall order a
sequestration, effective upon issuance such that--
``(i) the percentage reduction for nonexempt direct
spending for the defense function is the same percent as the
percentage reduction for nonexempt direct spending for the
defense function for fiscal year 2021 calculated under
paragraph (3)(B); and
``(ii) the percentage reduction for nonexempt direct
spending for nondefense functions is the same percent as the
percentage reduction for nonexempt direct spending for
nondefense functions for fiscal year 2021 calculated under
paragraph (4)(B).''.
(d) Conforming Amendments.--Part C of title II of the
Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (2
U.S.C. 900 et seq.) is amended--
(1) in section 250(c)(4) (2 U.S.C. 900(c)(4)), by adding at
the end the following:
``(D) The term `revised security category' means
discretionary appropriations in budget function 050.
``(E) The term `revised nonsecurity category' means
discretionary appropriations other than in budget function
050.
``(F) The term `category' means the subsets of
discretionary appropriations in section 251(c). Discretionary
appropriations in each of the categories shall be those
designated in the joint explanatory statement accompanying
the conference report on the Balanced Budget Act of 1997. New
accounts or activities shall be categorized only after
consultation with the Committees on Appropriations and the
Budget of the House of Representatives and the Senate and
that consultation shall, to the extent practicable, include
written communication to such committees that affords such
committees the opportunity to comment before official action
is taken with respect to new accounts or activities.''; and
(2) in section 251A (2 U.S.C. 901a)--
(A) by striking, in the matter preceding paragraph (1),
``Unless'' through ``as follows:'' and inserting the
following: ``Discretionary appropriations and direct spending
accounts shall be reduced in accordance with this section as
follows:'';
(B) by striking paragraphs (1) and (2);
(C) by redesignating paragraphs (3) through (11) as
paragraphs (1) through (9), respectively;
(D) in paragraph (2), as redesignated, by striking
``paragraph (3)'' and inserting ``paragraph (1)'';
(E) in paragraph (3), as redesignated, by striking
``paragraph (4)'' each place it appears and inserting
``paragraph (2)'';
(F) in paragraph (4), as redesignated, by striking
``paragraph (4)'' each place it appears and inserting
``paragraph (2)'';
(G) in paragraph (5), as redesignated--
(i) by striking ``paragraph (5)'' each place it appears and
inserting ``paragraph (3)''; and
(ii) by striking ``paragraph (6)'' each place it appears
and inserting ``paragraph (4)'';
(H) in paragraph (6), as redesignated--
(i) by striking ``paragraph (4)'' and inserting ``paragraph
(2)''; and
(ii) by striking ``paragraphs (5) and (6)'' and inserting
``paragraphs (3) and (4)'';
(I) in paragraph (7), as redesignated--
(i) by striking ``paragraph (8)'' and inserting ``paragraph
(6)''; and
(ii) by striking ``paragraph (6)'' each place it appears
and inserting ``paragraph (4)''; and
(J) in paragraph (9), as redesignated, by striking
``paragraph (4)'' and inserting ``paragraph (2)''.
Subtitle B--Establishing a Congressional Budget
SEC. 111. FISCAL YEAR 2014 BUDGET RESOLUTION.
(a) Fiscal Year 2014.--For the purpose of enforcing the
Congressional Budget Act of 1974 for fiscal year 2014, and
enforcing, in the Senate, budgetary points of order in prior
concurrent resolutions on the budget, the allocations,
aggregates, and levels provided for in subsection (b) shall
apply in the same manner as for a concurrent resolution on
the budget for fiscal year 2014 with appropriate budgetary
levels for fiscal year 2014 and for fiscal years 2015 through
2023.
(b) Committee Allocations, Aggregates, and Levels.--The
Chairmen of the Committee on the Budget of the House of
Representatives and the Senate shall each submit a statement
for publication in the Congressional Record as soon as
practicable after the date of enactment of this Act that
includes--
(1) for the Committee on Appropriations of that House,
committee allocations for fiscal year 2014 consistent with
the discretionary spending limits set forth in this Act for
the purpose of enforcing section 302 of the Congressional
Budget Act of 1974;
(2) for all committees of that House other than the
Committee on Appropriations, committee allocations for--
(A) fiscal year 2014;
(B) fiscal years 2014 through 2018 in the Senate only; and
(C) fiscal years 2014 through 2023;
consistent with the May 2013 baseline of the Congressional
Budget Office adjusted to account for the budgetary effects
of this Act and legislation enacted prior to this Act but not
included in the May 2013 baseline of the Congressional Budget
Office, for the purpose of enforcing section 302 of the
Congressional Budget Act of 1974;
(3) aggregate spending levels for fiscal year 2014 in
accordance with the allocations established under paragraphs
(1) and (2), for the purpose of enforcing section 311 of the
Congressional Budget Act of 1974;
(4) aggregate revenue levels for--
(A) fiscal year 2014;
(B) fiscal years 2014 through 2018 in the Senate only; and
(C) fiscal years 2014 through 2023;
consistent with the May 2013 baseline of the Congressional
Budget Office adjusted to account for the budgetary effects
of this Act and legislation enacted prior to this Act but not
included in the May 2013 baseline of the Congressional Budget
Office, for the purpose of enforcing section 311 of the
Congressional Budget Act of 1974; and
(5) in the Senate only, levels of Social Security revenues
and outlays for fiscal year 2014 and for the periods of
fiscal years 2014 through 2018 and 2014 through 2023
consistent
[[Page H8057]]
with the May 2013 baseline of the Congressional Budget Office
adjusted to account for the budgetary effects of this Act and
legislation enacted prior to this Act but not included in the
May 2013 baseline of the Congressional Budget Office, for the
purpose of enforcing sections 302 and 311 of the
Congressional Budget Act of 1974.
(c) Further Adjustments.--After the date of enactment of
this Act, the Chairman of the Committee on the Budget of the
House of Representatives may reduce the aggregates,
allocations, and other budgetary levels included in the
statement of the Chairman of the Committee on the Budget of
the House of Representatives referred to in subsection (b) to
reflect the budgetary effects of any legislation enacted
during the 113th Congress that reduces the deficit.
SEC. 112. LIMITATION ON ADVANCE APPROPRIATIONS IN THE SENATE.
(a) Point of Order Against Advance Appropriations in the
Senate.--
(1) In general.--
(A) Point of order.--Except as provided in paragraph (2),
it shall not be in order in the Senate to consider any bill,
joint resolution, motion, amendment, amendment between the
Houses, or conference report that would provide an advance
appropriation.
(B) Definition.--In this subsection, the term ``advance
appropriation'' means any new budget authority provided in a
bill or joint resolution making appropriations for fiscal
year 2014 that first becomes available for any fiscal year
after 2014 or any new budget authority provided in a bill or
joint resolution making appropriations for fiscal year 2015
that first becomes available for any fiscal year after 2015.
(2) Exceptions.--Advance appropriations may be provided--
(A) for fiscal years 2015 and 2016 for programs, projects,
activities, or accounts identified in a statement submitted
to the Congressional Record by the Chairman of the Committee
on the Budget of the Senate under the heading ``Accounts
Identified for Advance Appropriations'' in an aggregate
amount not to exceed $28,852,000,000 in new budget authority
in each fiscal year;
(B) for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting; and
(C) for the Department of Veterans Affairs for the Medical
Services, Medical Support and Compliance, and Medical
Facilities accounts of the Veterans Health Administration.
(3) Supermajority waiver and appeal.--
(A) Waiver.--In the Senate, paragraph (1) may be waived or
suspended only by an affirmative vote of three-fifths of the
Members, duly chosen and sworn.
(B) Appeal.--An affirmative vote of three-fifths of the
Members of the Senate, duly chosen and sworn, shall be
required to sustain an appeal of the ruling of the Chair on a
point of order raised under paragraph (1).
(4) Form of point of order.--A point of order under
paragraph (1) may be raised by a Senator as provided in
section 313(e) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974.
(5) Conference reports.--When the Senate is considering a
conference report on, or an amendment between the Houses in
relation to, a bill, upon a point of order being made by any
Senator pursuant to this subsection, and such point of order
being sustained, such material contained in such conference
report or amendment between the Houses shall be stricken, and
the Senate shall proceed to consider the question of whether
the Senate shall recede from its amendment and concur with a
further amendment, or concur in the House amendment with a
further amendment, as the case may be, which further
amendment shall consist of only that portion of the
conference report or House amendment, as the case may be, not
so stricken. Any such motion in the Senate shall be
debatable. In any case in which such point of order is
sustained against a conference report (or Senate amendment
derived from such conference report by operation of this
paragraph), no further amendment shall be in order.
(6) Inapplicability.--In the Senate, section 402 of S. Con.
Res. 13 (111th Congress) shall no longer apply.
(b) Expiration.--Subsection (a) shall expire if a
concurrent resolution on the budget for fiscal year 2015 is
agreed to by the Senate and House of Representatives pursuant
to section 301 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974.
SEC. 113. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION IN THE HOUSE OF
REPRESENTATIVES.
In the House of Representatives, for the remainder of the
113th Congress, the provisions of H. Con. Res. 25 (113th
Congress), as deemed in force by H. Res. 243 (113th
Congress), shall remain in force to the extent its budgetary
levels are not superseded by this subtitle or by further
action of the House of Representatives.
SEC. 114. ADDITIONAL SENATE BUDGET ENFORCEMENT.
(a) Senate Pay-as-you-go Scorecard.--
(1) In general.--Effective on the date of enactment of this
Act, for the purpose of enforcing section 201 of S. Con. Res.
21 (110th Congress), the Chairman of the Committee on the
Budget of the Senate shall reduce any balances of direct
spending and revenues for any fiscal year to zero.
(2) Fiscal year 2015.--After April 15, 2014, but not later
than May 15, 2014, for the purpose of enforcing section 201
of S. Con. Res. 21 (110th Congress), the Chairman of the
Committee on the Budget of the Senate shall reduce any
balances of direct spending and revenues for any fiscal year
to zero.
(3) Publication.--Upon resetting the Senate paygo scorecard
pursuant to paragraph (2), the Chairman of the Committee on
the Budget of the Senate shall publish a notification of such
action in the Congressional Record.
(b) Further Adjustments.--With respect to any allocations,
aggregates, or levels set or adjustments made pursuant to
this subtitle, sections 412 through 414 of S. Con. Res. 13
(111th Congress) shall remain in effect.
(c) Deficit-neutral Reserve Fund to Replace
Sequestration.--The Chairman of the Committee on the Budget
of the Senate may revise the allocations of a committee or
committees, aggregates, and other appropriate levels and
limits set pursuant to this subtitle for one or more bills,
joint resolutions, amendments, motions, or conference reports
that amend section 251A of the Balanced Budget and Emergency
Deficit Control Act of 1985 (2 U.S.C. 901a) to repeal or
revise the enforcement procedures established under that
section, by the amounts provided in such legislation for
those purposes, provided that such legislation would not
increase the deficit over the period of the total of fiscal
years 2014 through 2023. For purposes of determining deficit-
neutrality under this subsection, the Chairman may include
the estimated effects of any amendment or amendments to the
discretionary spending limits in section 251(c) of the
Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (2
U.S.C. 901(c)).
(d) Additional Deficit-Neutral Reserve Funds.--In the
Senate only, sections 302, 303, 304, 305, 306, 307, 308, 309,
310, 311, 312, 313, 314, 315, 316, 317, 318, 319, 320, 322,
323, 324, 325, 326, 327, 328, 329, 330, 331, 332, 333, 334,
335, 338, 339, 340, 341, 344, 348, 349, 350, 353, 354, 356,
361, 363, 364, 365, 366, 367, 368, 369, 371, 376, 378, 379,
and 383 of S. Con. Res. 8 (113th Congress), as passed the
Senate, shall have force and effect.
(e) Expiration.--Subsections (a)(2), (c), and (d) shall
expire if a concurrent resolution on the budget for fiscal
year 2015 is agreed to by the Senate and House of
Representatives pursuant to section 301 of the Congressional
Budget Act of 1974.
SEC. 115. AUTHORITY FOR FISCAL YEAR 2015 BUDGET RESOLUTION IN
THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.
(a) Fiscal Year 2015.--If a concurrent resolution on the
budget for fiscal year 2015 has not been adopted by April 15,
2014, for the purpose of enforcing the Congressional Budget
Act of 1974, the allocations, aggregates, and levels provided
for in subsection (b) shall apply in the House of
Representatives after April 15, 2014, in the same manner as
for a concurrent resolution on the budget for fiscal year
2015 with appropriate budgetary levels for fiscal year 2015
and for fiscal years 2016 through 2024.
(b) Committee Allocations, Aggregates, and Levels.--In the
House of Representatives, the Chairman of the Committee on
the Budget shall submit a statement for publication in the
Congressional Record after April 15, 2014, but not later than
May 15, 2014, containing--
(1) for the Committee on Appropriations, committee
allocations for fiscal year 2015 at the total level as set
forth in section 251(c)(2) of the Balanced Budget and
Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 for the purpose of
enforcing section 302 of the Congressional Budget Act of
1974;
(2) for all committees other than the Committee on
Appropriations, committee allocations for fiscal year 2015
and for the period of fiscal years 2015 through 2024 at the
levels included in the most recent baseline of the
Congressional Budget Office, as adjusted for the budgetary
effects of any provision of law enacted during the period
beginning on the date such baseline is issued and ending on
the date of submission of such statement, for the purpose of
enforcing section 302 of the Congressional Budget Act of
1974; and
(3) aggregate spending levels for fiscal year 2015 and
aggregate revenue levels for fiscal year 2015 and for the
period of fiscal years 2015 through 2024, at the levels
included in the most recent baseline of the Congressional
Budget Office, as adjusted for the budgetary effects of any
provision of law enacted during the period beginning on the
date such baseline is issued and ending on the date of
submission of such statement, for the purpose of enforcing
section 311 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974.
(c) Additional Matter.--The statement referred to in
subsection (b) may also include for fiscal year 2015, the
matter contained in title IV (reserve funds) and in sections
601, 603(a), 605(a), and 609 of H. Con. Res. 25 (113th
Congress), as adopted by the House, updated by one fiscal
year, including updated amounts for section 601.
(d) Fiscal Year 2015 Allocation to the Committee on
Appropriations.--If the statement referred to in subsection
(b) is not filed by May 15, 2014, then the matter referred to
in subsection (b)(1) shall be submitted by the Chairman of
the Committee on the Budget for publication in the
Congressional Record on the next day that the House of
Representatives is in session.
(e) Adjustments.--The Chairman of the Committee on the
Budget of the House of Representatives may adjust the levels
included in the statement referred to in subsection (b) to
reflect the budgetary effects of any legislation enacted
during the 113th Congress that reduces the deficit or as
otherwise necessary.
(f) Application.--Subsections (a), (b), (c), (d), and (e)
shall no longer apply if a concurrent resolution on the
budget for fiscal year
[[Page H8058]]
2015 is agreed to by the Senate and House of Representatives
pursuant to section 301 of the Congressional Budget Act of
1974.
SEC. 116. AUTHORITY FOR FISCAL YEAR 2015 BUDGET RESOLUTION IN
THE SENATE.
(a) Fiscal Year 2015.--For the purpose of enforcing the
Congressional Budget Act of 1974, after April 15, 2014, and
enforcing budgetary points of order in prior concurrent
resolutions on the budget, the allocations, aggregates, and
levels provided for in subsection (b) shall apply in the
Senate in the same manner as for a concurrent resolution on
the budget for fiscal year 2015 with appropriate budgetary
levels for fiscal years 2014 and 2016 through 2024.
(b) Committee Allocations, Aggregates, and Levels.--After
April 15, 2014, but not later than May 15, 2014, the Chairman
of the Committee on the Budget of the Senate shall file--
(1) for the Committee on Appropriations, committee
allocations for fiscal years 2014 and 2015 consistent with
the discretionary spending limits set forth in this Act for
the purpose of enforcing section 302 of the Congressional
Budget Act of 1974;
(2) for all committees other than the Committee on
Appropriations, committee allocations for fiscal years 2014,
2015, 2015 through 2019, and 2015 through 2024 consistent
with the most recent baseline of the Congressional Budget
Office for the purpose of enforcing section 302 of the
Congressional Budget Act of 1974;
(3) aggregate spending levels for fiscal years 2014 and
2015 in accordance with the allocations established under
paragraphs (1) and (2), for the purpose of enforcing section
311 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974;
(4) aggregate revenue levels for fiscal years 2014, 2015,
2015 through 2019, and 2015 through 2024 consistent with the
most recent baseline of the Congressional Budget Office for
the purpose of enforcing section 311 of the Congressional
Budget Act of 1974; and
(5) levels of Social Security revenues and outlays for
fiscal years 2014, 2015, 2015 through 2019, and 2015 through
2024 consistent with the most recent baseline of the
Congressional Budget Office for the purpose of enforcing
sections 302 and 311 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974.
(c) Additional Matter.--The filing referred to in
subsection (b) may also include, for fiscal year 2015, the
reserve funds included in section 114(c) and (d) of this Act,
updated by one fiscal year.
(d) Superseding Previous Statement.--In the Senate, the
filing referred to in subsection (b) shall supersede the
statement referred to in section 111(b) of this Act.
(e) Expiration.-- This section shall expire if a concurrent
resolution on the budget for fiscal year 2015 is agreed to by
the Senate and House of Representatives pursuant to section
301 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974.
SEC. 117. EXCLUSION OF SAVINGS FROM PAYGO SCORECARDS.
(a) Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Scorecards.--Notwithstanding
section 1(c) of this division, the budgetary effects of this
Act shall not be entered on either PAYGO scorecard maintained
pursuant to section 4(d) of the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act
of 2010.
(b) Senate PAYGO Scorecards.--Notwithstanding section 1(c)
of this division, the budgetary effects of this Act shall not
be entered on any PAYGO scorecard maintained for purposes of
section 201 of S. Con. Res. 21 (110th Congress).
SEC. 118. EXERCISE OF RULEMAKING POWERS.
The provisions of this subtitle are enacted by the
Congress--
(1) as an exercise of the rulemaking power of the House of
Representatives and the Senate, respectively, and as such
they shall be considered as part of the rules of each House,
respectively, or of that House to which they specifically
apply, and such rules shall supersede other rules only to the
extent that they are inconsistent therewith; and
(2) with full recognition of the constitutional right of
either House to change such rules (so far as relating to such
House) at any time, in the same manner, and to the same
extent as in the case of any other rule of such House.
Subtitle C--Technical Corrections
SEC. 121. TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS TO THE BALANCED BUDGET AND
EMERGENCY DEFICIT CONTROL ACT OF 1985.
The Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of
1985 is amended as follows:
(1) In section 252(b)(2)(B), strike ``applicable to budget
year'' and insert ``applicable to the budget year''.
(2) In section 252(c)(1)(C)(i), strike ``paragraph (1)''
and insert ``subsection (b)''.
(3) In section 254(c)(3)(A), strike ``subsection 252(b)''
and insert ``section 252(b)''.
(4) In section 254(f)(4), strike ``subsection 252(b)'' and
insert ``section 252(b)''.
(5) In section 255(a), strike ``section 231b(a),
231b(f)(2), 231c(a), and 231c(f) of title 45 United States
Code'' and insert ``sections 3 and 4 of the Railroad
Retirement Act of 1937 (45 U.S.C. 231 et seq.)''.
(6) In section 255(h), in the item relating to Federal Pell
Grants, strike ``section 401 Title IV'' and insert ``section
401 of title IV''.
(7) In the first subsection (j) of section 255 (relating to
Split Treatment Programs), move the margins for the list
items two ems to the right.
(8) Redesignate the second subsection (j) of section 255
(relating to Identification of Programs) as subsection (k).
(9) In section 257(b)(2)(A)(i), strike ``differenes'' and
insert ``differences''.
(10) In section 258(a)(1), strike ``section 254(j)'' and
insert ``section 254(i)''.
SEC. 122. TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS TO THE CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET
ACT OF 1974.
The Congressional Budget Act of 1974 is amended as follows:
(1) In sections 301(a)(6) and 301(a)(7), strike ``For
purposes'' and insert ``for purposes''.
(2) In section 301(a), in the matter following paragraph
(7), strike ``old age'' and insert ``old-age''.
(3) In section 302(g)(2)(A), strike ``committee on the
Budget'' and insert ``Committee on the Budget''.
(4) In section 305(a)(1), strike ``clause 2(l)(6) of rule
XI'' and insert ``clause 4 of rule XIII''.
(5) In section 305(a)(5), strike ``provisions of rule
XXIII'' and insert ``provisions of rule XVIII''.
(6) In section 305(b)(1), strike ``section 304(a)'' and
insert ``section 304''.
(7) In section 306 strike ``No'' and insert ``(a) In the
Senate.-- In the Senate, no'', strike ``of either House'' and
``in that House'', strike ``of that House'', and add at the
end the following new subsection:
``(b) In the House of Representatives.--In the House of
Representatives, no bill or joint resolution, or amendment
thereto, or conference report thereon, dealing with any
matter which is within the jurisdiction of the Committee on
the Budget shall be considered unless it is a bill or joint
resolution which has been reported by the Committee on the
Budget (or from the consideration of which such committee has
been discharged) or unless it is an amendment to such a bill
or joint resolution.''.
(8) In section 308(d), in the subsection heading, strike
``Scorekeeping Guidelines.--'' and insert ``Scorekeeping
Guidelines.--''
(9) In section 310(c)(1)(A)(i) and (ii), strike ``under
that paragraph by more than'' and insert ``under that
paragraph by more than--''.
(10) In section 314(d)(2), strike subparagraph (A),
redesignate subparagraphs (B) and (C) as subparagraphs (A)
and (B) respectively, in subparagraph (A), as redesignated,
strike ``under subparagraph (A)'' and insert ``under
paragraph (1)'', and in subparagraph (B), as redesignated,
strike ``under subparagraph (B)'' and insert ``under
subparagraph (A)''.
(11) In section 315, add at the end the following new
sentence: ``In the case of a reported bill or joint
resolution considered pursuant to a special order of
business, a point of order under section 303 shall be
determined on the basis of the text made in order as an
original bill or joint resolution for the purpose of
amendment or to the text on which the previous question is
ordered directly to passage, as the case may be.''.
(12) In section 401(b)(2), strike ``section 302(b)'' and
insert ``section 302(a)''.
(13) In section 401(c), add at the end the following new
paragraph:
``(3) In the House of Representatives, subsections (a) and
(b) shall not apply to new authority described in those
subsections to the extent that a provision in a bill or joint
resolution, or an amendment thereto or a conference report
thereon, establishes prospectively for a Federal office or
position a specified or minimum level of compensation to be
funded by annual discretionary appropriations.''.
(14) In section 421(5)(A)(i)(II), strike ``subparagraph
(B))'' and insert ``subparagraph (B)''.
(15) In section 505(c), strike ``section 406(b)'' both
places it appears and insert ``section 405(b)''.
(16) In section 904(c)(2), strike ``258A(b)(3)(C)(I)'' and
``258(h)(3)'' and insert ``258A(b)(3)(C)(i)'' and
``258B(h)(3)'', respectively, and strike ``and 314(e)'' and
insert ``314(e), and 314(f)''.
(17) In section 904(d)(3), strike ``258A(b)(3)(C)(I)'' and
``258(h)(3)'' and insert ``258A(b)(3)(C)(i)'' and
``258B(h)(3)'', respectively, and strike ``and 312(c)'' and
insert ``312(c), 314(e), and 314(f)''.
TITLE II--PREVENTION OF WASTE, FRAUD, AND ABUSE
SEC. 201. IMPROVING THE COLLECTION OF UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE
OVERPAYMENTS.
(a) In General.--Section 303 of the Social Security Act (42
U.S.C. 503) is amended by adding at the end the following:
``(m) In the case of a covered unemployment compensation
debt (as defined under section 6402(f)(4) of the Internal
Revenue Code of 1986) that remains uncollected as of the date
that is 1 year after the debt was finally determined to be
due and collected, the State to which such debt is owed shall
take action to recover such debt under section 6402(f) of the
Internal Revenue Code of 1986.''.
(b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a)
shall take effect upon the date of enactment of this Act.
SEC. 202. STRENGTHENING MEDICAID THIRD-PARTY LIABILITY.
(a) Payment for Prenatal and Preventive Pediatric Care and
in Cases Involving Medical Support.--Section 1902(a)(25) of
the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396a(a)(25)) is amended--
(1) in subparagraph (E)(i), by inserting before the
semicolon at the end the following: ``, except that the State
may, if the State determines doing so is cost-effective and
will not adversely affect access to care, only make such
payment if a third party so liable has not made payment
within 90 days after
[[Page H8059]]
the date the provider of such services has initially
submitted a claim to such third party for payment for such
services''; and
(2) in subparagraph (F)(i), by striking ``30 days after
such services are furnished'' and inserting ``90 days after
the date the provider of such services has initially
submitted a claim to such third party for payment for such
services, except that the State may make such payment within
30 days after such date if the State determines doing so is
cost-effective and necessary to ensure access to care.''.
(b) Recovery of Medicaid Expenditures From Beneficiary
Liability Settlements.--
(1) State plan requirements.--Section 1902(a)(25) of the
Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396a(a)(25)) is amended--
(A) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``to the extent of
such legal liability''; and
(B) in subparagraph (H), by striking ``payment by any other
party for such health care items or services'' and inserting
``any payments by such third party''.
(2) Assignment of rights of payment.--Section 1912(a)(1)(A)
of such Act (42 U.S.C. 1396k(a)(1)(A)) is amended by striking
``payment for medical care from any third party'' and
inserting ``any payment from a third party that has a legal
liability to pay for care and services available under the
plan''.
(3) Liens.--Section 1917(a)(1)(A) of such Act (42 U.S.C.
1396p(a)(1)(A)) is amended to read as follows:
``(A) pursuant to--
``(i) the judgment of a court on account of benefits
incorrectly paid on behalf of such individual, or
``(ii) rights acquired by or assigned to the State in
accordance with section 1902(a)(25)(H) or section
1912(a)(1)(A), or''.
(c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section
shall take effect on October 1, 2014.
SEC. 203. RESTRICTION ON ACCESS TO THE DEATH MASTER FILE.
(a) In General.--The Secretary of Commerce shall not
disclose to any person information contained on the Death
Master File with respect to any deceased individual at any
time during the 3-calendar-year period beginning on the date
of the individual's death, unless such person is certified
under the program established under subsection (b).
(b) Certification Program.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary of Commerce shall establish
a program--
(A) to certify persons who are eligible to access the
information described in subsection (a) contained on the
Death Master File, and
(B) to perform periodic and unscheduled audits of certified
persons to determine the compliance by such certified persons
with the requirements of the program.
(2) Certification.--A person shall not be certified under
the program established under paragraph (1) unless such
person certifies that access to the information described in
subsection (a) is appropriate because such person--
(A) has--
(i) a legitimate fraud prevention interest, or
(ii) a legitimate business purpose pursuant to a law,
governmental rule, regulation, or fiduciary duty, and
(B) has systems, facilities, and procedures in place to
safeguard such information, and experience in maintaining the
confidentiality, security, and appropriate use of such
information, pursuant to requirements similar to the
requirements of section 6103(p)(4) of the Internal Revenue
Code of 1986, and
(C) agrees to satisfy the requirements of such section
6103(p)(4) as if such section applied to such person.
(3) Fees.--
(A) In general.--The Secretary of Commerce shall establish
under section 9701 of title 31, United States Code, a program
for the charge of fees sufficient to cover (but not to
exceed) all costs associated with evaluating applications for
certification and auditing, inspecting, and monitoring
certified persons under the program. Any fees so collected
shall be deposited and credited as offsetting collections to
the accounts from which such costs are paid.
(B) Report.--The Secretary of Commerce shall report on an
annual basis to the Committee on Finance of the Senate and
the Committee on Ways and Means of the House of
Representatives on the total fees collected during the
preceding year and the cost of administering the
certification program under this subsection for such year.
(c) Imposition of Penalty.--
(1) In general.--Any person who is certified under the
program established under subsection (b), who receives
information described in subsection (a), and who during the
period of time described in subsection (a)--
(A) discloses such information to any person other than a
person who meets the requirements of subparagraphs (A), (B),
and (C) of subsection (b)(2),
(B) discloses such information to any person who uses the
information for any purpose not listed under subsection
(b)(2)(A) or who further discloses the information to a
person who does not meet such requirements, or
(C) uses any such information for any purpose not listed
under subsection (b)(2)(A),
and any person to whom such information is disclosed who
further discloses or uses such information as described in
the preceding subparagraphs, shall pay a penalty of $1,000
for each such disclosure or use.
(2) Limitation on penalty.--
(A) In general.--The total amount of the penalty imposed
under this subsection on any person for any calendar year
shall not exceed $250,000.
(B) Exception for willful violations.--Subparagraph (A)
shall not apply in the case of violations under paragraph (1)
that the Secretary of Commerce determines to be willful or
intentional violations.
(d) Death Master File.--For purposes of this section, the
term ``Death Master File'' means information on the name,
social security account number, date of birth, and date of
death of deceased individuals maintained by the Commissioner
of Social Security, other than information that was provided
to such Commissioner under section 205(r) of the Social
Security Act (42 U.S.C. 405(r)).
(e) Exemption From Freedom of Information Act Requirement
With Respect to Certain Records of Deceased Individuals.--
(1) In general.--No Federal agency shall be compelled to
disclose the information described in subsection (a) to any
person who is not certified under the program established
under subsection (b).
(2) Treatment of information.--For purposes of section 552
of title 5, United States Code, this section shall be
considered a statute described in subsection (b)(3) of such
section 552.
(f) Effective Date.--
(1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2), this
section shall take effect on the date that is 90 days after
the date of the enactment of this Act.
(2) FOIA exemption.--Subsection (e) shall take effect on
the date of the enactment of this Act.
SEC. 204. IDENTIFICATION OF INMATES REQUESTING OR RECEIVING
IMPROPER PAYMENTS.
(a) Information Provided to the Prisoner Update Processing
System (PUPS).--
(1) Section 202(x)(3)(b)(i)(i).--Section 202(x)(3)(B)(i)(I)
of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 402(x)(3)(B)(i)(I)) is
amended by--
(A) inserting ``first, middle, and last'' before ``names'';
(B) striking the comma after the words ``social security
account numbers'' and inserting ``or taxpayer identification
numbers, prison assigned inmate numbers, last known
addresses,'';
(C) inserting ``dates of release or anticipated dates of
release, dates of work release,'' before ``and, to the extent
available''; and
(D) by inserting ``and clause (iv) of this subparagraph''
after ``paragraph (1)''.
(2) Section 1611(e)(1)(i)(i)(i).--Section
1611(e)(1)(I)(i)(I) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C.
1382(e)(1)(I)(i)(I)) is amended by--
(A) inserting ``first, middle, and last'' before ``names'';
(B) striking the comma after the words ``social security
account numbers'' and inserting ``or taxpayer identification
numbers, prison assigned inmate numbers, last known
addresses,'';
(C) inserting ``dates of release or anticipated dates of
release, dates of work release,'' before ``and, to the extent
available''; and
(D) by inserting ``and clause (iv) of this subparagraph''
after ``this paragraph''.
(b) Authority of Secretary of the Treasury to Access
PUPS.--
(1) Section 202(x)(3)(b).--Section 202(x)(3)(B) of the
Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 402(x)(3)(B)) is amended--
(A) in clause (iv), by inserting before the period the
following: ``, for statistical and research activities
conducted by Federal and State agencies, and to the Secretary
of the Treasury for the purposes of tax administration, debt
collection, and identifying, preventing, and recovering
improper payments under federally funded programs''; and
(B) by adding at the end the following:
``(v)(I) The Commissioner may disclose information received
pursuant to this paragraph to any officer, employee, agent,
or contractor of the Department of the Treasury whose
official duties require such information to assist in the
identification, prevention, and recovery of improper payments
or in the collection of delinquent debts owed to the United
States, including payments certified by the head of an
executive, judicial, or legislative paying agency, and
payments made to individuals whose eligibility, or continuing
eligibility, to participate in a Federal program (including
those administered by a State or political subdivision
thereof) is being reviewed.
``(II) Notwithstanding the provisions of section 552a of
title 5, United States Code, or any other provision of
Federal or State law, the Secretary of the Treasury may
compare information disclosed under subclause (I) with any
other personally identifiable information derived from a
Federal system of records or similar records maintained by a
Federal contractor, a Federal grantee, or an entity
administering a Federal program or activity, and may
redisclose such comparison of information to any paying or
administering agency and to the head of the Federal Bureau of
Prisons and the head of any State agency charged with the
administration of prisons with respect to inmates whom the
Secretary of the Treasury has determined may have been
issued, or facilitated in the issuance of, an improper
payment.
[[Page H8060]]
``(III) The comparison of information disclosed under
subclause (I) shall not be considered a matching program for
purposes of section 552a of title 5, United States Code.''.
(2) Section 1611(e)(1)(i).--Section 1611(e)(1)(I) of the
Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1382(e)(1)(I)) is amended--
(A) in clause (iii), by inserting before the period the
following: ``, for statistical and research activities
conducted by Federal and State agencies, and to the Secretary
of the Treasury for the purposes of tax administration, debt
collection, and identifying, preventing, and recovering
improper payments under federally funded programs''; and
(B) by adding at the end the following:
``(v)(I) The Commissioner may disclose information received
pursuant to this paragraph to any officer, employee, agent,
or contractor of the Department of the Treasury whose
official duties require such information to assist in the
identification, prevention, and recovery of improper payments
or in the collection of delinquent debts owed to the United
States, including payments certified by the head of an
executive, judicial, or legislative paying agency, and
payments made to individuals whose eligibility, or continuing
eligibility, to participate in a Federal program (including
those administered by a State or political subdivision
thereof) is being reviewed.
``(II) Notwithstanding the provisions of section 552a of
title 5, United States Code, or any other provision of
Federal or State law, the Secretary of the Treasury may
compare information disclosed under subclause (I) with any
other personally identifiable information derived from a
Federal system of records or similar records maintained by a
Federal contractor, a Federal grantee, or an entity
administering a Federal program or activity and may
redisclose such comparison of information to any paying or
administering agency and to the head of the Federal Bureau of
Prisons and the head of any State agency charged with the
administration of prisons with respect to inmates whom the
Secretary of the Treasury has determined may have been
issued, or facilitated in the issuance of, an improper
payment.
``(III) The comparison of information disclosed under
subclause (I) shall not be considered a matching program for
purposes of section 552a of title 5, United States Code.''.
(c) Conforming Amendment to the Do Not Pay Initiative.--
Section 5(a)(2) of the Improper Payments Elimination and
Recovery Improvement Act of 2012 (31 U.S.C. 3321 note) is
amended by adding at the end the following:
``(F) Information regarding incarcerated individuals
maintained by the Commissioner of Social Security under
sections 202(x) and 1611(e) of the Social Security Act.''.
TITLE III--NATURAL RESOURCES
SEC. 301. ULTRA-DEEPWATER AND UNCONVENTIONAL NATURAL GAS AND
OTHER PETROLEUM RESOURCES.
(a) Repeal.--Subtitle J of title IX of the Energy Policy
Act of 2005 (42 U.S.C. 16371 et seq.) is repealed.
(b) Rescission.--Any unobligated funds appropriated for
carrying out the subtitle repealed by subsection (a) are
rescinded.
SEC. 302. AMENDMENT TO THE MINERAL LEASING ACT.
Section 35(b) of the Mineral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 191(b))
is amended to read as follows--
``(b) Deduction for Administrative Costs.--In determining
the amount of payments to the States under this section,
beginning in fiscal year 2014 and for each year thereafter,
the amount of such payments shall be reduced by 2 percent for
any administrative or other costs incurred by the United
States in carrying out the program authorized by this Act,
and the amount of such reduction shall be deposited to
miscellaneous receipts of the Treasury.''.
SEC. 303. APPROVAL OF AGREEMENT WITH MEXICO.
The Agreement between the United States of America and the
United Mexican States Concerning Transboundary Hydrocarbon
Reservoirs in the Gulf of Mexico, signed at Los Cabos,
February 20, 2012, is hereby approved.
SEC. 304. AMENDMENT TO THE OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF LANDS ACT.
The Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1331 et
seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:
``SEC. 32. TRANSBOUNDARY HYDROCARBON AGREEMENTS.
``(a) Authorization.--After the date of enactment of the
Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013, the Secretary may implement
the terms of any transboundary hydrocarbon agreement for the
management of transboundary hydrocarbon reservoirs entered
into by the President and approved by Congress. In
implementing such an agreement, the Secretary shall protect
the interests of the United States to promote domestic job
creation and ensure the expeditious and orderly development
and conservation of domestic mineral resources in accordance
with all applicable United States laws governing the
exploration, development, and production of hydrocarbon
resources on the Outer Continental Shelf.
``(b) Submission to Congress.--
``(1) In general.--No later than 180 days after all parties
to a transboundary hydrocarbon agreement have agreed to its
terms, a transboundary hydrocarbon agreement that does not
constitute a treaty in the judgment of the President shall be
submitted by the Secretary to--
``(A) the Speaker of the House of Representatives;
``(B) the Majority Leader of the Senate;
``(C) the Chair of the Committee on Natural Resources of
the House of Representatives; and
``(D) the Chair of the Committee on Energy and Natural
Resources of the Senate.
``(2) Contents of submission.--The submission shall
include--
``(A) any amendments to this Act or other Federal law
necessary to implement the agreement;
``(B) an analysis of the economic impacts such agreement
and any amendments necessitated by the agreement will have on
domestic exploration, development, and production of
hydrocarbon resources on the Outer Continental Shelf; and
``(C) a detailed description of any regulations expected to
be issued by the Secretary to implement the agreement.
``(c) Implementation of Specific Transboundary Agreement
With Mexico.--The Secretary may take actions as necessary to
implement the terms of the Agreement between the United
States of America and the United Mexican States Concerning
Transboundary Hydrocarbon Reservoirs in the Gulf of Mexico,
signed at Los Cabos, February 20, 2012, including--
``(1) approving unitization agreements and related
arrangements for the exploration, development, or production
of oil and natural gas from transboundary reservoirs or
geological structures;
``(2) making available, in the limited manner necessary
under the agreement and subject to the protections of
confidentiality provided by the agreement, information
relating to the exploration, development, and production of
oil and natural gas from a transboundary reservoir or
geological structure that may be considered confidential,
privileged, or proprietary information under law;
``(3) taking actions consistent with an expert
determination under the agreement; and
``(4) ensuring only appropriate inspection staff at the
Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement or other
Federal agency personnel designated by the Bureau, the
operator, or the lessee have authority to stop work on any
installation or other device or vessel permanently or
temporarily attached to the seabed of the United States that
may be erected thereon for the purpose of resource
exploration, development or production activities as approved
by the Secretary.
``(d) Savings Provisions.--Nothing in this section shall be
construed--
``(1) to authorize the Secretary to participate in any
negotiations, conferences, or consultations with Cuba
regarding exploration, development, or production of
hydrocarbon resources in the Gulf of Mexico along the United
States maritime border with Cuba or the area known by the
Department of the Interior as the `Eastern Gap'; or
``(2) as affecting the sovereign rights and the
jurisdiction that the United States has under international
law over the Outer Continental Shelf that appertains to
it.''.
SEC. 305. FEDERAL OIL AND GAS ROYALTY PREPAYMENT CAP.
(a) In General.--Section 111(i) of the Federal Oil and Gas
Royalty Management Act of 1982 (30 U.S.C. 1721(i)) is amended
by striking ``(i) Upon'' and all that follows through ``For
purposes'' and inserting the following:
``(i) Limitation on Interest.--
``(1) In general.--Interest shall not be paid on any
excessive overpayment.
``(2) Excessive overpayment defined.--For purposes''.
(b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a)
shall take effect on July 1, 2014.
SEC. 306. STRATEGIC PETROLEUM RESERVE.
(a) Repeal of Authority to Acquire In-kind Royalty Crude
Oil.--Section 160(a) of the Energy Policy and Conservation
Act (42 U.S.C. 6240(a)) is amended to read as follows:
``(a) The Secretary may acquire, place in storage,
transport, or exchange petroleum products acquired by
purchase or exchange.''.
(b) Rescission of Funds.--Any unobligated balances
available in the SPR Petroleum Account in the Treasury on the
date of enactment of this section are permanently rescinded.
TITLE IV--FEDERAL CIVILIAN AND MILITARY RETIREMENT
SEC. 401. INCREASE IN CONTRIBUTIONS TO FEDERAL EMPLOYEES'
RETIREMENT SYSTEM FOR NEW EMPLOYEES.
(a) Definition.--
(1) In general.--Section 8401 of title 5, United States
Code, is amended--
(A) in paragraph (36), by striking ``and'' at the end;
(B) in paragraph (37), by striking the period and inserting
``; and''; and
(C) by adding at the end the following:
``(38) the term `further revised annuity employee' means
any individual who--
``(A) on December 31, 2013--
``(i) is not an employee or Member covered under this
chapter;
``(ii) is not performing civilian service which is
creditable service under section 8411; and
``(iii) has less than 5 years of creditable civilian
service under section 8411; and
``(B) after December 31, 2013, becomes employed as an
employee or becomes a Member covered under this chapter
performing service which is creditable service under section
8411.''.
(2) Technical amendment.--Section 8401(37)(B) of title 5,
United States Code, is
[[Page H8061]]
amended by inserting ``and before January 1, 2014,'' after
``after December 31, 2012,''.
(b) Increase in Individual Contributions.--Section
8422(a)(3) of title 5, United States Code, is amended--
(1) in subparagraph (A), by inserting ``or further revised
annuity employees'' after ``revised annuity employees''; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
``(C) The applicable percentage under this paragraph for
civilian service by further revised annuity employees shall
be as follows:
``Employee........................... 10.6 After December 31,
2013.
Congressional employee............... 10.6 After December 31,
2013.
Member............................... 10.6 After December 31,
2013.
Law enforcement officer, firefighter, 11.1 After December 31,
member of the Capitol Police, member 2013.
of the Supreme Court Police, or air
traffic controller..................
Nuclear materials courier............ 11.1 After December 31,
2013.
Customs and border protection officer 11.1 After December 31,
2013.''
(c) Government Contributions.--Section 8423(a)(2) of title
5, United States Code, is amended--
(1) by striking ``(2)'' and inserting ``(2)(A)''; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
``(B)(i) Subject to clauses (ii) and (iii), for purposes of
any period in any year beginning after December 31, 2013, the
normal-cost percentage under this subsection shall be
determined and applied as if section 401(b) of the Bipartisan
Budget Act of 2013 had not been enacted.
``(ii) Any contributions under this subsection in excess of
the amounts which (but for clause (i)) would otherwise have
been payable shall be applied toward reducing the unfunded
liability of the Civil Service Retirement System.
``(iii) After the unfunded liability of the Civil Service
Retirement System has been eliminated, as determined by the
Office, Government contributions under this subsection shall
be determined and made disregarding this subparagraph.
``(iv) The preceding provisions of this subparagraph shall
be disregarded for purposes of determining the contributions
payable by the United States Postal Service and the Postal
Regulatory Commission.''.
(d) Annuity Calculation.--Section 8415(d) of title 5,
United States Code, is amended by inserting ``or a further
revised annuity employee'' after ``a revised annuity
employee''.
SEC. 402. FOREIGN SERVICE PENSION SYSTEM.
(a) Definition.--
(1) In general.--Section 852 of the Foreign Service Act of
1980 (22 U.S.C. 4071a) is amended--
(A) by redesignating paragraphs (8), (9), and (10) as
paragraphs (9), (10), and (11), respectively; and
(B) by inserting after paragraph (7) the following:
``(8) the term `further revised annuity participant' means
any individual who--
``(A) on December 31, 2013--
``(i) is not a participant;
``(ii) is not performing service which is creditable
service under section 854; and
``(iii) has less than 5 years creditable service under
section 854; and
``(B) after December 31, 2013, becomes a participant
performing service which is creditable service under section
854;''.
(2) Technical amendment.--Section 852(7)(B) of the Foreign
Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. 4071a(7)(B)) is amended by
inserting ``and before January 1, 2014,'' after ``after
December 31, 2012,''.
(b) Deductions and Withholdings From Pay.--Section
856(a)(2) of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C.
4071e(a)(2)) is amended--
(1) in subparagraph (A), by inserting ``or a further
revised annuity participant'' after ``revised annuity
participant''; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
``(C) The applicable percentage for a further revised
annuity participant shall be as follows:
``11.15...................................... After December 31,
2013.''.
(c) Government Contributions.--Section 857 of the Foreign
Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. 4071f) is amended by adding at
the end the following:
``(c)(1) Subject to paragraphs (2) and (3), for purposes of
any period in any year beginning after December 31, 2013, the
normal-cost percentage under this section shall be determined
and applied as if section 402(b) of the Bipartisan Budget Act
of 2013 had not been enacted.
``(2) Any contributions under this section in excess of the
amounts which (but for paragraph (1)) would otherwise have
been payable shall be applied toward reducing the unfunded
liability of the Foreign Service Retirement and Disability
System.
``(3) After the unfunded liability of the Foreign Service
Retirement and Disability System has been eliminated, as
determined by the Secretary of State, Government
contributions under this section shall be determined and made
disregarding this subsection.''.
SEC. 403. ANNUAL ADJUSTMENT OF RETIRED PAY AND RETAINER PAY
AMOUNTS FOR RETIRED MEMBERS OF THE ARMED FORCES
UNDER AGE 62.
(a) CPI Minus One Percent.--Section 1401a(b) of title 10,
United States Code, is amended--
(1) in paragraph (1), by striking ``paragraphs (2) and
(3)'' and inserting ``paragraph (2), (3), or (4)'';
(2) by redesignating paragraphs (4) and (5) as paragraphs
(5) and (6), respectively; and
(3) by inserting after paragraph (3) the following new
paragraph (4):
``(4) Reduced percentage for retired members under age
62.--
``(A) In general.--Effective on December 1 of each year,
the retired pay of each member and former member under 62
years of age entitled to that pay shall be adjusted in
accordance with this paragraph instead of paragraph (2) or
(3).
``(B) CPI minus one.--If the percent determined under
paragraph (2) is greater than 1 percent, the Secretary shall
increase the retired pay of each member and former member by
the difference between--
``(i) the percent determined under paragraph (2); and
``(ii) 1 percent.
``(C) No negative adjustment.--If the percent determined
under paragraph (2) is equal to or less than 1 percent, the
Secretary shall not increase the retired pay of members and
former members under this paragraph.
``(D) Revised adjustment upon reaching age 62.--When a
member or former member whose retired pay has been subject to
adjustment under this paragraph becomes 62 years of age, the
Secretary of Defense shall recompute the retired pay of the
member or former member, to be effective on the date of the
next adjustment of retired pay under this subsection, so as
to be the amount equal to the amount of retired pay to which
the member or former member would be entitled on that date if
increases in the retired pay of the member or former member
had been computed as provided in paragraph (2) or as
specified in section 1410 of this title, as applicable,
rather than this paragraph.
``(E) Inapplicability of catch-up rule.--Paragraph (5)
shall not apply in the case of adjustments made, or not made,
as a result of application of this paragraph.''.
(b) Restoral of Full Retirement Amount at Age 62.--Section
1410(1) of title 10, United States Code, is amended by
striking ``paragraph (3)'' and inserting ``paragraph (3) or
(4)''.
(c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsections (a)
and (b) shall take effect on December 1, 2015.
TITLE V--HIGHER EDUCATION
SEC. 501. DEFAULT REDUCTION PROGRAM.
Effective July 1, 2014, section 428F(a)(1) of the Higher
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1078-6(a)(1)) is amended--
(1) in subparagraph (A), by striking clause (ii) and
inserting the following:
``(ii) beginning July 1, 2014, assign the loan to the
Secretary if the guaranty agency has been unable to sell the
loan under clause (i).''; and
(2) in subparagraph (D), by striking clause (i) and
inserting the following:
``(i) the guaranty agency--
``(I) shall, in the case of a sale made on or after July 1,
2014, repay the Secretary 100 percent of the amount of the
principal balance outstanding at the time of such sale,
multiplied by the reinsurance percentage in effect when
payment under the guaranty agreement was made with respect to
the loan; and
``(II) may, in the case of a sale made on or after July 1,
2014, in order to defray collection costs--
``(aa) charge to the borrower an amount not to exceed 16
percent of the outstanding principal and interest at the time
of the loan sale; and
``(bb) retain such amount from the proceeds of the loan
sale; and''.
SEC. 502. ELIMINATION OF NONPROFIT SERVICING CONTRACTS.
The Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.)
is amended--
(1) in section 456 (20 U.S.C. 1087f)--
(A) in subsection (a), by striking paragraph (4); and
(B) by striking subsection (c); and
(2) in section 458(a) (20 U.S.C. 1087h(a)), by striking
paragraph (2).
TITLE VI--TRANSPORTATION
SEC. 601. AVIATION SECURITY SERVICE FEES.
(a) Air Carrier Fees.--
(1) Repeal.--Section 44940(a)(2) of title 49, United States
Code, is repealed.
(2) Conforming amendment.--Section 44940(d)(1) of such
title is amended by striking ``, and may impose a fee under
subsection (a)(2),''.
(3) Effective date.--The repeal made by paragraph (1) and
the amendment made by paragraph (2) shall each take effect on
October 1, 2014.
(b) Restructuring of Passenger Fee.--Section 44940(c) of
such title is amended to read as follows:
``(c) Limitation on Fee.--Fees imposed under subsection
(a)(1) shall be $5.60 per one-way trip in air transportation
or intrastate air transportation that originates at an
airport in the United States.''.
(c) Deposit of Receipts in General Fund.--Section 44940(i)
of such title is amended to read as follows:
``(i) Deposit of Receipts in General Fund.--
``(1) In general.--Beginning in fiscal year 2014, out of
fees received in a fiscal year under subsection (a)(1), after
amounts are made available in the fiscal year under section
44923(h), the next funds derived from such fees in the fiscal
year, in the amount specified for the fiscal year in
paragraph (4), shall be credited as offsetting receipts and
deposited in the general fund of the Treasury.
[[Page H8062]]
``(2) Fee levels.--The Secretary of Homeland Security shall
impose the fee authorized by subsection (a)(1) so as to
collect in a fiscal year at least the amount specified in
paragraph (4) for the fiscal year for making deposits under
paragraph (1).
``(3) Relationship to other provisions.--Subsections (b)
and (f) shall not apply to amounts to be used for making
deposits under this subsection.
``(4) Fiscal year amounts.--For purposes of paragraphs (1)
and (2), the fiscal year amounts are as follows:
``(A) $390,000,000 for fiscal year 2014.
``(B) $1,190,000,000 for fiscal year 2015.
``(C) $1,250,000,000 for fiscal year 2016.
``(D) $1,280,000,000 for fiscal year 2017.
``(E) $1,320,000,000 for fiscal year 2018.
``(F) $1,360,000,000 for fiscal year 2019.
``(G) $1,400,000,000 for fiscal year 2020.
``(H) $1,440,000,000 for fiscal year 2021.
``(I) $1,480,000,000 for fiscal year 2022.
``(J) $1,520,000,000 for fiscal year 2023.''.
(d) Imposition of Fee Increase.--The Secretary of Homeland
Security shall implement the fee increase authorized by the
amendment made by subsection (b)--
(1) beginning on July 1, 2014; and
(2) through the publication of notice of such fee in the
Federal Register, notwithstanding section 9701 of title 31,
United States Code, and the procedural requirements of
section 553 of title 5, United States Code.
(e) Continued Availability of Existing Balances.--The
amendments made by this section shall not affect the
availability of funds made available under section 44940(i)
of title 49, United States Code, before the date of enactment
of this Act.
SEC. 602. TRANSPORTATION COST REIMBURSEMENT.
(a) Repeal.--Sections 55316 and 55317 of chapter 553 of
title 46, United States Code, are repealed.
(b) Table of Sections Amendment.--The table of sections at
the beginning of chapter 553 of title 46, United States Code,
is amended by striking the items relating to section 55316
and 55317.
SEC. 603. STERILE AREAS AT AIRPORTS.
Section 44903 of title 49, United States Code, is amended
by adding at the end the following:
``(n) Passenger Exit Points From Sterile Area.--
``(1) In general.--The Secretary of Homeland Security shall
ensure that the Transportation Security Administration is
responsible for monitoring passenger exit points from the
sterile area of airports at which the Transportation Security
Administration provided such monitoring as of December 1,
2013.
``(2) Sterile area defined.--In this section, the term
`sterile area' has the meaning given that term in section
1540.5 of title 49, Code of Federal Regulations (or any
corresponding similar regulation or ruling).''.
TITLE VII--MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS
SEC. 701. EXTENSION OF CUSTOMS USER FEES.
Section 13031(j)(3) of the Consolidated Omnibus Budget
Reconciliation Act of 1985 (19 U.S.C. 58c(j)(3)) is amended--
(1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``October 22, 2021''
and inserting ``September 30, 2023''; and
(2) in subparagraph (B)(i), by striking ``October 29,
2021'' and inserting ``September 30, 2023''.
SEC. 702. LIMITATION ON ALLOWABLE GOVERNMENT CONTRACTOR
COMPENSATION COSTS.
(a) Limitation.--
(1) Civilian contracts.--Section 4304(a)(16) of title 41,
United States Code, is amended to read as follows:
``(16) Costs of compensation of contractor and
subcontractor employees for a fiscal year, regardless of the
contract funding source, to the extent that such compensation
exceeds $487,000 per year, adjusted annually to reflect the
change in the Employment Cost Index for all workers, as
calculated by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, except that the
head of an executive agency may establish one or more
narrowly targeted exceptions for scientists, engineers, or
other specialists upon a determination that such exceptions
are needed to ensure that the executive agency has continued
access to needed skills and capabilities.''.
(2) Defense contracts.--Section 2324(e)(1)(P) of title 10,
United States Code, is amended to read as follows:
``(P) Costs of compensation of contractor and subcontractor
employees for a fiscal year, regardless of the contract
funding source, to the extent that such compensation exceeds
$487,000 per year, adjusted annually to reflect the change in
the Employment Cost Index for all workers, as calculated by
the Bureau of Labor Statistics, except that the head of an
executive agency may establish one or more narrowly targeted
exceptions for scientists, engineers, or other specialists
upon a determination that such exceptions are needed to
ensure that the executive agency has continued access to
needed skills and capabilities.''.
(b) Conforming Amendments.--
(1) Repeal.--Section 1127 of title 41, United States Code,
is hereby repealed.
(2) Clerical amendment.--The table of sections at the
beginning of chapter 11 of title 41, United States Code, is
amended by striking the item relating to section 1127.
(c) Applicability.--This section and the amendments made by
this section shall apply only with respect to costs of
compensation incurred under contracts entered into on or
after the date that is 180 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act.
(d) Reports.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 60 days after the end of
each fiscal year, the Director of the Office of Management
and Budget shall submit a report on contractor compensation
to--
(A) the Committee on Armed Services of the Senate;
(B) the Committee on Armed Services of the House of
Representatives;
(C) the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs of the Senate;
(D) the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform of the
House of Representatives;
(E) the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate; and
(F) the Committee on Appropriations of the House of
Representatives.
(2) Elements.--The report required under paragraph (1)
shall include--
(A) the total number of contractor employees, by executive
agency, in the narrowly targeted exception positions
described under subsection (a) during the preceding fiscal
year;
(B) the taxpayer-funded compensation amounts received by
each contractor employee in a narrowly targeted exception
position during such fiscal year; and
(C) the duties and services performed by contractor
employees in the narrowly targeted exception positions during
such fiscal year.
(e) Review.--Not later than 90 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense and the
Director of the Office of Management and Budget shall report
to Congress on alternative benchmarks and industry standards
for compensation, including whether any such benchmarks or
standards would provide a more appropriate measure of
allowable compensation for the purposes of section
2324(e)(1)(P) of title 10, United States Code, and section
4304(a)(16) of title 41, United States Code, as amended by
this Act.
SEC. 703. PENSION BENEFIT GUARANTY CORPORATION PREMIUM RATE
INCREASES.
(a) Flat-rate Premium Increases.--Section 4006(a)(3)(A)(i)
of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (29
U.S.C. 1306(a)(3)(A)(i)) is amended--
(1) in subclause (II), by striking ``and'' at the end;
(2) in subclause (III), by inserting ``and before January
1, 2015,'' after ``December 31, 2013''; and
(3) by inserting after subclause (III) the following:
``(IV) for plan years beginning after December 31, 2014,
and before January 1, 2016, $57; and
``(V) for plan years beginning after December 31, 2015, and
before January 1, 2017, $64.''.
(b) Flat-rate Premium Rate Indexed to Wages.--
(1) In general.--Section 4006(a)(3) of such Act (29 U.S.C.
1306(a)(3)) is amended--
(A) by redesignating subparagraphs (G) through (J) as
subparagraphs (H) through (K), respectively; and
(B) by inserting after subparagraph (F) the following:
``(G) For each plan year beginning in a calendar year after
2016, there shall be substituted for the premium rate
specified in clause (i) of subparagraph (A) an amount equal
to the greater of--
``(i) the product derived by multiplying the premium rate
specified in clause (i) of subparagraph (A) by the ratio of--
``(I) the national average wage index (as defined in
section 209(k)(1) of the Social Security Act) for the first
of the 2 calendar years preceding the calendar year in which
such plan year begins, to
``(II) the national average wage index (as so defined) for
2014; and
``(ii) the premium rate in effect under clause (i) of
subparagraph (A) for plan years beginning in the preceding
calendar year.
If the amount determined under this subparagraph is not a
multiple of $1, such product shall be rounded to the nearest
multiple of $1.''.
(2) Conforming amendments.--Section 4006(a)(3)(F) of such
Act (29 U.S.C. 1306(a)(3)(F)) is amended--
(A) in the matter before clause (i), by inserting ``and
before 2013'' after ``after 2006''; and
(B) in the flush text following clause (ii), by striking
the second sentence.
(c) Variable Rate Premium Increases.--
(1) In general.--Section 4006(a)(8)(C) of such Act (29
U.S.C. 1306(a)(8)(C)) is amended--
(A) in clause (i), by striking ``and'' at the end;
(B) in clause (ii), by striking ``$5.'' and inserting
``$10; and''; and
(C) by adding at the end the following:
``(iii) in the case of plan years beginning in calendar
year 2016, by $5.''.
(2) Conforming amendments.--Section 4006(a)(8) of such Act
(29 U.S.C. 1306(a)(8)) is amended--
(A) in subparagraph (A)--
(i) in clause (ii), by striking ``and'' at the end;
(ii) in clause (iii), by striking the period at the end and
inserting ``; and''; and
(iii) by adding at the end the following:
``(iv) for plan years beginning after calendar year 2016,
the amount in effect for plan years beginning in 2016
(determined after application of subparagraph (C)).''; and
(B) in subparagraph (D)--
[[Page H8063]]
(i) in clause (ii), by striking ``and'' at the end;
(ii) in clause (iii), by striking the period at the end and
inserting ``; and''; and
(iii) by adding at the end the following:
``(iv) 2014, in the case of plan years beginning after
calendar year 2016.''.
(d) Increase in Variable Rate Premium Cap.--
(1) In general.--Section 4006(a)(3)(E)(i) of such Act (29
U.S.C. 1306(a)(3)(E)(i)) is amended--
(A) in subclause (I), by striking ``and'' at the end;
(B) in subclause (II)--
(i) by inserting ``and before 2016'' after ``2012''; and
(ii) by striking the period at the end and inserting
``and''; and
(C) by adding at the end the following:
``(III) in the case of plan years beginning in a calendar
year after 2015, shall not exceed $500.''.
(2) Index to wages.--Section 4006(a)(3) of such Act (29
U.S.C. 1306(a)(3)) is amended--
(A) in subparagraph (K) (as redesignated by subsection
(b)(1)(A)), by inserting ``and before 2016'' after ``2013'';
and
(B) by inserting at the end the following:
``(L) For each plan year beginning in a calendar year after
2016, there shall be substituted for the dollar amount
specified in subclause (III) of subparagraph (E)(i) an amount
equal to the greater of--
``(i) the product derived by multiplying such dollar amount
by the ratio of--
``(I) the national average wage index (as defined in
section 209(k)(1) of the Social Security Act) for the first
of the 2 calendar years preceding the calendar year in which
such plan year begins, to
``(II) the national average wage index (as so defined) for
2014; and
``(ii) such dollar amount for plan years beginning in the
preceding calendar year.
If the amount determined under this subparagraph is not a
multiple of $1, such product shall be rounded to the nearest
multiple of $1.''.
(e) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section
shall apply to plan years beginning after December 31, 2013.
SEC. 704. CANCELLATION OF UNOBLIGATED BALANCES.
(a) Department of Justice Assets Forfeiture Fund.--
Effective on the date of enactment of this Act, of the
unobligated balances available under the Department of
Justice Assets Forfeiture Fund, $693,000,000 are permanently
cancelled.
(b) Treasury Forfeiture Fund.--Effective on the date of
enactment of this Act, of the unobligated balances available
under the Department of the Treasury Forfeiture Fund,
$867,000,000, are permanently cancelled.
SEC. 705. CONSERVATION PLANNING TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE USER
FEES.
(a) User Fees Authorized.--Section 3 of the Soil
Conservation and Domestic Allotment Act (16 U.S.C. 590c) is
amended--
(1) by striking ``require--'' and inserting ``require the
following:'';
(2) in paragraph (1), by striking the semicolon at the end
and inserting a period;
(3) in paragraph (2), by striking ``; and'' at the end and
inserting a period; and
(4) by adding at the end the following:
``(4)(A) The payment of user fees for conservation planning
technical assistance if the Secretary determines that the
fees, subject to subparagraph (B), are--
``(i) reasonable and appropriate;
``(ii) assessed for conservation planning technical
assistance resulting in the development of a conservation
plan; and
``(iii) assessed based on the size of the land or the
complexity of the resource issues involved.
``(B) Fees under subparagraph (A) may not exceed $150 per
conservation plan for which technical assistance is provided.
``(C) The Secretary may waive fees otherwise required under
subparagraph (A) in the case of conservation planning
technical assistance provided--
``(i) to beginning farmers or ranchers (as defined in
section 343(a) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development
Act (7 U.S.C. 1991(a));
``(ii) to limited resource farmers or ranchers (as defined
by the Secretary);
``(iii) to socially disadvantaged farmers or ranchers (as
defined in section 355(e) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural
Development Act (7 U.S.C. 2003(e));
``(iv) to qualify for an exemption from ineligibility under
section 1212 of the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C.
3812); or
``(v) to comply with Federal, State, or local regulatory
requirements.''.
(b) Conservation Technical Assistance Fund.--Section 6 of
the Soil Conservation and Domestic Allotment Act (16 U.S.C.
590f) is amended--
(1) by striking ``SEC. 6.'' and all that follows through
``There are hereby authorized'' and inserting the following:
``SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS AND CONSERVATION
TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE FUNDS.
``(a) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is
authorized''; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
``(b) Conservation Technical Assistance Fund.--
``(1) In general.--There is established in the Treasury of
the United States a fund to be known as the `Conservation
Technical Assistance Fund' (referred to in this subsection as
the `Fund'), to be administered by the Secretary of
Agriculture.
``(2) Deposits.--An amount equal to the amounts collected
as fees under section 3(4) and late payments, interest, and
such other amounts as are authorized to be collected pursuant
to section 3717 of title 31, United States Code, shall be
deposited in the Fund.
``(3) Availability.--Amounts in the Fund shall--
``(A) only be available to the extent and in the amount
provided in advance in appropriations Acts;
``(B) be used for the costs of carrying out this Act; and
``(C) remain available until expended.''.
SEC. 706. SELF PLUS ONE COVERAGE.
(a) Election of Coverage.--Section 8905 of title 5, United
States Code, is amended--
(1) by striking subsection (a) and inserting the following:
``(a) An employee may enroll in an approved health benefits
plan described in section 8903 or 8903a--
``(1) as an individual;
``(2) for self plus one; or
``(3) for self and family.'';
(2) in subsection (c)--
(A) in paragraph (1), in the matter following subparagraph
(B), by inserting ``for self plus one or'' before ``self and
family as provided in paragraph (2) of this subsection''; and
(B) in paragraph (2)--
(i) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by inserting
``for self plus one or'' before ``for self and family''; and
(ii) in subparagraph (B), by inserting ``(or, in the case
of self plus one coverage, not more than 1 such child)''
after ``adopted children'';
(3) in subsection (e), by striking ``or each spouse may
enroll as an individual'' and inserting ``or for a self plus
one enrollment that covers the spouse, or each spouse may
enroll as an individual or for a self plus one enrollment
that does not cover the other spouse or a child who is
covered under the enrollment of the other spouse''; and
(4) in subsection (h)--
(A) by striking ``self and family enrollment'' each place
it appears and inserting ``self plus one or self and family
enrollment, as necessary to provide health insurance coverage
for each child who is covered under the order,'';
(B) by striking ``a child'' each place it appears and
inserting ``1 or more children'';
(C) by striking ``the child resides'' each place it appears
and inserting ``the child or children reside'';
(D) in paragraph (1), by striking ``self and family
coverage'' each place it appears and inserting ``self plus
one or self and family coverage, as necessary to provide
health insurance coverage for each child who is covered under
the order,''; and
(E) in paragraph (3), by striking ``the child continues''
and inserting ``the child or children continue''.
(b) Continued Coverage.--Section 8905a of title 5, United
States Code, is amended--
(1) in subsection (d)(3)(A), by inserting ``for self plus
one or'' before ``for self and family''; and
(2) in subsection (f)(3)(A), by striking ``for self and
family based on such person's separation from service'' and
inserting ``based on such person's separation from service
under a self plus one enrollment that covered the individual
or under a self and family enrollment''.
(c) Contributions.--Section 8906(a)(1) of title 5, United
States Code is amended--
(1) in subparagraph (A), by striking at the end ``and'';
(2) by redesignating subparagraph (B) as subparagraph (C);
and
(3) by inserting after subparagraph (A) the following:
``(B) enrollments under this chapter for self plus one;
and''.
(d) Weighted Average for First Year.--For the first
contract year for which an employee may enroll for self plus
one coverage under chapter 89 of title 5, United States Code,
the Office of Personnel Management shall determine the
weighted average of the subscription charges that will be in
effect for the contract year for enrollments for self plus
one under such chapter based on an actuarial analysis.
DIVISION B--MEDICARE AND OTHER HEALTH PROVISIONS
SEC. 1001. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.
(a) Short Title.-- This division may be cited as the
``Pathway for SGR Reform Act of 2013''.
(b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents of this
division is as follows:
DIVISION B--MEDICARE AND OTHER HEALTH PROVISIONS
Sec. 1001. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 1002. Findings; purpose statement.
TITLE I--MEDICARE EXTENDERS
Sec. 1101. Physician payment update.
Sec. 1102. Extension of work GPCI floor.
Sec. 1103. Extension of therapy cap exceptions process.
Sec. 1104. Extension of ambulance add-ons.
Sec. 1105. Medicare inpatient hospital payment adjustment for low-
volume hospitals.
Sec. 1106. Medicare-dependent hospital (MDH) program.
Sec. 1107. 1-year extension of authorization for special needs plans.
Sec. 1108. 1-year extension of Medicare reasonable cost contracts.
Sec. 1109. Extension of existing funding for contract with consensus-
based entity.
[[Page H8064]]
Sec. 1110. Extension of funding outreach and assistance for low-income
programs.
TITLE II--OTHER HEALTH PROVISIONS
Sec. 1201. Extension of the qualifying individual (QI) program.
Sec. 1202. Temporary extension of transitional medical assistance
(TMA).
Sec. 1203. Extension of funding for family-to-family health information
centers.
Sec. 1204. Delay of reductions to Medicaid DSH allotments.
Sec. 1205. Realignment of the Medicare sequester for fiscal year 2023.
Sec. 1206. Payment for inpatient services in long-term care hospitals
(LTCHs).
SEC. 1002. FINDINGS; PURPOSE STATEMENT.
In order to support the provision of quality care for our
nations seniors, Congress finds it appropriate to reform
physician reimbursements under the Medicare program. SGR
reform legislation provides such an opportunity, but not
until next year. In order to facilitate such reform, Congress
finds that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
should continue to focus its efforts on the following areas:
(1) Simplify and reduce administrative burden on
physicians.--The application and assessment of measures and
other activities under SGR reform should be facilitated by
the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) in a way
that accounts for the administrative burden such measurement
places on physicians. Therefore, the Congress encourages CMS
to identify and implement, to the extent practicable,
mechanisms to ensure that the application and assessment of
measures be coordinated across programs.
(2) Timely feedback for physicians.--In order for measure
and assessment programs to encourage the highest quality care
for Medicare seniors, the Congress finds it critical that CMS
provide physicians with feedback on performance in as close
to real time as possible. Such timely feedback will ensure
that physicians can excel under a system of meaningful
measurement.
(3) Encourage development of new models.--There is great
need to test alternatives to Fee-For-Service reimbursement in
the Medicare program. One option is the promotion and
adoption of new models of care for physicians. To date, there
has been significant development and testing of models for
primary care. Congress supports these efforts and encourages
them to continue in the future. Congress also encourages the
development and testing of models of specialty care.
TITLE I--MEDICARE EXTENDERS
SEC. 1101. PHYSICIAN PAYMENT UPDATE.
Section 1848(d) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 10
1395w-4(d)) is amended by adding at the end the following new
paragraph:
``(15) Update for january through march of 2014.--
``(A) In general.--Subject to paragraphs (7)(B), (8)(B),
(9)(B), (10)(B), (11)(B), (12)(B), (13)(B), and (14)(B), in
lieu of the update to the single conversion factor
established in paragraph (1)(C) that would otherwise apply
for 2014 for the period beginning on January 1, 2014, and
ending on March 31, 2014, the update to the single conversion
factor shall be 0.5 percent.
``(B) No effect on computation of conversion factor for
remaining portion of 2014 and subsequent years.--The
conversion factor under this subsection shall be computed
under paragraph (1)(A) for the period beginning on April 1,
2014, and ending on December 31, 2014, and for 2015 and
subsequent years as if subparagraph (A) had never applied.''.
SEC. 1102. EXTENSION OF WORK GPCI FLOOR.
Section 1848(e)(1)(E) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C.
1395w-4(e)(1)(E)) is amended by striking ``January 1, 2014''
and inserting ``April 1, 2014''.
SEC. 1103. EXTENSION OF THERAPY CAP EXCEPTIONS PROCESS.
Section 1833(g) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C.
1395l(g)) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (5)(A), in the first sentence, by striking
``December 31, 2013'' and inserting ``March 31, 2014''; and
(2) in paragraph (6)(A)--
(A) by striking ``December 31, 2013'' and inserting ``March
31, 2014''; and
(B) by striking ``or 2013'' and inserting ``, 2013, or the
first three months of 2014''.
SEC. 1104. EXTENSION OF AMBULANCE ADD-ONS.
(a) Ground Ambulance.--Section 1834(l)(13)(A) of the Social
Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395m(l)(13)(A)) is amended--
(1) in the matter preceding clause (i), by striking
``January 1, 2014'' and inserting ``April 1, 2014''; and
(2) in each of clauses (i) and (ii), by striking ``January
1, 2014'' and inserting ``April 1, 2014'' each place it
appears.
(b) Super Rural Ground Ambulance.--Section 1834(l)(12)(A)
of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395m(l)(12)(A)) is
amended by striking ``January 1, 2014'' and inserting ``April
1, 2014''.
SEC. 1105. MEDICARE INPATIENT HOSPITAL PAYMENT ADJUSTMENT FOR
LOW-VOLUME HOSPITALS.
Section 1886(d)(12) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C.
1395ww(d)(12)) is amended--
(1) in subparagraph (B), in the matter preceding clause
(i), by striking ``fiscal year 2014 and subsequent fiscal
years'' and inserting ``the portion of fiscal year 2014
beginning on April 1, 2014, fiscal year 2015, and subsequent
fiscal years'';
(2) in subparagraph (C)(i)--
(A) by inserting ``and the portion of fiscal year 2014
before'' after ``and 2013,'' each place it appears; and
(B) by inserting ``or portion of fiscal year'' after
``during the fiscal year''; and
(3) in subparagraph (D)--
(A) by inserting ``and the portion of fiscal year 2014
before April 1, 2014,'' after ``and 2013,''; and
(B) by inserting ``or the portion of fiscal year'' after
``in the fiscal year''.
SEC. 1106. MEDICARE-DEPENDENT HOSPITAL (MDH) PROGRAM.
(a) In General.--Section 1886(d)(5)(G) of the Social
Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395ww(d)(5)(G)) is amended--
(1) in clause (i), by striking ``October 1, 2013'' and
inserting ``April 1, 2014''; and
(2) in clause (ii)(II), by striking ``October 1, 2013'' and
inserting ``April 1, 2014''.
(b) Conforming Amendments.--
(1) Extension of target amount.--Section 1886(b)(3)(D) of
the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395ww(b)(3)(D)) is
amended--
(A) in the matter preceding clause (i), by striking
``October 1, 2013'' and inserting ``April 1, 2014''; and
(B) in clause (iv), by inserting ``and the portion of
fiscal year 2014 before April 1, 2014'' after ``through
fiscal year 2013''.
(2) Permitting hospitals to decline reclassification.--
Section 13501(e)(2) of the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act
of 1993 (42 U.S.C. 1395ww note) is amended by striking
``through fiscal year 2013'' and inserting ``through the
first 2 quarters of fiscal year 2014''.
SEC. 1107. 1-YEAR EXTENSION OF AUTHORIZATION FOR SPECIAL
NEEDS PLANS.
Section 1859(f)(1) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C.
1395w-28(f)(1)) is amended by striking ``2015'' and inserting
``2016''.
SEC. 1108. 1-YEAR EXTENSION OF MEDICARE REASONABLE COST
CONTRACTS.
Section 1876(h)(5)(C)(ii) of the Social Security Act (42
U.S.C. 1395mm(h)(5)(C)(ii)) is amended, in the matter
preceding subclause (I), by striking ``January 1, 2014'' and
inserting ``January 1, 2015''.
SEC. 1109. EXTENSION OF EXISTING FUNDING FOR CONTRACT WITH
CONSENSUS-BASED ENTITY.
Section 1890(d) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C.
1395aaa(d)) is amended by adding at the end the following new
sentence: ``Amounts transferred under the preceding sentence
shall remain available until expended.''.
SEC. 1110. EXTENSION OF FUNDING OUTREACH AND ASSISTANCE FOR
LOW-INCOME PROGRAMS.
(a) Additional Funding for State Health Insurance
Programs.--Subsection (a)(1)(B) of section 119 of the
Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act of 2008
(42 U.S.C. 1395b-3 note), as amended by section 3306 of the
Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act Public Law 111-
148) and section 610 of the American Taxpayer Relief Act of
2012 (Public Law 112-240), is amended--
(1) in clause (ii), by striking ``and'' at the end;
(2) in clause (iii), by striking the period at the end and
inserting ``; and''; and
(3) by inserting after clause (iii) the following new
clause:
``(iv) for the portion of fiscal year 2014 before April 1,
2014, of $3,750,000.''.
(b) Additional Funding for Area Agencies on Aging.--
Subsection (b)(1)(B) of such section 119, as so amended, is
amended--
(1) in clause (ii), by striking ``and'' at the end;
(2) in clause (iii), by striking the period at the end and
inserting ``; and''; and
(3) by inserting after clause (iii) the following new
clause:
``(iv) for the portion of fiscal year 2014 before April 1,
2014, of $3,750,000.''.
(c) Additional Funding for Aging and Disability Resource
Centers.--Subsection (c)(1)(B) of such section 119, as so
amended, is amended--
(1) in clause (ii), by striking ``and'' at the end;
(2) in clause (iii), by striking the period at the end and
inserting ``; and''; and
(3) by inserting after clause (iii) the following new
clause:
``(iv) for the portion of fiscal year 2014 before April 1,
2014, of $2,500,000.''.
(d) Additional Funding for Contract With the National
Center for Benefits and Outreach Enrollment.--Subsection
(d)(2) of such section 119, as so amended, is amended--
(1) in clause (ii), by striking ``and'' at the end;
(2) in clause (iii), by striking the period at the end and
inserting ``; and''; and
(3) by inserting after clause (iii) the following new
clause:
``(iv) for the portion of fiscal year 2014 before April 1,
2014, of $2,500,000.''.
TITLE II--OTHER HEALTH PROVISIONS
SEC. 1201. EXTENSION OF THE QUALIFYING INDIVIDUAL (QI)
PROGRAM.
(a) Extension.--Section 1902(a)(10)(E)(iv) of the Social
Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396a(a)(10)(E)(iv)) is amended by
striking ``December 2013'' and inserting ``March 2014''.
(b) Extending Total Amount Available for Allocation.--
Section 1933(g) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396u-
3(g)) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (2)--
(A) in subparagraph (S), by striking ``and'' after the
semicolon;
(B) in subparagraph (T), by striking the period at the end
and inserting ``; and''; and
[[Page H8065]]
(C) by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
``(U) for the period that begins on January 1, 2014, and
ends on March 31, 2014, the total allocation amount is
$200,000,000.''.
SEC. 1202. TEMPORARY EXTENSION OF TRANSITIONAL MEDICAL
ASSISTANCE (TMA).
Sections 1902(e)(1)(B) and 1925(f) of the Social Security
Act (42 U.S.C. 1396a(e)(1)(B), 1396r-6(f)) are each amended
by striking ``December 31, 2013'' and inserting ``March 31,
2014''.
SEC. 1203. EXTENSION OF FUNDING FOR FAMILY-TO-FAMILY HEALTH
INFORMATION CENTERS.
Section 501(c)(1)(A) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C.
701(c)(1)(A)) is amended--
(1) in clause (ii), by striking at the end ``and'';
(2) in clause (iii), by striking the period at the end and
inserting ``; and''; and
(3) by adding at the end the following new clause:
``(iv) $2,500,000 for the portion of fiscal year 2014
before April 1, 2014.''.
SEC. 1204. DELAY OF REDUCTIONS TO MEDICAID DSH ALLOTMENTS.
(a) In General.--Section 1923(f) of the Social Security Act
(42 U.S.C. 1396r-4(f)) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (7)(A)--
(A) in clause (i), by striking ``2014'' and inserting
``2016''; and
(B) in clause (ii)--
(i) by striking subclauses (I) and (II);
(ii) by redesignating subclauses (III) through (VII) as
subclauses (I) through (V), respectively; and
(iii) in subclause (I) (as redesignated by clause (ii)), by
striking ``$600,000,000'' and inserting ``$1,200,000,000'';
and
(2) in paragraph (8)--
(A) by redesignating subparagraph (C) as subparagraph (D);
(B) by inserting after subparagraph (B) the following new
subparagraph:
``(C) Fiscal year 2023.--Only with respect to fiscal year
2023, the DSH allotment for a State, in lieu of the amount
determined under paragraph (3) for the State for that year,
shall be equal to the DSH allotment for the State for fiscal
year 2022, as determined under subparagraph (B), increased,
subject to subparagraphs (B) and (C) of paragraph (3), and
paragraph (5), by the percentage change in the consumer price
index for all urban consumers (all items; U.S. city average),
for fiscal year 2022.''; and
(C) in subparagraph (D) (as redesignated by subparagraph
(A)), by striking ``fiscal year 2022'' and inserting ``fiscal
year 2023''.
(b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsection (a)
shall be effective as of October 1, 2013.
SEC. 1205. REALIGNMENT OF THE MEDICARE SEQUESTER FOR FISCAL
YEAR 2023.
Paragraph (6) (relating to implementing direct spending
reductions, as redesignated by section 101(d)(2)(C), and as
amended by section 101(c), of the Bipartisan Budget Act of
2013) of section 251A of the Balanced Budget and Emergency
Deficit Control Act of 1985 (2 U.S.C. 901a) is amended by
adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
``(C) Notwithstanding the 2 percent limit specified in
subparagraph (A) for payments for the Medicare programs
specified in section 256(d), the sequestration order of the
President under such subparagraph for fiscal year 2023 shall
be applied to such payments so that--
``(i) with respect to the first 6 months in which such
order is effective for such fiscal year, the payment
reduction shall be 2.90 percent; and
``(ii) with respect to the second 6 months in which such
order is so effective for such fiscal year, the payment
reduction shall be 1.11 percent.''.
SEC. 1206. PAYMENT FOR INPATIENT SERVICES IN LONG-TERM CARE
HOSPITALS (LTCHS).
(a) Establishment of Criteria for Application of Site
Neutral Payment.--
(1) In general.--Section 1886(m) of the Social Security Act
(42 U.S.C. 1395ww(m)) is amended by adding at the end the
following:
``(6) Application of site neutral ipps payment rate in
certain cases.--
``(A) General application of site neutral ipps payment
amount for discharges failing to meet applicable criteria.--
``(i) In general.--For a discharge in cost reporting
periods beginning on or after October 1, 2015, except as
provided in clause (ii) and subparagraph (C), payment under
this title to a long-term care hospital for inpatient
hospital services shall be made at the applicable site
neutral payment rate (as defined in subparagraph (B)).
``(ii) Exception for certain discharges meeting criteria.--
Clause (i) shall not apply (and payment shall be made to a
long-term care hospital without regard to this paragraph) for
a discharge if--
``(I) the discharge meets the ICU criterion under clause
(iii) or the ventilator criterion under clause (iv); and
``(II) the discharge does not have a principal diagnosis
relating to a psychiatric diagnosis or to rehabilitation.
``(iii) Intensive care unit (icu) criterion.--
``(I) In general.--The criterion specified in this clause
(in this paragraph referred to as the `ICU criterion'), for a
discharge from a long-term care hospital, is that the stay in
the long-term care hospital ending with such discharge was
immediately preceded by a discharge from a stay in a
subsection (d) hospital that included at least 3 days in an
intensive care unit (ICU), as determined by the Secretary.
``(II) Determining icu days.--In determining intensive care
unit days under subclause (I), the Secretary shall use data
from revenue center codes 020x or 021x (or such successor
codes as the Secretary may establish).
``(iv) Ventilator criterion.--The criterion specified in
this clause (in this paragraph referred to as the `ventilator
criterion'), for a discharge from a long-term care hospital,
is that--
``(I) the stay in the long-term care hospital ending with
such discharge was immediately preceded by a discharge from a
stay in a subsection (d) hospital; and
``(II) the individual discharged was assigned to a
Medicare-Severity-Long-Term-Care-Diagnosis-Related-Group (MS-
LTC-DRG) based on the receipt of ventilator services of at
least 96 hours.
``(B) Applicable site neutral payment rate defined.--
``(i) In general.--In this paragraph, the term `applicable
site neutral payment rate' means--
``(I) for discharges in cost reporting periods beginning
during fiscal year 2016 or fiscal year 2017, the blended
payment rate specified in clause (iii); and
``(II) for discharges in cost reporting periods beginning
during fiscal year 2018 or a subsequent fiscal year, the site
neutral payment rate (as defined in clause (ii)).
``(ii) Site neutral payment rate defined.--In this
paragraph, the term `site neutral payment rate' means the
lower of--
``(I) the IPPS comparable per diem amount determined under
paragraph (d)(4) of section 412.529 of title 42, Code of
Federal Regulations, including any applicable outlier
payments under section 412.525 of such title; or
``(II) 100 percent of the estimated cost for the services
involved.
``(iii) Blended payment rate.--The blended payment rate
specified in this clause, for a long-term care hospital for
inpatient hospital services for a discharge, is comprised
of--
``(I) half of the site neutral payment rate (as defined in
clause (ii)) for the discharge; and
``(II) half of the payment rate that would otherwise be
applicable to such discharge without regard to this
paragraph, as determined by the Secretary.
``(C) Limiting payment for all hospital discharges to site
neutral payment rate for hospitals failing to meet applicable
ltch discharge thresholds.--
``(i) Notice of ltch discharge payment percentage.--For
cost reporting periods beginning during or after fiscal year
2016, the Secretary shall inform each long-term care hospital
of its LTCH discharge payment percentage (as defined in
clause (iv)) for such period.
``(ii) Limitation.--For cost reporting periods beginning
during or after fiscal year 2020, if the Secretary determines
for a long-term care hospital that its LTCH discharge payment
percentage for the period is not at least 50 percent--
``(I) the Secretary shall inform the hospital of such fact;
and
``(II) subject to clause (iii), for all discharges in the
hospital in each succeeding cost reporting period, the
payment amount under this subsection shall be the payment
amount that would apply under subsection (d) for the
discharge if the hospital were a subsection (d) hospital.
``(iii) Process for reinstatement.--The Secretary shall
establish a process whereby a long-term care hospital may
seek to and have the provisions of subclause (II) of clause
(ii) discontinued with respect to that hospital.
``(iv) LTCH discharge payment percentage.--In this
subparagraph, the term `LTCH discharge payment percentage'
means, with respect to a long-term care hospital for a cost
reporting period beginning during or after fiscal year 2020,
the ratio (expressed as a percentage) of--
``(I) the number of discharges for such hospital and period
for which payment is not made at the site neutral payment
rate, to
``(II) the total number of discharges for such hospital and
period.
``(D) Inclusion of subsection (d) puerto rico hospitals.--
In this paragraph, any reference in this paragraph to a
subsection (d) hospital shall be deemed to include a
reference to a subsection (d) Puerto Rico hospital.''.
(2) Medpac study and report on impact of changes.--
(A) Study.--The Medicare Payment Assessment Commission
shall examine the effect of applying section 1886(m)(6) of
the Social Security Act, as added by the amendment made by
paragraph (1), on--
(i) the quality of patient care in long-term care
hospitals;
(ii) the use of hospice care and post-acute care settings;
(iii) different types of long-term care hospitals; and
(iv) the growth in Medicare spending for services in such
hospitals.
(B) Report.--Not later than June 30, 2019, the Commission
shall submit to Congress a report on such study. The
Commission shall include in such report such recommendations
for changes in the application of such section as the
Commission deems appropriate as well as the impact of the
application of such section on the need to continue applying
the 25 percent rule described under
[[Page H8066]]
sections 412.534 and 412.536 of title 42, Code of Federal
Regulations.
(3) Calculation of length of stay excluding cases paid on a
site neutral basis.--
(A) In general.--For discharges occurring in cost reporting
periods beginning on or after October 1, 2015, subject to
subparagraph (B), in calculating the length of stay
requirement applicable to a long-term care hospital or
satellite facility under section 1886(d)(1)(B)(iv)(I) of the
Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395ww(d)(1)(B)(iv)(I)) and
section 1861(ccc)(2) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 1395x(ccc)(2)),
the Secretary of Health and Human Services shall exclude the
following:
(i) Site neutral payment.--Any patient for whom payment is
made at the site neutral payment rate (as defined in section
1886(m)(6)(B)(ii)) of such Act, as added by paragraph (1)).
(ii) Medicare advantage.--Any patient for whom payment is
made under a Medicare Advantage plan under part C of title
XVIII of such Act.
(B) Limitation on converting subsection (d) hospitals.--
Subparagraph (A) shall not apply to a hospital that is
classified as of December 10, 2013, as a subsection (d)
hospital (as defined in section 1886(d)(1)(B) of the Social
Security Act, 42 U.S.C. 1395ww(d)(1)(B)) for purposes of
determining whether the requirements of section
1886(d)(1)(B)(iv)(I) or 1861(ccc)(2) of such Act (42 U.S.C.
1395ww(d)(1)(B)(iv)(I), 1395x(ccc)(2)) are met.
(b) Extension of Certain LTCH Payment Rules and Moratorium
on the Establishment of Certain Hospitals and Facilities.--
(1) Extension of certain payment rules.--
(A) Payment for hospitals-within-hospitals.--Paragraph
(2)(C) of section 114(c) of the Medicare, Medicaid, and SCHIP
Extension Act of 2007 (42 U.S.C. 1395ww note), as amended by
sections 3106(a) and 10312(a) of Public Law 111-148, is
amended by striking ``5-year period'' and inserting ``9-year
period''.
(B) 25 percent patient threshold payment adjustment; making
the grandfathered exemption for long-term care hospitals
permanent.--Section 114(c)(1) of the Medicare, Medicaid, and
SCHIP Extension Act of 2007 (42 U.S.C. 1395ww note), as
amended by sections 3106(a) and 10312(a) of Public Law 111-
148, is amended--
(i) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by striking
``for a 5-year period''; and
(ii) in subparagraph (A), by inserting ``for a 9-year
period,'' before ``section 412.536''.
(C) Report assessing continued suspension of 25 percent
rule.--Not later than 1 year before the end of the 9-year
period referred to in section 114(c)(1) of the Medicare,
Medicaid, and SCHIP Extension Act of 2007 (42 U.S.C. 1395ww
note), as amended by subparagraph (B), the Secretary of
Health and Human Services shall submit to Congress a report
on the need for any further extensions (or modifications of
the extensions) of the 25 percent rule described in sections
412.534 and 412.536 of title 42, Code of Federal Regulations,
particularly taking into account the application of section
1886(m)(6) of the Social Security Act, as added by subsection
(a)(1).
(2) Extension of moratorium on establishment of and
increase in beds for ltchs.--Section 114(d) of the Medicare,
Medicaid, and SCHIP Extension Act of 2007 (42 U.S.C. 1395ww
note), as amended by sections 3106(b) and 10312(b) of Public
Law 111-148, is amended--
(A) in paragraph (1), in the matter preceding subparagraph
(A), by inserting after ``5-year period'' the following:
``(and for the period beginning January 1, 2015, and ending
September 30, 2017)''; and
(B) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
``(6) Limitation on application of exceptions.--Paragraphs
(2) and (3) shall not apply during the period beginning
January 1, 2015, and ending September 30, 2017.''.
(c) Additional Quality Measure.--Section 1886(m)(5)(D) of
the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395ww(m)(5)(D)) is
amended by adding at the end the following new clause:
``(iv) Additional quality measures.--Not later than October
1, 2015, the Secretary shall establish a functional status
quality measure for change in mobility among inpatients
requiring ventilator support.''.
(d) Review of Treatment of Certain LTCHs.--
(1) Evaluation.--As part of the annual rulemaking for
fiscal year 2015 or fiscal year 2016 to carry out the payment
rates under subsection (d) of section 1886 of the Social
Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395ww), the Secretary shall evaluate
both the payment rates and regulations governing hospitals
which are classified under subclause (II) of subsection
(d)(1)(B)(iv) of such section.
(2) Adjustment authority.--Based upon such evaluation, the
Secretary may adjust payment rates under subsection (b)(3) of
section 1886 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395ww)
for a hospital so classified (such as payment based upon the
TEFRA-payment model) and may adjust the regulations governing
such hospitals, including applying the regulations governing
hospitals which are classified under clause (I) of subsection
(d)(1)(B) of such section.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to House Resolution 438, the motion
shall be debatable for 70 minutes, with 60 minutes equally divided and
controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the Committee on
the Budget and 10 minutes equally divided and controlled by the chair
and ranking minority member of the Committee on Energy and Commerce.
The gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Ryan) and the gentleman from
Maryland (Mr. Van Hollen) each will control 30 minutes. The gentleman
from Michigan (Mr. Upton) and the gentleman from California (Mr.
Waxman) each will control 5 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Wisconsin.
General Leave
Mr. RYAN of Wisconsin. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all
Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their
remarks and include extraneous material on the further consideration of
House Joint Resolution 59.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Wisconsin?
There was no objection.
Mr. RYAN of Wisconsin. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself 3 minutes.
I rise on behalf of the bipartisan budget agreement. This is the
first time since 1986 that a divided Congress has done what we are
about to do.
Here is what the bill does:
It reduces the deficit by $23 billion; it does not raise taxes; and
it cuts spending in a smarter way. We take temporary across-the-board
cuts, and we replace them with targeted permanent reforms, and these
reforms take place immediately.
First, we cut waste: for instance, we stop paying Medicaid bills that
deadbeat dads ought to cover; we stop sending unemployment checks to
criminals;
Second, we go after corporate welfare: we eliminate a government
program for energy companies; we eliminate a special carveout in the
student loan program;
Third, we start to address the real problem, and that is autopilot
spending: we ask new Federal employees to contribute a little more to
their retirements; we ask private companies to cover a little bit more
of their own pension guarantees.
These savings build up over time, and this bill saves more than if we
did nothing.
This bill isn't as far as I would like. It is not near the breadth
and the scope of the budget that we passed earlier, but that is how it
works in divided government. That is the nature of compromise. In a
divided government, you don't get everything you want, but I think this
bill is a firm step in the right direction. It is not perfect. It is a
start. That is how it works in divided government. I also think, Mr.
Speaker, it gives us the added benefit of preventing Washington's lurch
from crisis to crisis. We are bringing stability to the budget process,
and that stability will help build confidence, and that confidence will
help our economy.
I will be the first to admit that we have a lot more work to do. I
have been bringing budgets to this floor for 5 years that balance the
budget, that pay off the debt, that reform our entitlement programs.
That is what we want to do. That is what we are going to keep working
on doing, but in this divided government, we are going to take the
steps we can take, and this step, we think, is one in the right
direction. We need to help strengthen the economy. We need to help
create jobs and take-home pay.
The bottom line is: this first step is designed to help improve
people's lives. It is designed to make this government work at a basic
functioning level, and by passing this, we will reduce the deficit.
We came here to get something done. We always lock horns. We always
argue. We never agree. I think it is about time, for once in a long
time, we find common ground and agree. That is what this bill does, and
that is what I ask my colleagues to consider, and I ask them to support
this agreement.
With that, I reserve the balance of my time.
Section 203 restricts access to the Death Master File, DMF, which is
a list of deceased individuals maintained by the Social Security
Administration.
This provision charges the Secretary of Commerce with establishing a
program to restrict access to the information contained on the DMF for
a three-year period beginning on the date of an individual's death,
except to persons who are certified under the program. Under the
program, persons certified by the
[[Page H8067]]
Secretary of Commerce to have a fraud prevention interest or other
legitimate need for the information and agree to maintain the
information under significant safeguards may continue to access DMF
information on a current basis. The provision also provides for
penalties in cases of unauthorized disclosures or uses of DMF
information by certified persons. Finally, the provision also brings
the DMF within the scope of the exemptions available under the Freedom
of Information Act to ensure that Federal agencies do not disclose the
information about deceased individuals maintained by SSA or contained
in the DMF, except to recipients who are certified persons.
In implementing this section, the Department of Commerce should
promulgate regulations establishing and providing guidelines for the
certification program and provide sufficient time for legitimate
current users of DMF information to comment on the regulations,
especially as it relates to the timing of the effectiveness of this
Section and as it relates to the authority to release the Death Master
File to the public.
Section-by-Section Analysis
Section 1. Short title and table of contents.
Subsection 1(a) provides that the short title of this Act
is ``Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013''.
Subsection 1(b) sets forth the table of contents for the
Act.
TITLE I--BUDGET ENFORCEMENT
Subtitle A--Amendments to the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit
Control Act of 1985
Sec. 101. Amendments to the Balanced Budget and Emergency
Deficit Control Act of 1985.
The limits on discretionary spending are established in
section 251 of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit
Control Act of 1985 (BBEDCA). The limits are subdivided in
each fiscal year into two categories: revised security
category and revised nonsecurity category. The revised
security category is defined to be the National Defense
budget function (Function 050) which includes funding for the
Department of Defense, the nuclear weapons-related work of
the Department of Energy, the intelligence community, and the
national security elements of the Departments of Commerce,
Justice, Homeland Security, and several independent agencies.
The Department of Defense (including the intelligence
community) usually receives approximately 95.5 percent of the
budget authority in this function. The revised nonsecurity
category is all discretionary spending not contained in the
revised security category.
Subsection 101(a) amends section 251 of the Balanced Budget
and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 to increase the
limits on discretionary spending for fiscal years 2014 and
2015. The revised levels for each category are shown in Table
1. The section also restates for clarity the current law caps
for fiscal years 2016-2021.
TABLE 1. CAPS ON DISCRETIONARY BUDGET AUTHORITY
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Revised Security Revised Nonsecurity
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2014 2015 2014 2015
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Current Law................. $498,082,000,000 $512,046,000,000 $469,391,000,000 $483,130,000,000
Proposed Cap................ $520,464,000,000 $521,272,000,000 $491,773,000,000 $492,356,000,000
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
In addition to the limits on discretionary spending, the
BCA also includes a sequester of mandatory, or direct,
spending, the size of which interacts with the discretionary
spending levels. Subsection 101(b) provides for the
implementation of this sequester of mandatory spending as if
the amendments in subsection 101(a) had not been made. In
other words, it is the intent of this Act that the President
implement the sequester of mandatory spending that was
ordered on April 10, 2013 (as corrected on May 20, 2013) and
the one that will be ordered in the Sequestration Preview
Report for Fiscal Year 2015 as if the amendments in
subsection 101(a) had not been made.
Subsection 101(c) reduces spending by $28 billion by
requiring the President to sequester the same percentage of
mandatory budgetary resources in 2022 and 2023 as will be
sequestered in 2021.
Subsection 101(d) makes various conforming changes.
Subtitle B--Establishing a Congressional Budget
Sec. 111. Fiscal year 2014 budget resolution.
Subsection 111(a) establishes a congressional budget for
fiscal year 2014.
Subsection 111(b) provides that the chairs of the House and
Senate Committees on the Budget shall each submit for
publication in the Congressional Record allocations of
budgetary resources for each congressional committee and
aggregate spending and revenue levels that will be
enforceable as if included in a conference agreement on a
budget resolution. Consistent with the disparate practices in
the House and Senate, the Chairman of the Senate Committee on
the Budget shall also publish levels of revenues and outlays
for Social Security.
The submissions pursuant to this section are to be
consistent with the discretionary spending limits established
in the Act and the Congressional Budget Office's May 2013
baseline adjusted for legislation enacted subsequent to the
publication of that baseline and adjusted for the budgetary
effects of this Act, as applicable to the various parts of
the submissions.
In addition, subsection 111(c) provides that in the House,
the Chairman of the Budget Committee may reduce the
aggregates, allocations, and other budgetary levels included
in the statement required to be submitted pursuant to this
section for the subsequent enactment of any additional
deficit-reducing legislation during the 113th Congress.
Sec. 112. Limitation on advance appropriations in the Senate.
Section 112 provides a supermajority point of order in the
Senate against appropriations in 2014 bills that would first
become effective in any year after 2014, and against
appropriations in 2015 bills that would first become
effective in any year after 2015. It does not apply against
appropriations for veterans' medical services, medical
support and compliance, or medical facilities, or the
Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Additionally, there is
an exemption for each of 2015 and 2016 of up to $28.852
billion for programs identified in the Congressional Record.
Those programs will be:
Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education
Appropriations Act:
Employment and Training Administration
Job Corps
Education for the Disadvantaged
School Improvement
Special Education
Career, Technical, and Adult Education
Financial Services and General Government:
Payment to Postal Service
Transportation, Housing and Urban Development:
Tenant-based Rental Assistance
Project-based Rental Assistance
Subsection 112(b) provides that the provisions of
subsection (a) shall expire if a concurrent resolution on the
budget for fiscal year 2015 is agreed to by the Senate and
the House.
Sec. 113. Rule of construction in the House of
Representatives.
Section 113 establishes that H. Con. Res. 25, as deemed in
force by H. Res. 243, remains in force to the extent that its
budgetary levels have not been superseded by this subtitle or
further action of the House. Items that remain in force
include, but are not limited to, the recommended levels
contained in Title III, the reserve funds in Title IV, the
estimates of direct spending in Title V, the budget
enforcement matters in Title VI, and the policy statements in
title VII of H. Con. Res. 25.
Sec. 114. Additional Senate budget enforcement.
Subsection 114(a) provides for the elimination of any
balances on the Senate pay-as-you-go scorecard following
enactment of this Act and again for purposes of budget year
2015.
Subsection 114(b) provides for the continuance in effect of
certain provisions of the fiscal year 2010 budget resolution
relating to the budgetary treatment of certain discretionary
expenses of certain off-budget programs; the application and
effect of changes in allocations and aggregates; and
adjustments to reflect changes in concepts and definitions.
Subsection 114(c) establishes in the Senate only a deficit
neutral reserve fund to replace sequestration.
Subsection 114(d) places into effect certain deficit-
neutral reserve funds included in S. Con. Res. 8 (113th
Congress). Those provisions are listed in table 2.
TABLE 2. DEFICIT-NEUTRAL RESERVE FUNDS IN THE SENATE
[Section numbers reference S. Con. Res. 8 (113th Congress).]
------------------------------------------------------------------------
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sec. 302. Deficit-neutral reserve funds to promote employment and job
growth.
Sec. 303. Deficit-neutral reserve funds to assist working families and
children.
Sec. 304. Deficit-neutral reserve funds for early childhood education.
Sec. 305. Deficit-neutral reserve fund for tax relief.
Sec. 306. Reserve fund for tax re form.
Sec. 307. Deficit-neutral reserve fund to invest in clean energy and
preserve the environment.
Sec. 308. Deficit-neutral reserve fund for investments in America's
infrastructure.
Sec. 309. Deficit-neutral reserve fund for America's servicemembers and
veterans.
Sec. 310. Deficit-neutral reserve fund for higher education.
Sec. 311. Deficit-neutral reserve funds for health care.
Sec. 312. Deficit-neutral reserve fund for investments in our Nation's
counties and schools.
Sec. 313. Deficit-neutral reserve fund for a farm bill.
Sec. 314. Deficit-neutral reserve fund for investments in water
infrastructure and resources.
Sec. 315. Deficit-neutral reserve fund for pension reform.
Sec. 316. Deficit-neutral reserve fund for housing finance reform.
Sec. 317. Deficit-neutral reserve fund for national security.
Sec. 318. Deficit-neutral reserve fund for overseas contingency
operations.
Sec. 319. Deficit-neutral reserve fund for terrorism risk insurance.
Sec. 320. Deficit-neutral reserve fund for postal reform.
Sec. 322. Deficit-neutral reserve fund to improve Federal benefit
processing.
Sec. 323. Deficit-neutral reserve fund for legislation to improve voter
registration and the voting experience in Federal elections.
Sec. 324. Deficit-reduction reserve fund to promote corporate tax
fairness.
[[Page H8068]]
Sec. 325. Deficit-neutral reserve fund for improving Federal forest
management.
Sec. 326. Deficit-neutral reserve fund for financial transparency.
Sec. 327. Deficit-neutral reserve fund to promote manufacturing in the
United States.
Sec. 328. Deficit-reduction reserve fund for report elimination or
modification.
Sec. 329. Deficit-neutral reserve fund for the minimum wage.
Sec. 330. Deficit-neutral reserve fund to improve health outcomes and
lower costs for children in Medicaid.
Sec. 331. Deficit-neutral reserve fund to improve Federal workforce
development, job training, and reemployment programs.
Sec. 332. Deficit-neutral reserve fund for repeal of medical device tax.
Sec. 333. Deficit-neutral reserve fund prohibiting Medicare vouchers.
Sec. 334. Deficit-neutral reserve fund for equal pay for equal work.
Sec. 335. Deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to women's health care.
Sec. 338. Deficit-neutral reserve fund to allow States to enforce State
and local use tax laws.
Sec. 339. Deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to the definition of
full-time employee.
Sec. 340. Deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to the labeling of
genetically engineered fish.
Sec. 341. Deficit-neutral reserve fund for the families of America's
servicemembers and veterans.
Sec. 344. Deficit-neutral reserve fund for disabled veterans and their
survivors.
Sec. 348. Deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to authorizing children
eligible for health care under laws administered by Secretary of
Veterans Affairs to retain such eligibility until age 26.
Sec. 349. Deficit-neutral reserve fund for State and local law
enforcement.
Sec. 350. Deficit-neutral reserve fund to establish a national network
for manufacturing innovation.
Sec. 353. Deficit-neutral reserve fund to ensure no financial
institution is above the law regardless of size.
Sec. 354. Deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to helping homeowners
and small businesses mitigate against flood loss.
Sec. 356. Deficit-neutral reserve fund for BARDA and the BioShield
Special Reserve Fund.
Sec. 361. Deficit-neutral reserve fund for export promotion.
Sec. 363. Deficit-neutral reserve fund to increase the capacity of
agencies to ensure effective contract management and contract
oversight.
Sec. 364. Deficit-neutral reserve fund for investments in air traffic
control services.
Sec. 365. Deficit-neutral reserve fund to address prescription drug
abuse in the United States.
Sec. 366. Deficit-neutral reserve fund to support rural schools and
districts.
Sec. 367. Deficit-neutral reserve fund to strengthen enforcement of free
trade agreement provisions relating to textile and apparel articles.
Sec. 368. Deficit-neutral reserve fund to assist low-income seniors.
Sec. 369. Reserve fund to end offshore tax abuses by large corporations.
Sec. 371. Deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to increasing funding
for the inland waterways system.
Sec. 376. Deficit-neutral reserve fund to authorize provision of per
diem payments for provision of services to dependents of homeless
veterans under laws administered by Secretary of Veterans Affairs.
Sec. 378. Deficit-neutral reserve fund to phase-in any changes to
individual or corporate tax systems.
Sec. 379. Deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to increases in aid for
tribal education programs under the Constitution of the United States.
Sec. 383. Deficit-neutral reserve fund to increase funding for Federal
investments in biomedical research.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Subsection 114(e) provides that subsections (a)(2), (c),
and (d) shall expire if a budget resolution conference report
is adopted by the Senate and the House.
Sec. 115. Authority for fiscal year 2015 budget resolution in
the House of Representatives.
Subsection 115(a) establishes in the House a congressional
budget for fiscal year 2015 in the event that a budget
resolution conference report is not adopted.
Subsection 115(b) provides that the chair of the House
Committee on the Budget shall submit after April 15 and no
later than May 15, 2014 for publication in the Congressional
Record allocations of budgetary resources for each
congressional committee and aggregate spending and revenue
levels that will be enforceable as if included in a
conference agreement on a budget resolution.
Subsection 115(c) provides that the submission pursuant to
subsection (b) may also include for fiscal year 2015,
provisions for the matters contained in title IV (reserve
funds) and in sections 603(a), 605(a), and 609 of H. Con.
Res. 25 (113th Congress), as adopted by the House, updated to
cover the new budget window, including updated amounts for
section 601.
Subsection 115(d) provides for an allocation of budgetary
resources to the Appropriations Committee no later than May
15, 2014.
Subsection 115(e) provides that the Chairman of the House
Budget Committee may reduce the aggregates, allocations, and
other budgetary levels included in the statement required to
be submitted pursuant to subsection (b) for the subsequent
enactment of any additional, deficit-reducing legislation
during the 113th Congress or as otherwise necessary.
Subsection 115(f) provides that the provisions of
subsections (a), (b), (c), (d), and (e) shall no longer apply
if a concurrent resolution on the budget for fiscal year 2015
is agreed to by the House and the Senate.
Sec. 116. Authority for fiscal year 2015 budget resolution in
the Senate.
Subsection 116(a) establishes in the Senate a congressional
budget for fiscal year 2015.
Subsection 116(b) provides that the chair of the Senate
Committee on the Budget shall submit after April 15 and no
later than May 15, 2014 for publication in the Congressional
Record allocations of budgetary resources for each
congressional committee, aggregate spending and revenue
levels, and levels of revenues and outlays for Social
Security that will be enforceable as if included in a
conference agreement on a budget resolution.
Subsection 116(c) provides that the submission pursuant to
subsection (b) may also include reserve funds for fiscal year
2015 that are the same as those included in section 114(c)
and (d) updated to cover the new budget window.
Subsection 116(d) provides that the filing referred to in
subsection (b) for fiscal year 2014 shall supersede the
statement referred to in section 111(b).
Subsection 116(e) provides that this section shall expire
if a concurrent resolution on the budget for fiscal year 2015
is agreed to by the Senate and the House.
Sec. 117. Exclusion of savings from PAYGO scorecards.
Subsection 117(a) provides that the budgetary effects of
this Act shall not be entered on either PAYGO scorecard
maintained pursuant to section 4(d) of the Statutory Pay-As-
You-Go Act of 2010 (Public Law 111-139).
Subsection 117(b) provides that the budgetary effects of
this Act shall not be entered on any PAYGO scorecard
maintained for the purposes of section 201 of S. Con. Res. 21
(110th Congress).
Sec. 118. Exercise of rulemaking powers.
This section states that the provisions of this subtitle
are enacted as an exercise of the rulemaking power of each
house of Congress and that each house retains its
constitutional right to change such rules as they relate to
that house.
Subtitle C--Technical Corrections
Sec. 121. Technical corrections to the Balanced Budget and
Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985.
This section corrects technical and grammatical errors in
the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of
1985.
Sec. 122. Technical corrections to the Congressional Budget
Act of 1974.
This section corrects technical and grammatical errors in
the Congressional Budget Act of 1974.
TITLE II--PREVENTION OF WASTE, FRAUD, AND ABUSE
Sec. 201. Improving the collection of unemployment insurance
overpayments.
Many states use the Treasury Offset Program (TOP) to
recover Unemployment Insurance (UI) debts stemming from
overpayments due to fraud or failure to report earnings.
However, other states are not using this tool. Section 201
amends the Social Security Act to require states to use TOP
to recover the specified UI debts. States are required to
provide due process opportunities for individuals to
challenge the validity of the debt, before seeking to recover
the funds through TOP. This section would ensure that all
States will participate in TOP and recover UI debts.
Sec. 202. Strengthening Medicaid Third-Party Liability.
By law, Medicaid is the payer of last resort for medical
treatment. Section 202 would affirm Medicaid's position as
the payer of last resort by strengthening third-party
liability to improve states' and providers' abilities to
receive payments for beneficiary services, as appropriate.
Subsection 202(a) allows states to delay payment of costs
for prenatal and preventive pediatric claims when third
parties are responsible and allows states to collect medical
child support where health insurance is available from a non-
custodial parent. This authorization is limited to the extent
that beneficiary access to care is not negatively impacted.
Subsection 202(b) allows Medicaid to recover costs from
beneficiary liability settlements.
Subsection 202(c) provides that these amendments shall take
effect on October 1, 2014.
Sec. 203. Restriction on access to the death master file.
The Death Master File (DMF) is a list of deceased
individuals maintained by the Social Security Administration
(SSA). The DMF contains the full name, Social Security
Number, date of birth, and date of death for listed
decedents, and it is updated weekly. This information is
distributed through the Department of Commerce and is widely
available on many websites for free or for a nominal fee.
Section 203 would establish a program under which the
Secretary of Commerce restricts access to the information
contained on the DMF for a three-year period beginning on the
date of the individual's death, except to persons who are
certified under a program to be established by the Secretary
of Commerce. Under the program, persons who have a fraud
prevention interest or other legitimate need for the
information and agree to maintain the information under
safeguards similar to those required of Federal agencies that
receive return information, as described in section
6103(p)(4) of title 26 of the United States Code, may apply
for certification. The Secretary of Commerce reviews the
eligibility of applicants, examines safeguards for protecting
the information and conducts audits of certified entities to
assure compliance with safeguards.
As part of implementation of the required program, the
Secretary of Commerce is required to establish and collect
user fees sufficient to recover all costs associated with the
certification program. The Secretary of Commerce is required
to report both the total fees collected and the total costs
of administering the certification program. The required
report is to be submitted annually to both the Senate
Committee on Finance and the House Committee on Ways and
Means.
A penalty of $1,000 for each disclosure or misuse of the
information is imposed on any persons who improperly disclose
the DMF information. A certified person in receipt of DMF
information is responsible for any subsequent disclosure of
such information. Even if the initial disclosure to a third
party is appropriate, if that third party subsequently
[[Page H8069]]
improperly discloses the information, the certified person is
deemed to have also improperly disclosed the information.
Thus, in a case in which the improper disclosure is made by a
third party who received the information from a certified
person, both the certified person and the person who
improperly disclosed the information are subject to the
penalty. The penalty may not exceed $250,000 per person for
any calendar year, except in the case of willful disclosure.
In such cases, the penalty is not limited.
The provision also brings the DMF within the scope of the
exemptions available under the Freedom of Information Act to
ensure that Federal agencies do not disclose the information
about deceased individuals maintained by SSA or contained in
the DMF, except to recipients who are certified persons.
Section 203 would be effective 90 days after the date of
enactment, except for the FOIA exemption, which would be
effective upon date of enactment.
Sec. 204. Identification of inmates requesting or receiving
improper payments.
The Social Security Administration's (SSA) Prisoner Update
Processing System (PUPS) contains all identifying information
requested by the SSA and supplied by a reporting source,
including the individual's name, Social Security number, date
of birth, sex, date of conviction, date of confinement,
inmate status code, and such other information as may be
supplied or acquired by SSA during the suspension or
reinstatement of retirement, survivors, or disability
insurance benefits. PUPS contains Federal, State, and local
prisoner data.
Subsection 204(a) expands the information the prisons are
required to report to SSA to include release dates, making
the system more valuable to users.
Subsection 204(b) authorizes the Commissioner of Social
Security to transfer PUPS data to the Department of the
Treasury on a regular basis, where it will be maintained for
use by other Federal agencies. The PUPS data will help
prevent prisoners from illegally receiving payments, such as
unemployment compensation from the Department of Labor, and
identify individuals who are filing fraudulent tax returns.
This subsection also authorizes the use of PUPS data for
research conducted by Federal and state agencies.
Subsection 204(c) updates the authorizing legislation for
the Do Not Pay Initiative to include a requirement for
agencies to query PUPS prior to certifying a Federal payment
or award.
TITLE III--NATURAL RESOURCES
Sec. 301. Ultra-deepwater and unconventional natural gas and
other petroleum resources.
The ultra-deepwater and unconventional natural gas and
other petroleum resources program, which was created by the
Energy Policy Act of 2005, is a public-private partnership
that was designed to develop technologies to increase
America's domestic oil and gas production and reduce U.S.
dependency on foreign imports. The program utilizes a non-
profit consortium to manage the research, established two
federal advisory committees, and receives $50 million per
year of funding. Section 301 repeals the ultra-deepwater oil
and gas research and development program and rescinds the
program's remaining funds.
Sec. 302. Amendment to the Mineral Leasing Act.
Since 2010, states receiving significant payments from
mineral development on Federal lands also share in the costs
of administering the Federal mineral leases from which the
revenue is generated. The states pay their share of the
administrative costs in the form of a 2 percent deduction of
monies paid to the states by the federal government. This
deduction is scheduled to expire at the end fiscal year 2014.
Section 302 makes this deduction permanent.
Sec. 303. Approval of agreement with Mexico.
Section 303 approves the Agreement between the United
States of America and the United Mexican States Concerning
Transboundary Hydrocarbon Reservoirs in the Gulf of Mexico
signed in February 2012 on how to explore, develop, and share
revenue from hydrocarbon reservoirs that cross the
international maritime boundary between the United States and
Mexico in the Gulf of Mexico. Each country's legislative body
is required to approve the agreement and Mexico ratified the
agreement in April 2012.
Sec. 304. Amendment to the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act.
Section 304 provides permanent authority for the Secretary
of the Interior to implement the terms of any transboundary
hydrocarbon agreement for the management of transboundary
hydrocarbon reservoirs entered into by the President and
approved by Congress. It requires any such agreement to be
submitted to Congress within 180 days of any such agreement
being completed. This section also allows the Secretary of
the Interior to implement the Agreement between the United
States of America and the United Mexican States Concerning
Transboundary Hydrocarbon Reservoirs in the Gulf of Mexico.
The Obama Administration signed the Agreement with Mexico in
2012 to develop energy resources bridging our international
maritime boundary and that Agreement makes provision for the
sharing of royalties on transboundary reservoirs, and also
has very specific requirements on maintaining data
confidentiality.
Sec. 305. Federal oil and gas royalty prepayment cap.
Subsection 305(a) clarifies current law by providing that
if a federal lease holder pays more in royalties than the
amount due, then the Secretary of the Interior shall not pay
interest on any amount in excess of 110 percent of the amount
due. Overpayments below the threshold shall continue to
receive interest payments as under current law and
underpayments shall continue to be subject to penalties as
under current law. Subsection 305(b) provides that this
provision is effective on July 1, 2014.
Sec. 306. Strategic Petroleum Reserve.
Subsection 306(a) prohibits the Secretary of Energy from
acquiring crude oil received by the United States as payment
of royalties on production from federal lands due from
private sector energy producers--a practice commonly referred
to as royalty-in-kind payments--for the purpose of filling
the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. This section also makes a
technical correction by prohibiting the Secretary of Energy
from acquiring crude oil produced by the federal
government on federal land for the purpose of filling the
Strategic Petroleum Reserve, as this practice no longer
occurs. The practical effect of this section is to require
that any crude oil acquired by the Secretary of Energy for
purposes of filling the Strategic Petroleum Reserve is
acquired using funds from the ``SPR Petroleum Account'' or
funds appropriated by Congress.
Subsection 306(b) permanently rescinds any unobligated
funds remaining in the ``SPR Petroleum Account'' as of the
date of enactment of this legislation. This section has no
bearing on any future funds deposited into the account. All
future funds deposited into the account will remain available
to the Secretary of Energy, until expended, to fill the
Strategic Petroleum Reserve. Funds currently in the account
were deposited as a result of the 30.64 million barrels
released from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve and sold in
July and August of 2011.
TITLE IV--FEDERAL CIVILIAN AND MILITARY RETIREMENT
Sec. 401. Increase in contributions to Federal Employees'
Retirement System for new employees.
Under current law, the typical revised annuity federal
employee who participates in the Federal Employee Retirement
System (FERS) is required to pay 3.1 percentage points of pay
into the Civil Service Retirement and Disability Fund
(CSRDF). Depending on the type of service, different
employees are required to pay different amounts. Law
enforcement officers, nuclear materials couriers and customs
and border protection officers pay 3.4 percentage points.
Subsection 401(a) creates a new category of employees that
would be considered further revised annuity employees.
Subsection 401(b) would require that newly hired employees
who participate in the PERS contribute an additional 1.3
percentage points of pay beginning January 1, 2014, for a
total of 4.4 percentage points into the CRSDF. Other
categories of employees would pay 4.7 percentage points.
Subsection 401(c) would require that employing agencies
continue their contributions at the current level in order to
pay down the deficit in the CSRDF, which at the close of
fiscal year 2011 was $761 billion. Once the unfunded
liability is eliminated, agency contributions would be
determined on the basis of ensuring the full normal cost of
the retirement benefit is paid into the CSRDF on an accrual
basis.
Subsection 401(d) would ensure that certain (Members of
Congress and Congressional employees) further revised annuity
employees would continue to accrue benefits at the same rate
as revised annuity employees.
Sec. 402. Foreign Service Pension System.
Under current law, the typical federal employee who
participates in the Foreign Service Retirement and Disability
System is required to pay 3.65 percentage points of pay into
the Foreign Service Pension System.
Subsection 402(a) creates a new category of foreign service
employees that would be considered further revised annuity
employees.
Section 402(b) would require that newly hired employees who
participate in the Foreign Service Retirement and Disability
System and the Foreign Service Pension System contribute an
additional 1.3 percentage points of pay.
Subsection 402(c) would require that employing agencies
continue their contributions at the current level in order to
pay down the deficit in the FRSDF. Once the unfunded
liability is eliminated, agency contributions would be
determined on the basis of ensuring the full normal cost of
the retirement benefit is paid into the FSRDF on an accrual
basis.
Sec. 403. Annual adjustment of retired pay and retainer pay
amounts for retired members of the Armed Forces under age
62.
Generally, service members who have completed 20 years of
service, regardless of age, are eligible for non-disability
retirement with immediate commencement of retired pay. For
most retirees, pay is a percentage of the highest 36 months
of the service member's Basic Pay. A service member who
retires after 20 years of service receives 50 percent of his
or her High-36 month Basic Pay with the percentage increasing
in 2.5 percent increments for each year above 20. Because
service members can retire well before the normal retirement
age in the private sector, most service members begin a
second career
[[Page H8070]]
after leaving the military. Section 403 would provide for an
annual cost of living adjustment (COLA) of inflation
(measured by the Consumer Price Index) less one percentage
point for adjustments starting on December 1, 2015 until the
retiree reaches age 62. There would be no alteration to the
2014 COLA. At age 62, the retired pay would be adjusted as if
the COLA had been the full CPI adjustment in all previous
years. Annual COLAs for service members after age 62 would be
at the full CPI.
This provision does not change the cost of living
adjustments for participants in the REDUX retirement system.
TITLE V--HIGHER EDUCATION
Sec. 501. Default reduction program.
When guaranty agencies rehabilitate defaulted loans from
the Federal Family Education Loan (FEEL) program, they may
charge borrowers 18.5 percent of the outstanding principal
and interest owed on the loan at the time of sale and they
may retain 18.5 percent of a federal default reinsurance
payment. Section 501 would lower the maximum borrower
collection fee to 16 percent and would require the agency to
return 100 percent of the federal default reinsurance
payment, beginning on July 1, 2014. Moreover, it would enable
guaranty agencies to transfer rehabilitated loans to the
Department of Education if they are unable to find a FFEL
lender to purchase the loan. These steps would make the
compensation earned by guaranty agencies comparable to the
compensation earned by the Department of Education's private
sector contractors that rehabilitate defaulted FFEL and
Direct Loan program loans held by the Department. It would
also lower costs to borrowers as collection fees are
typically added to the loan balance when rehabilitated.
Sec. 502. Elimination of nonprofit servicing contracts.
In 2010, as part of the Health Care and Education
Reconciliation Act (HCERA), Congress eliminated the
guaranteed student loan program. Anticipating the need for
increased student loan servicing capacity, in 2009, the
Department of Education awarded performance-based contracts
to four entities to service its portfolio of federal student
loans, including those made under the Direct Loan program.
During debate of HCERA, Congress established a special carve-
out for non-profit firms to service student loans. The law
required the Department to award at least 100,000 borrower
loan accounts to each eligible non-profit servicer, and the
law set aside mandatory funding for this purpose. In
contrast, the for-profit servicers selected by the Department
of Education on a performance basis were, and continue to be,
paid with discretionary dollars. Section 502 eliminates the
carve-out for non-profit servicers and requires them to be
paid with discretionary dollars.
TITLE VI--TRANSPORTATION
Sec. 601. Aviation security service fees.
Prior to September 11, 2001, airlines paid for and carried
out passenger and baggage security screening. With the
formation of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA)
came a mandate to substantially increase and coordinate
aviation security procedures, and TSA screeners were deployed
to airports across the country. To offset the cost of
aviation security operations, the Aviation and Transportation
Security Act instituted aviation passenger security fees,
which were to cover the costs of security operations
including technology, salaries and benefits of screeners, the
air marshals program, Federal Security Managers, capital
improvements, and other functions. TSA receives approximately
$2 billion a year in offsetting collections under current law
through air carrier and aviation passenger security fees.
These fees cover about 30 percent of the agency's aviation
security costs.
The aviation passenger security fee was initially
established and currently remains a per enplanement charge of
$2.50 per enplanement with a maximum one-way trip fee of
$5.00 (a passenger taking a non-stop flight pays a total of
$2.50, while a passenger with at least one connecting flight
pays $5.00).
Section 601 simplifies the fee structure to a flat, $5.60
fee per one-way trip, regardless of the number of
enplanements. It also eliminates the Aviation Infrastructure
Security Fee (ASIF) charged to air carriers. This fee
structure would allow TSA to offset approximately 43 percent
of its aviation security costs.
Section 601(a) repeals the Aviation Security Infrastructure
Fee that is currently imposed on air carriers, effective
October 1, 2014.
Section 601(b) restructures the aviation passenger security
fee to make it a $5.60 per one-way trip charge, which is $.60
above the current maximum fee.
Section 601(c) provides that receipts in excess of the
$250,000,000 deposited annually into the Aviation Security
Capital Fund shall be deposited in the general fund of the
Treasury to partially defray the cost to the taxpayer of
providing these services.
Section 601(d) provides that the fee structure shall be
changed effective July 1, 2014.
Section 601(e) provides that nothing in this section
effects the availability of funds in the Checkpoint Screening
Security Fund.
Sec. 602. Transportation cost reimbursement.
U.S. agencies are required to transport 50 percent of
equipment, materials, and commodities shipped to foreign
countries on vessels registered in the U.S., which is
generally more expensive than foreign flag shipping. Food aid
sent by the Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the U.S.
Agency for International Development (USAID) to foreign
countries is not exempt from this requirement, making this
international assistance more costly than it would otherwise
be. When shipping expenses for food aid exceed 20 percent of
total program cost (the value of commodities plus shipping
expenses) in a given fiscal year, the Maritime Administration
(MARAD) must reimburse USDA and USAID by the dollar amount
above 20 percent. Section 602 would eliminate the
reimbursements from MARAD.
Sec. 603. Sterile areas at airports.
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) screens
airline passengers when they enter the secured boarding area
(officially, ``sterile area'') of all airports and monitors
passengers as they exit from the secured boarding area at
some airports. Funding for this activity is provided in part
by security fees charged to passengers and air carriers.
Earlier this year, TSA announced that, beginning in January
2014, all airport operators will be responsible for
monitoring all passengers as they leave sterile areas. This
responsibility would impose new cost on some airports.
Section 603 would require TSA to continue monitoring airport
exit lanes at airports currently receiving this service.
TITLE VII--MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS
Sec. 701. Extension of customs user fees.
Section 701 would extend the user fees collected by the
Department of Homeland Security's Bureau of Customs and
Border Protection (CBP) through 2023. There are nine
different conveyance and passenger user fees and a
merchandise processing fee collected by the CBP. The
conveyance and passenger user fees were first established by
the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) of
1985. Under current law, customs user fees will expire after
2021.
Sec. 702. Limitation on allowable government contractor
compensation costs.
Since the 1990s, federal law has placed a limit on the
amount of contractor employees' compensation costs that is
allowed to be charged on federal government contracts.
Compensation costs can include many elements, such as salary,
bonuses, stock options, and employer contributions to pension
plans, although under federal law and the Federal Acquisition
Regulation (FAR), contractors are only allowed to charge some
elements of compensation to federal government contracts.
This cap, currently set at $952,308, has increased in real
terms by 95 percent since this approach was first used in
1998. The current formula by the Office of Federal
Procurement Policy is flawed, as it has resulted in an
escalation of $611,658, or nearly 180 percent (in nominal
terms), in the 15 years since the compensation cap was
established in law.
Subsection 702(a) would amend section 4304(a)(16) of title
41 United States Code, and section 2324(e)(1)(P) of title 10,
United States Code, to replace the current statutory
benchmark compensation formula used to determine the amount
of contractor compensation that is considered an allowable
cost for a federal contract, with a cap of $487,000. It also
would limit additional changes to this level to the U.S.
Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Cost Index for all
workers. This subsection also provides for one or more
narrowly targeted exceptions for scientists, engineers, or
other specialists upon a determination that such exceptions
are needed to ensure that the executive agency has continued
access to needed skills and capabilities.
Subsection 702(b) repeals the existing authority for the
Office of Management and Budget to annually determine the
allowable compensation costs.
Subsection 702(c) provides that the limitation in
subsection (a) shall apply only to contracts entered into on
or after 180 days after the enactment of this Act.
Subsection 702(d) provides for the Director of the Office
of Management and Budget to report annually to Congress on
the use of the statutory exceptions to the limitation in
subsection (a).
Subsection 702(e) provides for a report from the Secretary
of Defense and the Director of the Office of Management and
Budget on alternative benchmarks and industry standards for
compensation.
Sec. 703. Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation premium rate
increases.
The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) consists of
two insurance programs for multiemployers and single
employers, which protect the defined-benefit pensions of
nearly 44 million participants. Since fiscal year 2002, PBGC
has ended each fiscal year with a deficit. PBGC currently
faces a $36 billion deficit, which may leave the corporation
incapable of fulfilling its insurance obligations, resulting
in cuts to benefits or a transfer from the General Fund of
the Treasury.
Each sponsor of a pension plan that is insured by PBGC pays
annual premiums. PBGC collects three types of premiums: (1) a
flat-rate, per participant premium, (2) a variable-rate
premium, based on the dollar amount of a plan's underfunding,
and (3) a per-participant premium, payable for three years
after a DB pension plan terminates. Under current law, the
flat-rate premium of $42 per participant will increase to $49
in 2014 and increase with the growth in wages thereafter.
Plans
[[Page H8071]]
that do not have enough assets set aside to pay 100 percent
of the promised benefits are considered underfunded. The
sponsors of underfunded defined-benefit plans pay the
variable-rate annual premium of $9 per $1,000 of
underfunding. Beginning in 2014, the variable-rate premium
will be indexed to increases in the average wage index. Plans
that terminate their defined-benefit pension plans under
certain conditions are liable for a termination premium of
$1,250 per plan participant per year for three years.
Section 703 would increase both flat-rate premiums and
variable-rate premiums to reduce the deficit of the PBGC.
Subsection 703(a) would increase the flat-rate premium to
$57 for plan year 2015 and to $64 for plan year 2016.
Subsection 703(b) provides that flat-rate premiums would then
be indexed to the growth in wages thereafter.
Subsection 703(c) would increase the variable-rate premium
by $5 in plan year 2015 and an additional $5 in plan year
2016. Subsection 703(d) provides for conforming changes to
ensure that the variable-rate premiums would then be indexed
to the growth in wages thereafter.
Subsection 703(d) would increase the variable-rate premium
cap to $500 beginning for plan years beginning after 2015.
Subsection 703(e) provides for these provisions to be
effective for plan years beginning after December 31, 2013.
Sec. 704. Cancellation of unobligated balances.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) Asset Forfeiture Fund was
established by the Comprehensive Crime Control Act of 1984
(Public Law 98-473) to seize and collect the proceeds of
criminal activities. The fund uses the proceeds of forfeited
assets through a permanent, indefinite appropriation--to
cover the costs of carrying out forfeiture activities. Annual
Fund receipts are usually in excess of program needs,
resulting in a large unobligated balance from year to year. A
renewed emphasis on fraud and financial crime cases resulted
in average annual outlays of nearly $1.5 billion since 2007,
with collections during that time ranging from $1.7 billion
in 2007 to $4.2 billion in 2012. Unobligated balances in the
fund are currently about $868 million. Subsection 704(a)
would permanently cancel $693 million of this balance.
The Treasury Forfeiture Fund (TFF) supports participating
Treasury Department and Homeland Security (DHS) agencies in
the use of asset forfeiture to disrupt and dismantle criminal
enterprises and deter criminal activity. The focus of the TFF
program is customs enforcement, whereas the Department of
Justice Asset Forfeiture Fund specifically combats money
laundering and fraud. The TFF collects cash and the proceeds
of property forfeited pursuant to customs laws. TFF funds are
available to cover costs related to seizures and forfeitures
and certain other law enforcement activities. Annual TFF
receipts are usually in excess of program needs, resulting in
a large unobligated balance from year to year. Program
outlays have been about 70 percent of program receipts and
collections over the past 5 years. Unobligated balances in
the fund are currently about $888 million. Subsection 704(b)
would permanently cancel $867 million of this balance.
Sec. 705. Conservation planning technical assistance user
fees.
The Department of Agriculture's Natural Resources
Conservation Service (NRCS) provides technical assistance for
the development of individualized, site-specific conservation
plans and the establishment of measures to conserve soil and
water, including farm irrigation, flood prevention, and
agricultural pollution control. The technical assistance
provided to agricultural landowners and operators varies
depending upon the complexity of the soil or water
conservation resource concern.
Subsection 705(a) would authorize NRCS to prescribe and
collect fees of up to $150 per conservation plan to cover
some of the costs of providing technical assistance for
completing a conservation plan for a producer or landowner.
This section would authorize the Secretary of Agriculture to
waive fees for assistance provided to members of historically
underserved groups, such as beginning farmers or ranchers,
limited resource farmers or ranchers, and socially
disadvantaged farmers or ranchers. Fees also could be waived
by the Secretary for assistance provided to USDA program
participants seeking to maintain payment eligibility under
Section 1212 of the Food Security Act of 1985, or to comply
with local, state, or Federal regulatory requirements.
Subsection 705(b) provides for the establishment of a
Conservation Technical Assistance Fund to receive the fees
authorized in subsection (a). Monies deposited in the fund
are available only pursuant to future appropriations.
Sec. 706. Self plus one coverage.
The law governing the Federal Employees Health Benefits
Program (FEHBP), as originally enacted in 1959, only allows
for employees to enroll as individuals (``self only'') or as
a family (``self and family''). Section 706 would modernize
the FEHBP to include a ``self plus one'' enrollment tier.
This section would align the FEHB Program with the commercial
market and serve to spread costs across different enrollment
types.
Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate
Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013--As posted on the website of
the House Committee on Rules on December 10, 2013
Summary: The legislation, offered as an amendment to H.J.
Res. 59, the Continuing Appropriations Resolution, 2014,
would revise the limits on discretionary appropriations for
fiscal years 2014 and 2015, allowing for higher levels of
funding in those years than is allowed under the caps and
budget enforcement procedures in current law. CBO estimates
that, if appropriations for 2014 and 2015 equaled the revised
limits, discretionary outlays would be roughly $62 billion
higher over the 2014-2023 period than if appropriations for
those years equaled the limits in current law. (Nearly $48
billion of the anticipated increase in discretionary outlays
would occur in 2014 and 2015.)
The legislation also would make several changes in programs
that are not funded through annual appropriations, as well as
a few changes that would affect federal revenues. In
addition, the bill would extend across-the-board cuts (known
as sequestration) in certain direct spending programs for an
additional two years--2022 and 2023--beyond the period during
which sequestration will apply under current law; those
additional cuts would be the same percentage of spending
required under current law for 2021. CBO and the staff of the
Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT) estimate that, in total,
those provisions would reduce direct spending by about $78
billion and increase revenues by about $7 billion over the
2014-2023 period. Thus, the legislation's changes in direct
spending and revenues would reduce deficits by roughly $85
billion over the next 10 years. Some of those changes also
would affect discretionary spending, but such changes would
be subject to appropriation and limited under the caps on
annually appropriated funding.
Although enacting the legislation would affect direct
spending and revenues, pay-as-you-go procedures do not apply
because the legislation specifies that its budgetary effects
shall not be entered onto the scorecards maintained under the
Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010.
The legislation contains no intergovernmental mandates as
defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA). It would
impose private-sector mandates as defined in UMRA on airline
passengers, sponsors of defined-benefit pension plans, and
users of customs services. CBO estimates that the cost of the
mandates would total more than $1 billion in fiscal year 2015
and more than $2 billion annually beginning in fiscal year
2016. Thus, the aggregate cost of mandates would
significantly exceed the annual threshold established in UMRA
for private-sector mandates ($150 million in 2013, adjusted
annually for inflation) during the first five years that the
mandates are in effect.
Section 204 of the legislation would amend portions of the
Social Security Act that relate to the Old-Age, Survivors,
and Disability Insurance programs under title II of the
Social Security Act. UMRA excludes from its application any
legislation that applies to those provisions of the Social
Security Act. Consequently, CBO has not reviewed section 204
for mandates.
Estimated impact on the Federal budget: The estimated
budgetary impact of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013 is
summarized in Table 1. (Details for the estimates of effects
on direct spending and revenues are provided in Table 2,
attached at the end of this cost estimate.) The effects of
this legislation fall within several budget functions,
including those covering defense, natural resources,
transportation, education, health care, and income security.
TABLE 1. ESTIMATED BUDGETARY EFFECTS OF THE BIPARTISAN BUDGET ACT OF 2013
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
By Fiscal Year, in Billions of Dollars--
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 20l9 2020 2021 2022 2023 2014-2018 2014-2023
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
CHANGES IN DIRECT SPENDING a
Estimated Budget Authority.......... -7.2 -2.2 -2.5 -2.9 -3.2 -3.5 -3.2 -3.4 -18.1 -24.3 -18.1 -70.5
Estimated Outlays................... -3.0 -3.2 -4.1 -4.6 -4.6 -4.7 -4.6 -4.6 -19.3 -25.5 -19.5 -78.4
CHANGES IN REVENUE a
Estimated Revenues b................ * 0.2 0.3 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.9 1.0 1.1 1.3 1.7 6.6
NET INCREASE OR DECREASE (-) IN THE DEFICIT FROM CHANGES IN DIRECT SPENDING AND REVENUES
Impact on the Deficit............... -3.1 -3.4 -4.5 -5.1 -5.1 -5.4 -5.5 -5.6 -20.5 -26.8 -21.2 -85.0
On-budget effects............... -3.1 -3.4 -4.5 -5.1 -5.1 -5.4 -5.5 -5.6 -20.5 -26.7 -21.2 -84.9
Off-budget effects.............. 0 * * * * * * * * * * -0.1
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[[Page H8072]]
Memorandum:
(Changes to Caps on Spending Subject
to Appropriation:
Estimated Authorization Level... 44.8 18.5 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 63.2 63.2
Estimated Outlays............... 26.3 21.6 8.6 3.3 2.0 0.6 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 61.9 62.4
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sources: CBO and the staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation.
Notes: Components may not sum to totals because of rounding; * = between -$50 million and $50 million.
a In addition to the effects on direct spending and revenues, some provisions of the legislation would affect spending subject to appropriation, which
is controlled by annual caps on such discretionary funding. Those additional effects are not included in these rows.
b Positive numbers denote an increase in revenues.
Basis of Estimate: The legislation would allow for greater
spending subject to appropriation than is allowed under
current law by increasing the caps on new discretionary
funding in fiscal years 2014 and 2015 (see the Memorandum
section of Table 1).
The legislation also would directly affect budget deficits
by changing provisions related to direct spending programs
and by amending the Internal Revenue Code. Some of those
changes also would affect discretionary spending, but such
changes would be subject to appropriation and limited under
the caps on annually appropriated funding.
Title I--Budget Enforcement
The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013 would increase the caps
on discretionary budget authority--that is, the caps on new
annual appropriations--for fiscal years 2014 and 2015. For
2014, the caps on defense and nondefense funding would each
be about $22 billion higher than the current caps (which
include the effects of the automatic spending reductions
described in the Budget Control Act of 2011).\1\ For 2015,
the defense and nondefense caps would each be raised by about
$9 billion. CB0 estimates that, if appropriations for 2014
and 2015 equaled the revised limits, discretionary outlays
would be roughly $62 billion higher over the 2014-2023 period
than if appropriations for those years equaled the limits in
current law.
\1\ [The Budget Control Act of 2011 (Public Law 112-25)
established an initial set of caps on annual discretionary
funding as well as a set of lower caps (for 2014 through
2021) that were triggered by the failure of the Joint Select
Committee on Deficit Reduction to achieve a targeted amount
of deficit reduction. The lower caps are currently in place
through 2021; the legislation would increase those caps for
2014 and 2015, and leave the caps unchanged for other years
through 2021.]
The legislation also would extend the automatic spending
reductions applied to certain mandatory spending accounts
through 2023 (those reductions are currently in effect
through 2021). The legislation would require that the
sequestration percentage applied to nonexempt mandatory
accounts in 2021 be continued and applied in the same manner
in 2022 and 2023. CB0 estimates that extending those spending
reductions for nonexempt mandatory programs for two
additional years would decrease direct spending by $28
billion over the 2022-2023 period.
In addition, the legislation would make some changes in the
Congressional budget process related to adoption of the
budget resolution and budget enforcement within the House of
Representatives and the Senate. Those changes would not, by
themselves, have a direct budgetary impact, but they could
affect Congressional decisions about budget-related
legislation in 2014 and future years.
Title II--Prevention of Waste, Fraud, and Abuse
The legislation would enhance the ability of states and the
federal government to reduce certain payments (including some
that stem from fraud) and increase recoveries of
overpayments. In total, CB0 estimates that enacting title II
would reduce direct spending by about $1.9 billion and
increase revenues by $0.6 billion over the 2014-2023 period.
The proposed changes would:
Require states to use the Treasury Offset Program (TOP) to
recover overpayments of unemployment compensation. Under
current law, states may use TOP, but are not required to do
so.
Enable states to avoid paying for prenatal and preventive
pediatric claims when a third party is liable for such
payments. The legislation also would give states additional
time to collect payments in cases involving medical child
support and allow states to recover payments from certain
liability settlements, thereby reducing net direct spending
for Medicaid.
Restrict access to the Death Master File maintained by the
Social Security Administration, which includes information
that might be used by individuals to file fraudulent tax
returns or submit fraudulent claims to Medicare.
Expand the data on inmates that are available to the
Department of Treasury, which would result in higher revenue
collections and lower payments for refundable tax credits.
Three of those four provisions would affect both direct
spending and revenues, producing budgetary savings in both of
those categories. The provision for Medicaid third-party
liability would affect only direct spending.
Title III--Natural Resources
Title III would make various changes to federal oil and gas
programs that would reduce spending by $4.5 billion over the
2014-2023 period, CBO estimates. Title III would:
Repeal provisions in the Energy Policy Act of 2005 that
authorized direct spending through fiscal year 2014 for
research on the development of certain oil and gas resources.
Reduce the amount of payments made to states under the
Mineral Leasing Act, which requires the federal government to
make payments to states based on the proceeds from mineral
leasing activities on federal lands.
Approve an agreement between the United States and Mexico
regarding oil and gas resources near the international border
in the Gulf of Mexico and establish procedures for
implementing future agreements affecting such border areas.
Amend the procedures used to determine the amount of
interest that may be paid on overpayments of oil and gas
royalties from federal leases.
Permanently rescind the unobligated balances currently
available for purchase of oil for the Strategic Petroleum
Reserve (SPR) and repeal the authority of the SPR program to
acquire oil using royalty-in-kind payments from companies
that develop oil and gas resources under federal leases.
Title IV--Federal Civilian and Military Retirement
The bill would make several changes to retirement benefits
for employees of federal agencies. In total, CBO estimates
that enacting title IV would reduce spending by $6.2 billion
and increase revenues by $6.0 billion, respectively, over the
2014-2023 period.
Specifically, title IV would:
Increase the contribution rate that federal employees,
including those covered under the Foreign Service Retirement
System, pay toward their future retirement benefit (such
contributions are considered revenues to the Treasury). The
legislation would increase contributions by 1.3 percent of
pay for federal employees that begin service on or after
January 1, 2014.
Reduce the annual cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) for
military retirees under the age of 62 by 1 percent. Monthly
retired pay for those individuals would be readjusted upward
at age 62 as if the COLA reduction had not taken place and
retirees would receive full annual COLAs thereafter.
The COLA provision also would reduce discretionary accrual
payments to the Military Retirement Fund over the 2015-2023
period. While such payments count against discretionary
amounts allocated to the Department of Defense as part of the
annual appropriations process, they are intragovernmental
transactions, and do not result in outlays from the
government. If, within the discretionary caps, the reduction
in accrual payments makes possible an offsetting increase in
other appropriations, the net effect would be an increase in
outlays--because an intragovernmental payment would be
replaced by spending that goes outside the government.
Title V--Higher Education
CBO estimates that enacting title V would reduce direct
spending by $5.1 billion over the 2014-2023 period by
amending the Higher Education Act of 1965. Those changes
would:
Eliminate the share of outstanding guaranteed student loan
amounts that guaranty agencies are permitted to retain when
they rehabilitate defaulted loans, increasing the share that
is returned to the federal government; and reduce the maximum
fee that a guaranty agency can charge borrowers to cover the
administrative costs of collections for loans being
rehabilitated.
Eliminate mandatory payments, authorized through 2019, to
nonprofit organizations that service student loans. Although
this provision would reduce direct spending by an estimated
$3.1 billion over the 2014-2023 period, those loans would
still need to be serviced. As a result, CBO estimates that
implementing this provision would require additional
discretionary appropriations of roughly the same magnitude as
the mandatory funding that would be eliminated.
Title VI--Transportation
Title VI would amend provisions of the Aviation and
Transportation Security Act pertaining to security-related
fees and would repeal a current requirement for compensation
related to shipping of food aid. Together, those provisions
would reduce direct spending by $13.4 billion over the 2014-
2023 period. This title would:
Increase security-related fees charged to air passengers
and repeal other fees paid by air carriers, resulting in an
overall net increase in fees. It would amend current law to
direct the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to
collect a specified portion of such fees, without further
appropriation, which would be recorded as offsetting
receipts--a credit against direct spending. (The remaining
portion of TSA fees would continue to be subject to
appropriation action.)
[[Page H8073]]
Repeal the requirement that the Maritime Administration pay
certain costs to compensate the Department of Agriculture to
transport food aid on ships registered in the United States
rather than ships registered in other countries.
Title VII--Miscellaneous Provisions
Title VII would make changes affecting customs fees,
pensions, and health care for federal employees, among other
things. CBO and JCT estimate that those provisions would
reduce direct spending by $19.3 billion over the 2014-2023
period.
Section 701 would extend the authority of Customs and
Border Protection (within the Department of Homeland
Security) to collect certain fees. That authority, which is
set to expire in October of 2021, would be extended through
fiscal year 2023.
Section 703 would raise rates for both variable and flat
rate premiums paid by sponsors of defined benefit pension
plans to the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, and
increase the cap on the variable rate premium.
Section 704 would permanently cancel authority to spend
certain unobligated balances from the Treasury Forfeiture
Fund and the Assets Forfeiture Fund.
Section 705 would establish a fee to offset the cost to the
U.S. Department of Agriculture of providing conservation
assistance to owners of private lands.
Section 706 would add a two-person ``self plus one''
coverage option for federal employees and retirees under the
Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) program. CBO
estimates that option would be priced below the ``self plus
family'' option currently available. However, the ``self plus
family'' option would become more costly than under current
law because the average number of people covered by policies
of that type would rise. CBO expects that federal retirees
would be more likely than active federal employees to switch
to ``self plus one'' policies. As a result, the average cost
of FEHB policies for federal retirees would be lower than
under current law, and the average cost of FEHB policies for
active federal employees would be higher than under current
law.
The provision would reduce direct spending because the
government contribution for health benefits for federal
retirees is classified as direct spending. On the other hand,
implementing the provision would increase spending subject to
appropriation, assuming appropriation of the necessary funds,
because the government contribution for health benefits for
active federal employees is classified as discretionary
spending.
Pay-as-you-go considerations: The Statutory Pay-As-You-Go
Act of 2010 establishes budget-reporting and enforcement
procedures for legislation affecting direct spending or
revenues. Although enacting the legislation would affect both
direct spending and revenues, pay-as-you-go procedures do not
apply because the legislation specifies that its budgetary
effects shall not be entered onto the scorecards maintained
under the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act.
Intergovernmental and private-sector impact: The
legislation contains no intergovernmental mandates as defined
in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act. It would, however,
impose mandates on private entities by increasing or
extending some government fees. The legislation would
increase the fee paid by airline passengers for security
services and increase insurance premiums paid by sponsors of
defined-benefit pension plans to the Pension Benefit Guaranty
Corporation. CBO estimates that the cost of those mandates
would total more than $1 billion in fiscal year 2015 and more
than $2 billion annually beginning in fiscal year 2016. The
legislation also would extend through fiscal year 2023 the
customs users fees that are set to expire in October of 2021
under current law. The cost of the mandate to users of
customs services would exceed $3 billion in each of fiscal
years 2022 and 2023. Consequently, the aggregate cost of the
mandates in the legislation would significantly exceed the
annual threshold established in UMRA for private-sector
mandates ($150 million in 2013, adjusted annually for
inflation).
Estimate prepared by: Federal spending--Christina Hawley
Anthony, Kirstin Blom, Megan Carroll, Sheila Dacey, Mark
Grabowicz, Kathleen Gramp, Justin Humphrey, Deborah Kalcevic,
Jeff LaFave, Jim Langley, Avi Lerner, Amber Marcellino, Julia
Mitchell, Matthew Pickford, Sarah Puro, Lara Robillard, Matt
Schmit, Emily Stern, Santiago Vallinas, and Martin von
Gnechten.
Federal Revenues--Kurt Seibert and staff of the Joint
Committee on Taxation.
Impact on State, Local, and Tribal Governments--J'nell L.
Blanco, Michael Kulas, Melissa Merrell, and Lisa Ramirez-
Branum.
Impact on the private sector--Amy Petz, Paige Piper/Bach,
Chung Kim, Alexia Diorio, and Marin Burnett.
Estimate approved by: Peter H. Fontaine, Assistant Director
or Budget Analysis.
Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
I would like to start by commending my friend and colleague, Chairman
Ryan, for working on this bipartisan agreement. I also want to
congratulate our Senate colleague, Senator Patty Murray, chairman of
the Senate Budget Committee, for her efforts to get this done, along
with many of our colleagues.
This agreement is far from perfect. It is not the budget agreement I
or many of my colleagues would have written, but I do believe that, on
balance, at the margin, it represents a small but positive step
forward.
Mr. Speaker, I would not have been able to say that as recently as
this past Monday and early Tuesday, but as a result of changes made, I
think this is a positive step forward; and I want to commend my fellow
conferees on the House side--Mr. Clyburn and Mrs. Lowey--as well as the
efforts of Leader Pelosi, to make the changes necessary.
As a result of those changes, this is an agreement that many of our
colleagues can now support, and that is for many reasons; but most of
all, it results in a situation in which we will avoid the very deep and
harmful cuts from the sequester, which, if this Congress does not act,
will automatically take effect a few weeks from now. Those very deep
and unproductive across-the-board cuts will create an unnecessary drag
on the economy at a time when economic growth is building but still not
nearly where it is. It will have a negative impact on job growth, and
it will eat away at important national priorities and investments.
As a result of this agreement, in fiscal year 2014, we will be able
to invest $25 billion more in vital national areas than we were in
fiscal year 2013. Of those $25 billion investments, $22.5 billion will
be in important areas of domestic investment: in areas of education, in
areas of important scientific research like medical research at the
National Institutes of Health. It will also provide, as Chairman Ryan
has said, some certainty, which is very important at this point in
time; and without this agreement, you would be guaranteed additional
furloughs of Federal employees in the coming year, so I think it is a
positive step forward.
I do, Mr. Speaker, want to express my extreme disappointment in one
area. In the agreement, itself, as Chairman Ryan has acknowledged and
as Senator Murray has recognized, we decided not to include what we
call the doc fix and decided we would not include the unemployment
insurance compensation extension. Many of us argued that we should
include both of those in this agreement. In fact, House Democrats
proposed an agreement along those lines. We believe that, if we are
going to do the doc fix, which we think is important--making sure that
doctors who provide services to Medicare patients are fully
compensated--we should also make sure that individuals who are on long-
term unemployment will not be left out in the cold 3 days after
Christmas. It was decided that those elements would not be in the
agreement, itself.
Yet, last night, at the 11th hour, the House Republican majority
decided to insert the doc fix within this agreement. We support that
doc fix, but we are very troubled that we have not even been allowed a
vote to extend unemployment compensation.
The reality, Mr. Speaker, is, even without that, if we leave here
without this agreement, we are not going to get the extension of
unemployment insurance because the Speaker won't allow us to have a
vote on that, so the only thing we would accomplish by defeating this
budget agreement would be to go home with a lot of uncertainty and with
the sequester guaranteed to hit in January. That is not a good result.
This agreement is a better result. I will talk a little bit later about
what we believe we should be doing in this Congress.
As the chairman said, this agreement doesn't match his vision nor
does it match ours. We put forward a proposal that would focus a lot
more on job creation, to try and invest more in our national
infrastructure--in our roads and in our bridges and in our broadband--
so that we can put people back to work right now and accomplish
important national priorities. We believe we should be focusing on
early education, investing more in our future so we have job growth not
only now from additional investments but so we ensure greater job
growth in the future. There are other things that we think were
important and part of this agreement which are not in here but that we
will continue to fight for in the days ahead.
With that, Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. RYAN of Wisconsin. Mr. Speaker, at this time, I yield 4 minutes
to the
[[Page H8074]]
gentleman from Kentucky (Mr. Rogers), the distinguished chairman of the
Appropriations Committee.
Mr. ROGERS of Kentucky. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support
of H.J. Res. 59, the Ryan-Murray budget agreement.
First, I want to commend Chairman Ryan on achieving a resolution to
our immediate budget challenges. It takes a good deal of courage; it
takes persistence; it takes dedication to reach a bipartisan agreement
such as this, and I want the chairman of the Budget Committee to know
that we deeply appreciate his hard work on our behalf.
Great job.
While everyone might not like everything in this bill, it is the best
product that is achievable right now, and I urge that it be passed.
As our Budget chairman has said, this agreement reflects a compromise
in policies but not in our conservative principles. Not only does this
deal hold the line on spending, it actually puts a dent in our annual
deficit--a very significant accomplishment. Plus, it opens the door for
future progress on the problem of runaway entitlements. It paves the
way toward budget and economic stability for the next 2 years.
The legislation before us will also accomplish several other
critically important goals:
First and foremost, it will turn off the potentially devastating $20
billion sequestration cut to our national defense. Even if Congress
provided what flexibility we could, which isn't much, a cut of this
magnitude would cripple readiness programs and leave us all at risk;
Second, this bill will allow Congress to avoid another shutdown
showdown and help us return to regular order. As I have said many, many
times before: the best way to trim spending, ensure wise investments of
taxpayer dollars, and provide stability for our government and our
economy is to do appropriations bills on an annual basis, each one
separately brought to the floor, as the Constitution intends.
This budget conference agreement will now permit bicameral
negotiations on the fiscal year 2014 appropriations bills to begin,
allowing my committee to get to work and make the hard, thoughtful,
responsible, line-by-line funding decisions that are Congress' duty to
make.
It is important to remember that this is just the first step in the
current budget process. My committee will now begin to negotiate and
craft an omnibus appropriations bill that will fund the government for
the rest of the fiscal year, with the goal of completing it before the
end of the CR, January 15. The omnibus will reflect the budget outline
that is the Ryan-Murray bill before us now and will make the hard
choices to implement this budget agreement into actual funding levels.
Mr. Speaker, this is a good bill. It makes a significant first step
to putting us on a more stable and responsible fiscal path.
Again, I want to commend the chairman, the ranking member, and all of
the members of the conference committee for the hard work and difficult
decisions that they had to make to bring this bill to us now. I urge
our colleagues to support it.
Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Mr. Speaker, I now yield 2 minutes to the gentlelady
from Maryland (Ms. Edwards), my colleague and friend on the
Transportation Committee.
Ms. EDWARDS. Thank you to the gentleman from Maryland, my friend and
my colleague, for all of your work in getting us to this point. Thank
you to my friend also, Chairman Ryan, for getting us to this point, and
to all of the conferees.
Mr. Speaker, I am in support of the bipartisan Budget Act. Though I
support the agreement, it isn't the bill that I would have written. It
is not the bill that I would have written to fully protect Federal
employees, today's employees and future employees. It is not the bill
that I would have written to protect 1.3 million Americans who are
about to lose their emergency unemployment insurance--22,900 of them in
Maryland--just at the holidays. It is not the bill that I would have
written that would reduce cost-of-living adjustments for our Nation's
military retirees. It is not the bill that I would have written to
protect the commuter tax credit.
But do you know what? I didn't write this legislation, Mr. Speaker.
It is a compromise. It is a negotiation. It is not perfect, but I
support it.
The agreement does ensure that current Federal employees will get
their cost-of-living increases this year. They won't face the
uncertainties of furloughs, and they will face stability for the next
couple of years.
{time} 1645
This compromise rejects the draconian proposal in the chairman's
budget that would have made Federal employees pay 5.5 percent more for
retirement at a cost of $20 billion, but that is not in this bill.
This agreement does roll back sequestration cuts using spending cuts
and new revenue.
And the agreement increases nondefense discrimination spending by
replacing almost two-thirds of this year's cuts, bringing the funding
down to $77 billion above the Republican's preferred budget levels.
The agreement doesn't cut Social Security, Medicare, or Medicaid
benefits, not by a single penny.
What the agreement does is it allows Congress and this Nation to get
out of the dysfunction and the obstruction and to get on to other
business of protecting the American people, perhaps allowing us to
focus on unemployment insurance extension, immigration, infrastructure
investment, and all of the things that it takes to protect our economy.
I support this legislation. Let's get on with it.
Mr. RYAN of Wisconsin. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself 3 minutes.
Mr. Speaker, just so that my colleagues understand what exactly this
bill does or does not do, I want to walk you through a chart.
In 2011, Congress passed the Budget Control Act. That set
discretionary spending at this level up here, the blue line. It said
that this thing we commonly call the supercommittee was supposed to go
and cut $1.2 trillion out of mandatory spending, autopilot spending,
the nondiscretionary part of the budget, the big, fast growing part
that Congress rarely addresses.
If it didn't happen, then the sequester would kick in. That is this
red line. That is where we are now because the sequester has kicked in.
What we face in January is another round of sequester cuts, $20
billion, that hit solely on defense spending in the military. A lot of
us are concerned about that. When 85 percent of our troops, our
brigades, are not ready, that is a problem. When we have people in
Afghanistan and we need to reset our equipment and we are not where we
need to be, that is a problem; that is a concern of ours.
What we do not want to do is lose any of the fiscal progress that was
made by this act. In fact, we want to go farther. So what this bill
does is it says for the rest of this half fiscal year, fiscal year
2014, and the upcoming fiscal year, fiscal year 2015, it changes
discretionary spending to go to $1.12 trillion and then $1.14 trillion
back on to where we are with the sequester.
What does all that mean? It means that 92 percent of the sequester is
still intact. For the next year and a half, this bill preserves 70
percent of the sequester; but we pay for that 30 percent that is given
back.
Let me explain what that means just in a quick dollars and cents
sense. This bill achieves $85 billion in mandatory savings, the things
we talked about a minute ago, all those various permanent spending
cuts. It gives back or relieves from the sequester $63 billion in
spending: half to defense, half to domestic spending, like Mr. Van
Hollen was talking about. The result is a net deficit reduction of $23
billion. So from the Budget Control Act of 2011, this advances fiscal
responsibility to the tune of $23 billion.
To put it another way, 2 years ago, when we passed the first House
Republican budget when we came into the majority, the appropriation
number we were looking for then was $1.19 trillion. Then in 2012 in the
next House Republican budget, the appropriation bill we were fighting
for then was $1.28 trillion.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentleman has expired.
Mr. RYAN of Wisconsin. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself an additional
minute.
The Budget Control Act would have had us at $1.58 trillion. This
agreement puts us at $1.12 trillion. Under this agreement, we would not
hit that discretionary spending number of $1.19
[[Page H8075]]
trillion, the one we asked for 2 years ago, we wouldn't hit that number
until the year 2017.
With respect to a fiscal track record, we are ahead of schedule, and
we are replacing some of these across-the-board spending cuts that are
indiscriminate that don't set priorities, that treat the efficient and
inefficient programs the same, with smarter, permanent spending cuts in
the autopilot part of spending, that part that Congress all too often
ignores.
Mr. Speaker, this is good government; it is also divided government.
Under divided government, we need to take steps in the right direction.
To make divided government work, you can't ask each other to compromise
a core principle because we don't do that here. We ask each other to
find some common ground to advance the common good. That is what this
agreement does. That is why I ask my colleagues to support it.
With that, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself as much time as I may
consume.
I think this agreement is an acknowledgement--at least a majority on
both sides, certainly on the Democratic side, a strong majority--that
the sequester is a dumb and unproductive way to cut spending or to
reduce the deficit.
What this agreement does is prevent that full sequester from taking
place over the next 2 years. We believe that we should address and
substitute the remaining sequester through a balanced approach of
additional targeted cuts. But, Mr. Speaker, we also think we should
close some of these special interest tax loopholes that benefit nobody
except certain narrow interests that sometimes have undue sway here in
the Congress.
But as my colleague said, we have different approaches, and our
Republican colleagues have refused to close a single one of those
special tax breaks or preferences for the purpose either of reducing
the sequester or reducing the deficit. So we have different approaches.
We wouldn't have chosen the offsets that are in here to pay for the
sequester replacement. They are the result of a negotiation. As I said
earlier, I believe on balance this is an important step forward.
Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from New York (Mrs.
Lowey), one of the people who was very important in this process, my
good friend and colleague from New York, the ranking member of the
Appropriations Committee and one of the conferees.
Mrs. LOWEY. Mr. Speaker, the budget deal is a breakthrough in a
difficult budget year in a dysfunctional Congress. As with any
compromise, there are elements I oppose; yet this agreement should help
us do our jobs to the American people and end the shutdown standoffs.
It provides some relief from the devastating impact of the sequester
cuts on our economy and American families. Keeping sequestration in
place through fiscal year 2014 would cost up to an estimated 1.6
million jobs. Now, the House and Senate must restore regular order to
craft bills that instead create new jobs and protect important
priorities like medical research, security and infrastructure upgrades,
and early education.
This agreement restores over 60 percent of the sequester on
nondefense discretionary spending in 2014, restores those bills to
roughly the FY 2013 enacted pre-sequester levels. It would hold defense
funding levels roughly consistent with the 2013 level after sequester.
The bill before us includes elements, frankly, I don't like and fails
to address others it should. First, I am deeply upset that my
colleagues on the other side of the aisle insisted on extending the 2
percent sequester on Medicare providers for an additional 2 years as
part of the package's offsets. We should not extend their sequester
burden.
It is also unconscionable that the deal does not extend long-term
unemployment benefits. Even with the progress our economy has made
since the depths of the recession, there are still 1.3 million fewer
jobs today than 6 years ago.
Four million Americans have been looking for work for more than 6
months.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentlewoman has expired.
Mr. VAN HOLLEN. I yield an additional 30 seconds to the gentlelady.
Mrs. LOWEY. More than 1.3 million of them will lose their benefits
and, for some, the only income they have just 3 days after Christmas
and 3 days before the new year.
Today's bill will provide some economic certainty about fiscal policy
over the next 2 years, which should boost growth and job creation.
Because we cannot continue lurching from crisis to crisis, and
despite my misgivings about the extension of Medicare provider cuts and
failure to address long-term unemployment, I will vote ``yes.''
Mr. RYAN of Wisconsin. Mr. Speaker, at this time, I yield 2 minutes
to the gentleman from Iowa (Mr. Latham) for the purposes of a colloquy.
Mr. LATHAM. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Vermont (Mr.
Welch).
Mr. WELCH. Mr. Speaker, I rise to enter into a colloquy with the
gentleman from Wisconsin regarding the not-for-profit student loan
servicing provisions in the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013.
Is it your understanding and intent that the not-for-profit servicing
provision in this act does not require the termination of the existing
Federal loan servicing contracts of any not-for-profit servicers who
are currently servicing Federal loans?
And is it the further understanding and intent of the gentleman from
Wisconsin that the Education Department will continue to enter into
contracts with not-for-profit servicers based on their performance?
Mr. RYAN of Wisconsin. Mr. Speaker, will the gentleman from Iowa
yield?
Mr. LATHAM. I yield to the gentleman.
Mr. RYAN of Wisconsin. Mr. Speaker, yes, it is the legislative intent
that existing contracts to use the services for not-for-profit
servicers are not terminated by this bill and that they will be
permitted to compete with the Department of Education's title IV
servicers for additional accounts.
Mr. LATHAM. Mr. Speaker, I associate myself with the comments of the
managers and am pleased to know it is their intent that the use of not-
for-profit servicers continues and that not-for-profit servicers will
be permitted to compete in the future for additional accounts.
Mr. KLINE. Mr. Speaker, will the gentleman yield?
Mr. LATHAM. I yield to the gentleman from Minnesota.
Mr. KLINE. Mr. Speaker, I also rise to associate myself with the
comments of the managers and am pleased to know it is their intent that
the use of not-for-profit servicers continues and that not-for-profit
servicers will be permitted to compete in the future for additional
accounts.
Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from
South Carolina (Mr. Clyburn), a good friend and colleague, one of the
conferees who worked with us to move this agreement to a place where it
was supported by many of us on the Democratic side, the assistant
Democratic leader.
Mr. CLYBURN. Mr. Speaker, let me thank my friend, Mr. Van Hollen, for
yielding me this time. I want to thank him and Mrs. Nita Lowey for the
tremendous work they did in keeping this effort moving forward in a
very positive way.
I also want to thank Chairman Ryan for the great work he has done on
this and the manner in which he got his work done.
We don't talk a lot on this side of the Capitol about the other side,
but I also want to thank Senator Patty Murray for all of her work. I
had the great privilege of working with her on the supercommittee and
we didn't get much done. I was on the so-called ``Biden Group'' along
with Mr. Van Hollen, and we didn't get anything done. But I am pleased
at this time of year to say that the third time seems to be the charm.
This is not the product that I would have written if I were writing
it, and I am sure that it is not the product that any of my Democratic
colleagues would write. I am always concerned by the ``meat ax''
approach to dealing with the budget. This effort takes that away and
allows us to approach spending in a way that is much more conducive to
running the government. We
[[Page H8076]]
didn't get everything, and nobody gets everything they want in trying
to reach common ground.
It is important for me to note at this time some things that were
taken off the table. There are no cuts to Social Security, there are no
benefit cuts to those receiving Medicare or Medicaid, there is no
targeting of Federal employees for additional cuts, and the relief from
the sequester in both defense and essential services is very real and
significant.
{time} 1700
It is also important to note what this bill does not do. I am very
concerned about the fact that we were not able to make unemployment
insurance a part of this effort.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentleman has expired.
Mr. VAN HOLLEN. I yield an additional 30 seconds to the gentleman.
Mr. CLYBURN. And I am hopeful when we get back here after the first
of the year that we will move and do as we have done in the past, pass
unemployment insurance, make it retroactive to January 1 so those
people who find themselves unemployed through no fault of their own can
find some relief going into the next holiday season. Hopefully, we will
do something on the minimum wage. These are things that I think we need
to do coming back after the first of the year.
I thank the gentleman for yielding me the time.
Mr. RYAN of Wisconsin. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself 30 seconds to
respond to my friend, the gentleman from South Carolina (Mr. Clyburn).
I want him to know that his time spent on these prior endeavors, the
Biden Group, all those, that was not wasted. That was productive time
because the findings of those groups were used in this agreement. The
work that they did on all of those policies were work that we borrowed
from to put this together. So I want him to know that was a productive
use of his time which helped, in turn, produce this result.
Mr. CLYBURN. Thank you very much. You are very kind.
Mr. RYAN of Wisconsin. With that, Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to
the gentleman from California (Mr. McCarthy), our distinguished
majority whip.
Mr. McCARTHY of California. Mr. Speaker, first I want to thank our
chairman of the Budget Committee for showing the leadership, finding
the common ground, but actually moving this entire House.
When I first came to Congress, debate was always about more spending,
always about what would the future hold. Ever since the Republicans
took the majority, within our first 4 months, we produced a budget that
put us on to a path of a much different approach. It was a path led by
our chairman and a path that would actually grow jobs and move us in a
new direction.
The challenge we had was in the Senate; there was no budget. The last
time, since I have been here that the Senate produced a budget, the
iPad wasn't introduced. But this House moved No Budget, No Pay, and the
Senate began to move, but they came up with a different number than we
had. We had a stalemate on the floor that the country was frustrated
with, that we were frustrated with; and we knew that this was not the
way Congress was designed.
So this agreement moves us in a much different place. Every year that
Congress failed to pass a budget, it ceded its power, intended by our
Founders to be held by Congress, to the executive branch.
As House Republicans continue to fight for more limited government
that empowers the individual and makes smarter spending decisions, the
standard set by this agreement will be critically important.
The budget agreement takes steps to reform mandatory spending that
starts out slow but compounds over the years and results in real and
growing spending reductions year over year. It also moves us closer to
more responsible entitlement reforms that lead to a balanced budget,
paying down our debt, and a sustainable economic future.
Today is a unique day. Today is a day that is a step in the right
direction, and it shows the common ground that not only this body but
the Senate can take as well. I thank all those involved, and I ask for
a ``yes'' vote.
Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman
from Massachusetts (Mr. Neal), a terrific member of the Ways and Means
Committee.
Mr. NEAL. Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Van Hollen.
I think the previous speaker forgot to mention the Bush tax cuts in
2001 and 2003, totaling $2.3 trillion. The war in Iraq was conveniently
left out. The process of sequestration was ill-considered and the
result is all around us.
Mr. RYAN of Wisconsin. Will the gentleman yield?
Mr. NEAL. I yield to the gentleman.
Mr. RYAN of Wisconsin. We are having a good moment here. Don't spoil
it, all right?
Mr. NEAL. Listen, I was happy to have it until I heard that the
Republicans were responsible for all of the good things that are in
this, and the Democrats were only responsible for the revenue side.
Revenue is at about percent of gross domestic product right now.
Those are the Eisenhower years. We need to have this discussion.
Now, let me say this as well. Mr. Ryan deserves to be credited, as
does Mr. Van Hollen, with the measure that is in front of us today. But
if we can get past some of the acrimony and some of the ill-considered
language here, maybe we could find a path forward.
The Medicare picture has brightened substantially. It is wild what
has happened. The automobile sector is doing much better. The private
sector in general is. Americans are shedding debt, but not to miss the
point that there is a very elusive term that needs to be addressed in
America today, and it is a term of confidence. The government shutdown
shaved 1 to 2 points off of gross domestic product. That is reality;
that is not fiction.
We need to get past, again, the harsh language that has now taken
over this institution and provide investors and provide the American
people with the idea of some confidence to unleash the forces of that
$2 trillion that is sitting here domestically and another trillion that
is sitting offshore. This is the sort of conversation that we need to
have. This is a confidence-building measure. It does lighten up some of
the spending caps, again, that would have caused grave damage to the
economy. We should have found the time to help out on the issue of
unemployment benefits.
Mr. Speaker, we did the doc-fix this morning. I favor it; $8 billion
over 3 months. We could have found money in this budget to extend
unemployment benefits to American families.
Mr. RYAN of Wisconsin. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself 2 minutes.
Mr. Speaker, there are a couple of other factors that I think Members
should weigh as we look at this legislation.
Number one is if we do not pass this legislation, we face a fiscal
impasse on January 15 and, therefore, a potential government shutdown
at that time. And then we face a fiscal impasse at the end of September
and a possible government shutdown at that time. I don't know of anyone
in this body that thinks these government shutdowns are productive or
useful for our economy. So by having this agreement in place, we
prevent those two episodes from occurring and we prevent those two
government shutdowns.
Point number two, for too long, for 3 years, this body, Congress, the
legislative branch, the one that the Founders envisioned in the
Constitution would be exercising the power of the purse, the branch of
government that is the representative of the people that is supposed to
decide how money is spent, well, we have been ceding that authority to
the executive branch by passing what we call continuing resolutions. So
the spending priorities that were set 3 years ago are still in place,
and then we just keep writing these blank checks to the administration,
and they set the priorities. That is not a partisan thing; this is an
institutional thing. This is a separation of powers thing.
Democrats and Republicans alike believe that we should do our jobs,
that we should exercise the power of the purse, that the legislative
branch should bring back its authority to do this. This does that. By
restarting the appropriations process, by agreeing to these numbers,
which are bipartisan numbers, mutually agreed to number, by not doing
continuing resolutions,
[[Page H8077]]
we are reclaiming the power of the purse.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentleman has expired.
Mr. RYAN of Wisconsin. I yield myself 1 minute.
There are those of us who are worried about regulations, who are
worried about the exercise of power at the executive branch, who are
worried about a sense of less accountability among the executive
branch. We do lots of oversight hearings. We do dozens a week. But
oversight pales in comparison when it doesn't have any fiscal force
behind it. By reclaiming the power of the purse, by having Congress
write the budgets and approve and decide the budgets of the executive
agencies, that gives us a far stronger hand in effecting effective
oversight and conducting oversight. By using the power of the purse,
along with effective oversight, we can do our jobs as the legislative
branch in conducting oversight of the executive branch and setting
priorities.
My friends have their priorities, and we have our priorities, and
sometimes we meet and sometimes we don't. At least Congress gets to set
the priorities on how the money sent to us from hardworking taxpayers
is spent. That is one of the things that is accomplished in this
agreement. That, along with all these other reasons, is why I really
encourage all of our Members to support this agreement.
With that, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman
from Minnesota (Mr. Ellison), my friend.
Mr. ELLISON. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleagues for arriving
at a budget deal. When we asked our Democratic conferees to negotiate
the best deal they could, we did it knowing that they were negotiating
with colleagues whose priority is debt reduction, not jobs, even though
the Federal Government deficit is the smallest since 2008. Given
Republican priorities, they had a heavy task of partially lifting the
sequester, protecting Social Security and Medicare and Medicaid, and
averting a shutdown. And so I think that is good.
But there are parts of the deal that leave me very uncomfortable. I
can't possibly imagine leaving this place, leaving all those Americans,
over a million people, without any means of sustenance other than maybe
their local food shelf. I mean, it is not humane. It is not right, and
it is bad for the economy because the people who got those unemployment
insurance checks would be able to spend them with local vendors which
would actually help our local economy. That is not going to happen
unless something else happens. I have heard estimates as high as
310,000 jobs could be lost if something is not done.
Also, the $6 billion cut for future Federal employees' retirement, I
am very disturbed about that because we need good people working for
the Federal Government. How can we attract the best people to work for
this country if every time we have to solve a budget problem, we are
going into their piggy bank. Jets and yachts, if we accelerated
depreciation, we would be three-fourths of the way there on these
future Federal employees' retirement benefits.
I am deeply disappointed we did not work to close any loopholes. That
is a shame. So I remain disappointed.
Mr. RYAN of Wisconsin. I reserve the balance of my time. I am waiting
for the leader, who is on his way.
Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Mr. Speaker, may I inquire how much time remains.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from Maryland has 12 minutes
remaining. The gentleman from Wisconsin has 11\1/2\ minutes remaining.
Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the
gentlewoman from California (Mrs. Davis), a great member of the Armed
Services Committee.
Mrs. DAVIS of California. Mr. Speaker, we have taken a first step to
come together. Well, it is a bigger step than we have seen in a while,
but let's remember, it is only a first step. And I think people have
said a small step, but it is a step and I am as excited as some of you
are saying that we have been able to do that.
However, and more than that, unfortunately, we have not been able to
come together to keep up the safety net for 1.3 million unemployed
Americans by extending emergency unemployment insurance. In fact, the
problem of long-term unemployment is not even addressed. It wasn't even
discussed at length. If you want to pull away the safety net and leave
people with nothing, well, at least have some creative solutions for
getting them back to work.
Now, like many of you, I have to go back to my district, my
constituents in San Diego, who have been struggling to find work for so
long and tell them that we could not come together to preserve their
only means of subsistence.
So let's remember, as we take this step forward, let us keep working
together to extend unemployment benefits for those in desperate need
and start--let us start coming up with some bigger solutions to getting
people back to work.
Mr. RYAN of Wisconsin. At this time, I would like to yield 2 minutes
to the distinguished gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Rokita), a member of
the Budget Committee.
Mr. ROKITA. I thank the chairman. I thank him for his leadership, not
only on this issue, but on so many of the bills and issues that come
before this Congress; and I also thank the leadership on the other side
of the Budget Committee and the other side of this Congress for their
leadership in coming together as well.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of this bipartisan budget
legislation. As you know, Mr. Speaker, I am one of the folks around
here who is considered by some maybe affectionately, by others not so
affectionately, as a budget hawk. I came to reduce our spending and get
as much value for every dollar we take from the taxpayer, and more
increasingly from the children of tomorrow, from those who don't exist
who we are taxing by running up our debt.
{time} 1715
I watch these issues closely. I am actively, in my opinion, engaged
in them. And I want to say on this House floor that this budget is a
better deal than the current sequestration law because it makes
spending reforms beyond sequestration that will continue on after
sequestration expires. The reforms and, therefore, the budget savings
start immediately and compound over time.
By the way, Mr. Speaker, I am not talking about trading real
sequester savings for magic beans. These are reforms that will start
once this bill passes and once the President signs it. Again, it will
compound over time.
Finally, Mr. Speaker, we are starting to open the door and address
what is actually causing our deficits and debt, and that is our
entitlement programs. So I applaud again the chairman of the Budget
Committee. I applaud the ranking member and others in the Senate who
are supporting this measure because we are finally able to get to
discuss and solve what is the major problem that this country is facing
at this time.
Like the others who have spoken, I look forward to having more of
these discussions and getting onto the business of solving what is
creating so much problem in this country.
Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. RYAN of Wisconsin. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman
from Virginia (Mr. Cantor), our distinguished majority leader.
Mr. CANTOR. Mr. Speaker, I thank the Speaker, and I thank the
gentleman from Wisconsin.
I rise today in support of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013.
Mr. Speaker, in a divided government, the American people expect
Members of both parties to come together and find common ground to move
America forward. While this budget agreement is not perfect, it is a
step forward towards bridging our differences and bringing fiscal
responsibility to Washington.
The legislation before the House today will reduce our deficit, it
will make long-term pension reforms, and it will do so without raising
taxes on the hardworking middle class families of our country. This
budget deal also protects our national security at home and around the
world by preventing dramatic cuts to our national defense as a result
of the sequester.
Mr. Speaker, I think we can all agree that arbitrary, indiscriminate
across-
[[Page H8078]]
the-board spending cuts are not the smartest way to cut spending. Last
year, House Republicans passed two bills that would have replaced the
sequester's indiscriminate across-the-board cuts. This bill before us
is a reflection of our priority to replace the sequester with permanent
savings that will responsibly reduce our deficit.
This legislation will allow Congress to concentrate on appropriating
taxpayer funds to our country's highest priorities. Let's stand
together and show the American people that we are focused on reining in
Washington's out-of-control spending habits while growing our economy.
Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the gentleman from Wisconsin, the
chairman of the Budget Committee, Mr. Ryan, for his perseverance and
his quest to rein in the wasteful spending, to work towards balancing
our budget. I want to thank him for his tenacity in negotiations that
he had with Senator Murray in arriving at this deal. I want to thank
him and his entire committee for their hard work.
This is a bipartisan budget agreement, one that has not been
frequently seen in terms of bipartisan agreement on this floor. I urge
my colleagues in the House to support this agreement.
Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
I want to emphasize a point that we both made, which is that if we
had our druthers, we would have approached this issue differently.
I do want to say with respect to some of the offsets, there are many
of us who would have preferred to see the closures of many special
interest tax breaks as part of the offsets in this legislation. We hope
that as we go forward, we would agree that that is also a kind of
wasteful spending in the Tax Code. If you give a special interest in
this country some tax preference not enjoyed by others, you are simply
raising the burden on everybody else. It is simply a form of spending
through the Tax Code.
Mr. Speaker, as we address these issues going forward, whether it is
replacing the sequester or reducing the deficit, as part of a balanced
approach, we think we should take those into account as well.
We also proposed, as part of this measure, applying some of the
excessive subsidies that we give to agribusinesses as part of the
offsets, and our colleagues rejected those.
As has been said, this is a product of compromise, but I do want to
let people know that it has been our preference to close some of those
special interest tax breaks and use some of those excessive agriculture
subsidies as offsets here rather than some of the provisions that are
before us.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. RYAN of Wisconsin. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman
from Ohio (Mr. Boehner), the distinguished Speaker of the House.
Mr. BOEHNER. Mr. Speaker, let me thank Chairman Ryan and his Senate
counterpart, Democrats and Republicans, frankly, on both sides of the
Capitol who worked hard to bring this agreement together.
My colleagues, I think it is pretty simple. If you are for reducing
the budget deficit, then you should be voting for this bill. If you are
for cutting the size of government, you should be supporting this
budget. If you are for preventing tax increases, you should be voting
for this budget. If you are for entitlement reform, you ought to be
voting for this budget. These are the things I came here to do, and
this budget does them.
Is it perfect? Does it go far enough? No, not at all. I think it is
going to take a lot more work to get our arms around our debt and our
deficit. But this budget is a positive step in that direction. It is
progress. It is doing what the American people expect us to do. It is
coming together and finding common ground. Stick to our principles, but
find common ground.
Again, I commend Chairman Ryan and Chairman Murray for their work,
and I urge all of my colleagues to vote for this budget.
Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my
time.
Mr. RYAN of Wisconsin. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the
gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. Womack).
Mr. WOMACK. Mr. Speaker, I thank Chairman Ryan for his great
leadership in forging this particular agreement and putting us in a
position to end on a positive note here as we approach the Christmas
and holiday season.
Mr. Speaker, I am going to bring a couple of different perspectives
to the floor as I analyze this budget deal. The first perspective I
have is that of being a former mayor for 12 years in a great city in
northwest Arkansas where there was an enormous amount of economic
development and we did a lot of great things. I sat at the table many
times talking about issues and trying to balance the needs of our
community against what the wants of our community were. I have to tell
you that I never ended any of those negotiations getting everything
that I wanted, but I always looked for an opportunity to find the
common ground and to advance the economic development issues of our
city where we could find that type of consensus.
Mr. Speaker, I also bring the perspective of an appropriator. As
somebody who came to Congress in 2011, I was immediately assigned to
the Appropriations Committee. And, quite frankly, I have been
frustrated through this entire process, living from CR to CR and never
having the opportunity to do what appropriators are purposed in doing.
This agreement, while not perfect, as has already been mentioned by
most every speaker, gives us an opportunity to take government
shutdowns off the table and to restore some much-needed funding to
something very important to all of us, our national defense. As an
appropriator, it gives us an opportunity to actually do our jobs and
quit ceding the authority for the power of the purse to the
administration down the street. From that perspective, Mr. Speaker, I
think this is the right deal at the right time. It gives us an
opportunity to give some certainty to the American public who is
looking to this Congress to be able to work together to try to find the
solutions that move America forward.
I urge support.
Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from
Maryland (Mr. Hoyer), our distinguished whip and somebody who has been
working very hard on these budget issues and working with us also to
make sure that this is done in as fair and equitable a manner as
possible. He has worked with us very closely to make sure that Federal
employees do not take a disproportionate share of the burden. And as a
result of those efforts, current Federal employees will not be asked to
bear additional burdens after having already borne so much of the
burden.
Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman.
First of all, let me say that America is advantaged by having two
people who work on the Budget Committee who have great intellect, great
integrity, and care about America: Mr. Ryan from Wisconsin and Mr. Van
Hollen from Maryland. The American public sometimes is not sure that it
has that kind of quality. If only they were here sitting in the Budget
Committee or on the floor and listening to these two gentlemen who have
disagreements and represent their positions well.
Mr. Speaker, I voted for every budget compromise that has been passed
over the past 3 years without fail. The result, however, invariably,
has been an unremitting undermining of our efforts to reach a balanced
fiscal policy and to invest in that which will secure our future: the
economy, education, infrastructure, national security, and innovation.
While each of those bills was preferable to default on our debt or
the shutting down of our government, they have been simply stopgap
measures that have not prevented continuing lurches from
congressionally created and all too frequent fiscal crises and
shutdowns.
The headlines regarding this agreement put it in perspective. An op-
ed in The New York Times says, ``Congress Avoids Reality, Again.'' The
Wall Street Journal says, ``A Least Bad Budget Deal,'' while a USA
Today headline says, ``Minimalist Budget Deal Beats Another Shutdown.''
The editorial concludes with this, however:
Unless we come to grips with the fiscal issue, we will be inflicting
a huge financial burden on our children.
[[Page H8079]]
I agree.
The deal before us today does not deal with the fundamental issue of
long-term fiscal stability. My friend Mr. Ryan says he wants to do
that. My friend Mr. Van Hollen says he wants to do that. I think
Senator Murray wants to do that. We have not done that. We have not
dealt with the underlying issues that prevent us from being on a
fiscally sustainable path.
It does not replace the full sequester, which Chairman Hal Rogers,
who I know has spoken in favor of this agreement, has correctly
described as ill-advised and unrealistic. I said on this floor when we
considered the gentleman's budget that, if there were no Democrats in
the House of Representatives, they could not implement that budget. I
believe that.
{time} 1730
I believe that. I believe it because the figures were not related to
priorities or vision or that which we needed to accomplish as a
country, but on a number, 967. That is an opinion shared by all of the
Republican appropriations subcommittee chairmen who wrote a letter to
that effect.
Nor, critically, does this agreement deal with the issue of the debt
limit, which will confront us shortly, and which has, historically,
over the last 3 years, been an inflection point to further reduce not
only discretionary spending on both sides, mainly on the nondefense
side, but also to reach, once again, into the pockets of Federal
employees.
Now, I am someone who represents 62,000 Federal employees, and I
recommended zero COLAs the first 2 years we did zero COLAs. Why?
The economy was in trouble and it was necessary for Federal
employees, like everybody else, to participate.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentleman has expired.
Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield the gentleman another minute.
Mr. HOYER. I'd better be quick.
If we fail to resolve this issue now, it will simply plunge us into
another manufactured crisis which will quickly undermine the stability
and confidence that some believe this agreement is bringing.
The fact that this agreement deals temporarily with preventing a cut
in Medicare's physician reimbursement rate is welcome but, as with our
fiscal sustainability, it needs to be dealt with on a permanent basis.
I am pleased that the House Ways and Means Committee and the Senate
Finance Committee today marked up legislation to do so. However, it is
unconscionable that the budget deal before us today does not extend
unemployment insurance, which helps those who are most at risk in our
society; and if we do not help them, the economy will suffer, and
200,000 jobs are predicted to be lost.
On December 28, 1.3 million Americans will lose their unemployment
insurance if we do not act, and they will be joined by an additional
3.5 million Americans in 2014. The House should not leave town without
ensuring that individuals looking for work have the safety net of
unemployment insurance.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentleman has again expired.
Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield the gentleman an additional 30
seconds.
Mr. HOYER. Finally, Mr. Speaker, this budget turns once again to
middle class workers.
Let me close with this. This agreement is better than the
alternative, but it misses a huge opportunity to do what the American
people expect us to do, and that is put this country on a fiscally
sustainable path.
I would urge my friend from Wisconsin, and I have urged my friend
from Maryland, my colleague, summon up the courage, much of which you
have already shown, to help us put this country on a fiscally
sustainable path, and, yes, make tough decisions. And I will join with
the gentleman from Wisconsin and the gentleman from Maryland in helping
us to get the votes for those tough decisions that are necessary, but
it needs to be a balanced deal.
I have voted for every budget compromise that has been passed over
the past three years.
The results, invariably, have been an unremitting undermining of our
efforts to reach a balanced fiscal policy and to invest in that which
will secure our future: the economy, education, infrastructure,
national security, and innovation.
And while each of those bills was preferable to default on our debt
or the shutting down of our government, they have been simply stop-gap
measures that have not prevented continuing lurches from
congressionally-created and all-too-frequent fiscal crises and
shutdowns.
The headlines regarding this deal put it in perspective:
An op-ed in the New York Times says, ``Congress avoids reality
again.''
The Wall Street Journal calls it the ``Least Bad Budget Deal.''
And while a USA Today headline says, ``Minimalist Budget Deal Beats
Another Shutdown,'' the editorial concludes with this: ``Unless we come
to grips with the fiscal issue, we will be inflicting a huge financial
burden on our children.''
I could not agree more.
The deal before us today does not deal with the fundamental issue of
long-term fiscal stability, nor does it replace the full sequester--
which Chairman Hal Rogers has correctly described as ``ill-advised''
and ``unrealistic''--an opinion shared by all of the Republican
Appropriations Subcommittee chairmen.
Nor, critically, does this agreement deal with the issue of the debt
limit, which will confront us in a few short months.
If we fail to resolve that now, it will simply plunge us into another
manufactured crisis, which will quickly undermine the stability and
confidence some believe this agreement will bring.
The fact that this agreement deals temporarily with preventing a cut
in Medicare's physician reimbursement rates, SGR, is welcome, but, as
with our fiscal sustainability, it needs to be dealt with on a
permanent basis.
I'm pleased that the House Ways and Means Committee and the Senate
Finance Committee today marked up legislation to address this issue in
a permanent way.
However, it is unconscionable that the budget deal before us today
does not extend unemployment insurance, which helps those most at risk
in our society.
On December 28, 1.3 million Americans will lose their unemployment
insurance if we do not act, and they will be joined by an additional
3.5 million Americans in 2014.
The house should not leave town without ensuring that individuals
looking for work have the safety net of unemployment insurance.
Finally, I am disappointed that this budget deal turns once again to
middle class workers.
Our nation's Federal Employees have already contributed $114 billion
toward deficit reduction, and are being asked to contribute once again.
Their contribution is less than what was being discussed last week,
which is positive, but to continue targeting them is unacceptable
outside of a big deal where everyone else is asked to contribute as
well.
This budget deal is a missed opportunity.
It is a missed opportunity to replace the sequester in its entirety.
It is a missed opportunity to, at long last, put our Nation on a
fiscally sustainable path.
That is why I will oppose this deal on the floor today, and continue
advocating for the big, balanced budget deal we need to truly restore
the long-term fiscal stability of our Nation.
Mr. RYAN of Wisconsin. Mr. Speaker, I have no more speakers, and I
reserve the balance of my time to close.
Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Mr. Speaker, at this time I yield 1 minute to the
gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson Lee), a great member of the
Judiciary Committee.
Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the gentleman very much
for his kindness in yielding.
As I indicated earlier today, even Time magazine recognized that the
better of all of us is when we extend ourselves to the most vulnerable,
acknowledging Pope Francis.
So I want to ask the chairman of the Budget Committee, but he has
heard so many of us indicate that there is value to this budget deal,
Chairman Ryan, I would like to pose a question, if I could, to you, if
you would.
You have heard us say that we too appreciate the bipartisanship,
disagree with so much of it in terms of the sequester and what has been
done as it relates to nutrition for the unemployed. But would you not
hold us back, would you not join us in putting on the floor an
amendment that would provide for the extension of unemployment that
will not run out December 28 for the hardworking Americans, 68,000 in
Texas, 1.3 million? Would you not do that?
Mr. RYAN of Wisconsin. I will defer to the Speaker's comments.
[[Page H8080]]
Ms. JACKSON LEE. Well, we get no answer. And all I can say is that
this budget is a deal that I want to thank Mr. Van Hollen for the work
that has been done, along with the other conferees, Mrs. Lowey, Mr.
Clyburn; but I believe we should not leave here today, leave here this
week without having a freestanding--and I wish the gentleman would own
up to honesty and answer the question--but to be able to put on the
floor of the House the opportunity for those who have worked to be able
to get unemployment insurance, not a handout, but unemployment
insurance.
I know, Mr. Ryan, that we can carry our bipartisanship at least to
that point and be able to work on behalf of the American people
carrying forward the need to ensure that we have housing, education,
child care, all of that.
A little bit is happening under this particular budget. That is why
many of us are interested in moving forward, getting rid of the
sequester, keeping the doors open. But I would think that there is
enough bipartisanship on both sides of the aisle to be able to extend
the unemployment insurance.
And we should not leave here. I ask the President to convene us, to
call us, to call the Senate, to call the House and make sure that we
vote on that.
I thank the gentleman for the hard work that you have engaged in and
also how far you have brought us.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from Maryland has 1 minute
remaining.
Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Is the gentleman prepared to close?
Mr. RYAN of Wisconsin. Yes.
Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.
Mr. Speaker, Mr. Hoyer is right. This agreement does not address the
comprehensive issues that we need to address. We need to address those
in a balanced way, and that means working on both additional, smart,
targeted spending cuts, but also closing special interest tax breaks.
But what this agreement does do is make sure that, in the next
several weeks, we do not move to a full sequester, very deep across-
the-board cuts, which will hurt the economy. Instead, it provides more
room to invest in vital areas like education and research. That is a
positive note. That is a positive bipartisan note.
I do want to say, Mr. Speaker, however, and this is not as a result
of anything the chairman of the Budget Committee does, there is also a
sour note in leaving here without having addressed the unemployment
insurance.
This agreement didn't include the doc-fix, and it didn't include
unemployment insurance. We should be dealing with both those issues
together. We are only dealing with one of them now.
So I hope, as we go forward, we will address those issues; and we
should not leave town until we address the unemployment issue.
But let's, at the same time, take this small positive step forward.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from Wisconsin has 5\1/2\
minutes remaining.
Mr. RYAN of Wisconsin. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Mr. Speaker, there are many reasons why I encourage my colleagues to
support this bipartisan budget agreement. Number one, by doing this, we
reduce the deficit by $23 billion. If we don't do this, we don't reduce
the deficit by $23 billion. That means we are reducing it versus doing
nothing, a step in the right direction, a move toward fiscal
responsibility, not near as far as we want to go, but at least going in
the direction we want to go.
The budget we passed here in the House, just like the prior two
budgets that we passed here in the House, represents the full extent of
our ambition, our vision and our goals. It balances the budgets within
10 years.
It reforms the Tax Code without raising taxes. It reforms our
entitlement programs that were vital and were made in the 20th century
so that they work for the 21st century.
It pays off our debt so that we do not leave our children a Nation of
debt. That is our goal. That is our vision. That is our destiny.
With the bipartisan budget agreement we couldn't accomplish that
because we have different opinions, we have different objectives. That
is why we worked for common ground.
That is why we took our budget, all the different budgets that were
offered, we laid them on top of each other, and we looked for common
ground. We went through the Federal budget program by program, line by
line. We discussed and debated these things, and we asked where is it
that we can agree needs reforming.
Where is it that we agree taxpayer money is being wasted?
Where is it we agree that cronyism and corporate welfare should go
away?
Where is it we agree that some reform for auto pilot mandatory
spending ought to occur?
And where we found that agreement, we put it in this agreement. That
is the way it is supposed to work. So we see this as a step in the
right direction on the way toward fulfilling our ultimate goal.
The second thing we accomplished that is very important to us, and
Mr. Van Hollen kind of mentioned it, this does not raise taxes.
Hardworking taxpayers have worked hard and long enough that we need to
work on spending instead of taking more from them.
The third thing, we are taking permanent spending cuts to pay for
temporary sequester relief. We think that is a good idea.
The savings clearly take time to accrue in this agreement, and that
is because we are changing permanent law, and those permanent law
changes that are made by this act start accruing and compounding that
savings so that the savings keep growing and compounding on and on and
on.
The funny thing about auto pilot spending, about what we call
mandatory spending, is it compounds away from you and spends so much
more. But if you get reforms, if you get savings, those savings
compound as well. This does that: permanent spending cuts to pay for
some temporary sequester relief.
Now, what is the sequester?
It is across the board, it is crude, it doesn't prioritize, it
doesn't give Congress any say-so on how money is being spent. That is a
third thing that this does that I think is pretty good.
In addition to keeping 92 percent of the sequester intact, what this
bill does is it says Congress ought to decide how money is being spent,
not the administration.
So, instead of deferring and delegating our power to the executive
branch with continuing resolution after continuing resolution, we,
Republicans and Democrats, the legislative branch, are bringing that
power back to Congress so that the people's House, so that the
legislature, as the Founders and the Constitution intended, we decide
how that money is being spent. We decide how to prioritize spending.
That is our job.
I also like the precedent that this sets. We know we are always going
to have fiscal pressure because the sequester, as they mentioned, has
not been lifted. It is still here, so it is always going to produce
pressure. And I like the precedent that we are starting here.
The precedent that we are starting here is we are not going back to
the taxpayer. We are not going to ask more from hardworking taxpayers.
We are going to ask the government to do with less.
And as we transfer permanent spending cuts for temporary relief, we
are going to have more spending cuts than we give back in relief, so we
reduce the deficit further; $85 billion in mandatory savings to pay for
$63 billion in sequester relief. That is a pretty good precedent.
I would like to add one or two more zeroes at the end of these
numbers, but I will take the direction we have right now.
The other point is this: we have been at each other's throats for a
long time. Look, I was part of the last Presidential election. We tried
defeating this President. I wish we would have.
Elections have consequences, Mr. Speaker. And I fundamentally
believe--this is just my personal opinion; I know it's a slightly
partisan thing to say--to really do what we think needs to be done, we
are going to have to win some elections. And in the meantime, let's try
and make this divided government work.
I think our constituents are expecting a little more from us. They
are expecting us to not keep shutting the
[[Page H8081]]
government down. They are expecting us to pay the bills. They are
expecting us to be accountable. They are expecting us to watch how
their dollars are being spent, and they are expecting us to find common
ground; and that is what this does.
That is why I urge all of my colleagues to support this.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time allotted to the Committee on the
Budget has expired.
The gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Pitts) and the gentleman from
California (Mr. Waxman) each will control 5 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Pennsylvania.
{time} 1745
Mr. PITTS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself 1 minute.
Mr. Speaker, every year for the last decade, doctors have faced an
ever-increasing cut to their reimbursement under the sustainable growth
rate, or SGR. And every year, Congress intervenes with a doc fix to
stop the cut from going into effect--15 times since 2003.
The Pathway for SGR Reform Act will postpone the cut, providing a 0.5
percent update to physicians for the next 3 months. While this is a
necessary and important bill, I am disappointed that legislation to
permanently repeal the flawed SGR formula will not be considered before
the end of the year. Doctors deserve to know that they will be fairly
compensated, and this annual uncertainty about reimbursements could
lead to access problems for Medicare beneficiaries.
The Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee worked for 2 years and
produced a bipartisan bill that successfully moved through the full
committee with unanimous support. I regret that this bill is not on the
floor today. However, I urge all of my colleagues to support H.J. Res.
59 to prevent this devastating cut from going into effect on January 1.
I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. WAXMAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
I want to express my disappointment that we are letting unemployment
insurance be denied to so many long-term unemployed, especially a few
days right after Christmas. We should not leave town until we have
fixed this problem.
I am going to vote for this budget because it will ease the
irrational sequestration cuts that have already done so much harm to
our country and our economy, which is the main reason that I am going
to be an ``aye'' vote on the bill.
But I am here to speak on behalf of the Energy and Commerce Committee
Democrats to express my strong support for the temporary reprieve from
the, what is called, SGR cuts, the cuts to physicians who see Medicare
patients.
Congress is making enormous strides toward the repeal and replacement
of the flawed Medicare physician payment system, but more time is going
to be needed to finish the job. As of today, all three congressional
committees of jurisdiction have marked up historic bipartisan
legislation that moves the system to one that rewards value of care
rather than volume of care.
This short-term extension that is part of this bill will allow 3
months for Congress to complete floor and conference action on this
legislation. We need to keep this process moving full steam ahead to
get a permanent solution on both the SGR as well as the other Medicare
and Medicaid extenders as quickly as possible. This temporary patch
will allow us the time to continue that work.
I do have serious concerns with both the Medicare and Medicaid
policies in the Budget Act. The Medicaid provisions will result in
delayed payments to providers for 3 months while States seek out
payment from other potential sources. This is simply bad policy.
Congress would not dream of allowing Medicare to avoid paying for
services for 3 months, yet this is the policy that we are going to
adopt for Medicaid.
The other Medicaid provision overturns a Supreme Court case which
would allow a State that would take a beneficiary's liability
settlement that is intended to compensate for lost wages or future
medical costs to pay for Medicaid services. Indeed, the language, as
drafted, suggests that the State could collect amounts even in excess
of the amount the party was liable for. This provision is
unconscionable, and I hope that when we come back, we can fix it.
Further, the extension of the sequester on Medicare--we are relieving
the sequester on the defense side and the domestic spending side under
appropriations, but we are leaving in place a sequestration of
Medicare, which means continuing cuts into the future without any
policy rationale. We are talking about cuts to doctors and hospitals
and other providers. There is no justification for it. And, in
addition, there are cuts that are going to be applied by continuing
this part of the sequestration to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid
Services of much-needed resources to carry out their many
responsibilities. This is not a good way to make law, and it will
result in some unfortunate consequences. We need to fix that again when
we come back next year.
But I expressed my support for this short-term extension of not just
the SGR but also the other expiring Medicare and Medicaid provisions,
including the TMA and QI, which are critical for low-income
populations. And I look forward to addressing the issues of SGR and the
extenders with our colleagues over the next few months to develop a
permanent solution.
With that, Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. PITTS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the distinguished
gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Upton), the chairman of the Energy and
Commerce Committee.
Mr. UPTON. I thank the chair of the Health Subcommittee for the time.
Mr. Speaker, it is important that seniors don't find a lump of coal
in their stockings for Christmas, and this fully offset package
represents access to health care for about 40 million seniors. It is
going to give seniors the peace of mind, knowing that their trusted
physicians will be there when they need them the most by securing
stable payments for physicians.
Since its passage back in 1997 SGR has bred uncertainty and
frustration. This uncertainty has left seniors in the lurch, wondering
if their doctors would be able to remain in practice and available for
checkups and consultation. This is no way to keep Americans healthy or
run a health care system, so Members on both sides of the aisle agree
that the SGR is broken.
Earlier this year, our committee, the Energy and Commerce Committee,
myself with Mr. Waxman, we voted 51-0 on H.R. 2810, which would
permanently repeal SGR and replace it with a system that promotes the
highest quality of care.
While I am disappointed that we didn't repeal SGR permanently this
year, this agreement tonight is a step forward. We are going to
continue to work at a more complete solution. This fix is fully offset,
something that full reform will also need to accomplish. I look forward
to working with my colleagues on all the committees to get it done in a
bipartisan way.
Mr. WAXMAN. Mr. Speaker, as a supporter of the Affordable Care Act, I
look forward to next year when we will see all Americans have a chance
to buy health insurance.
For those who are on Medicare, that is their health insurance
coverage, and we will only keep the promise for coverage to them if we
pay the providers who give them care, especially the physicians. That
is why I ask for an ``aye'' vote on this bill.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentleman has expired.
Mr. PITTS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the distinguished
gentlemen from Texas, Kevin Brady, subcommittee chairman.
Mr. BRADY of Texas. Mr. Speaker, first let me thank Chairman Pitts
for his leadership of the Health Subcommittee of Energy and Commerce
and toward a solution for our local physicians.
I rise today in support of the Pathway for SGR Reform. This is an
important bill because it makes sure that our local physicians who
treat our seniors don't face a drastic cut in their reimbursements on
New Year's Day.
We need a permanent solution. Just this morning the Ways and Means
Committee unanimously voted to advance a bill that begins the process
of
[[Page H8082]]
a permanent, reliable solution so our seniors can continue to see a
local doctor when they need them.
It is not easy to bridge the gap and pay for this legislation, but
until we can complete the process of a permanent solution, we had to
make some difficult choices. In particular, I want to thank the long-
term care hospitals for their strong leadership. We were able to work
with this industry to design new criteria that created efficiencies to
generate savings in the important Medicare program.
Without the strong support of leaders in the LTCH industry, this
would not have been possible. This has helped make a good bill even
better.
Mr. PITTS. Mr. Speaker, I now yield 1 minute to the gentleman from
Virginia (Mr. Griffith), a member of the Health Subcommittee.
Mr. GRIFFITH of Virginia. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for this time.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this 3-month SGR patch as it is
important to ensure that seniors will still be able to see a doctor
after January 1 if they are sick. I am firmly committed to finally
repealing and replacing the SGR, and I fully support the bipartisan
bill we advanced unanimously out of the Energy and Commerce Committee
for this purpose. Our next step is to find a common House position with
our friends on Ways and Means to finally say good-bye to the SGR.
Most importantly, I am glad to see that this deal extends the
Medicare-Dependent Hospital and Low-Volume programs, which are critical
for our rural hospitals in southwest Virginia. If these programs are
not extended, Virginia hospitals in total would lose more than $10
million in Medicare reimbursements next year at a time when they are
already being hit hard by new costs and deep cuts from ObamaCare.
At least eight hospitals in my district benefit from these two
essential programs that keep the doors open in some economically
distressed areas and provide health care access to rural constituents.
For that reason, I am proud to support this legislation and stand up
for rural health care and our seniors.
Mr. PITTS. Mr. Speaker, may I inquire of the time remaining on each
side?
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from Pennsylvania has 1 minute
remaining, and the gentleman from California's time has expired.
Mr. PITTS. Mr. Speaker, I am prepared to close and yield myself the
balance of the time.
Mr. Speaker, this is very important bipartisan legislation. It
includes the 3-month bridge for the SGR, where we can continue to work
in a bipartisan manner to come up with the final version of repeal for
the sustainable growth rate. I urge my colleagues to support this
legislation.
I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. WELCH. Mr. Speaker, I rise to clarify the intent of the Not-For-
Profit Loan Servicing Provisions of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013
as it relates to students and access to higher education.
The purpose of the language does not seek to undo the ability of not-
for profit loan servicers to continue to contract with the Department
of Education. It is critical that this point be made clear, given the
importance of Not-For-Profit servicers to families and students.
College education is a ticket to the middle class and the foundation
of our economy. Barriers to college exist not only in cost, but in the
reality that student financial aid is a complex and intimidating
system. Many students aspiring to higher education will cut their
dreams short simply because they do not receive the necessary support
to navigate paying for college.
Not-For-Profit lenders have a strong record of providing this support
for students and their families, which has meant that many hundreds of
thousands more American students have gone to college.
More recently, Not-For-Profit loan servicers have received higher
customer satisfaction scores during their first year of servicing in
the Federal student aid program than any of the four national servicers
during their first year.
In 2008, after Congress moved to direct lending, Not-For-Profit
servicers were restricted in the number of accounts they were allowed
to service. But in 2010, in recognition that these servicers provided
very high quality customer service and provided programs to help many
young people aspire to college, Congress required the Department of
Education to contract with Not-For-Profit servicers.
Over the past two years, Not-For-Profit loan servicers have invested
tens of millions of dollars to meet and exceed Federal requirements and
to help the Federal Government reach important access goals.
The Vermont Student Assistance Corporation (VSAC) has only been
servicing Federal loans for nine months. This past quarter they
received the highest customer satisfaction score of all Not-For-Profit
servicers and a score that was equal to or higher than three of the
four national servicers. Similarly the independent assessment of the
Department of Education's employee satisfaction with the quality of
VSAC's work gave VSAC a higher rating than three of the four national
servicers. More importantly, in less than a year, they have helped tens
of thousands of the Department's borrowers who were behind in their
payments get back on their feet.
Nothing in the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013 authorizes the Secretary
of Education to terminate their contracts or in any way prevent the
Not-For-Profits from competing head to head against the national
servicers. I hope that the Secretary of Education will use this
opportunity to allow the Not-For-Profit servicers to continue their
important work supporting students and families as they seek higher
education. I also hope Not-For-Profit servicers will have access to
newly originated accounts and the ability to compete with the national
servicers on an equal footing.
Ms. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in
support of extending Federal unemployment insurance (UI) as part of a
comprehensive and bipartisan budget agreement. Without Congressional
action, 1.3 million Americans will lose access to vital UI benefits on
December 28. Within the first half of next year, an additional 1.9
million Americans will lose access to Federal unemployment insurance.
As Congress heads home for the holidays, it is important that we do
not leave millions of Americans without a social safety net to protect
against long-term job loss. Long-term unemployment as a percentage of
the unemployed still remains around 37 percent, meaning these
individuals will be left without any support after their state
unemployment insurance expires. Further, failure to extend the Federal
Emergency Unemployment Compensation program could cost the U.S. economy
an additional 240,000 jobs.
My home State of Texas is not immune from these expiring benefits.
Once the UI benefits expire, 68,900 unemployed workers in Texas will
lose access to Federal unemployment insurance. Within the first six
months of 2014, an additional 106,900 workers will also lose these
benefits.
Mr. Speaker, as long as millions of unemployed workers struggle to
find a job, Congress is doing a great disservice to this country by
allowing Federal unemployment insurance to expire. Federal unemployment
insurance serves as a vital lifeline for job seekers and their
families. The very least we could do for these workers as we enter the
holiday season is to provide them with the support they need to weather
these challenging economic times.
Mr. BLUMENAUER, Mr. Speaker, I very reluctantly vote for H.J. Res 59,
having been quoted accurately that it is a D+ piece of legislation.
It sadly represents what Congress has become. It is now a victory to
avoid another government shutdown. It is a victory to temporarily
prevent application of the Sustainable Growth Rate that would penalize
medical providers and our senior citizens. It is the least we could do
to find a tiny bit of budget breathing room so that it may be possible
for the appropriations process to resume again.
It is frustrating that, at a time when there are still many unmet
needs of our citizens and while our economy is sputtering, people are
celebrating legislation that doesn't damage the economy more. It is sad
that it has come to this.
I am hopeful, however, that this might serve as a point of departure
over the next three months to be able to face the realities of what
America needs.
I, for one, will continue working for the big picture, on the three
bills that I have introduced to help rebuild and renew America and on
arguing for a grander bargain, rather than the least that we can do. I
will fight to build on the platform of healthcare reform so that we get
medical providers off the SGR merry-go-round, instead moving towards
the promise of healthcare reform. It is shameful that Congress is
willing to cut food stamps yet give money to wealthy farmers, while
ignoring the plight of the long term unemployed, illustrating the gap
between what the American public expects and what we should do. I am
hopeful that the new year will be more constructive.
In the meantime, we will celebrate avoiding another damaging
government shutdown and we will celebrate not having a destructive
resolution on the floor muddying diplomacy with Iran. I suppose in the
holiday spirit we should be thankful for what we can get and then usher
this least productive session in Congressional history out of town.
[[Page H8083]]
Mr. DINGELL. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.J. Res. 59.
While this legislation is far from perfect, I will reluctantly
support it. It is a small step forward towards funding our government
and giving the American people a degree of certainty. In addition, I
believe that the bipartisan and bicameral fashion in which it was
crafted is a path that we absolutely must pursue in order to move this
country forward. I remind my colleagues that compromise is not a dirty
word; rather it is the cornerstone of our democracy.
Again, this measure is not perfect. I have genuine and very serious
concerns regarding certain aspects of the bill, namely a lack of
extension of unemployment benefits, its changes to aspects of pension
contributions of Federal employees, as well as its revision of cost-of-
living calculations for military retirees.
But I cannot allow the perfect to be the enemy of the good, and I
thus will support this compromise in order to move this measure forward
and continue the much needed debate over what we must do to keep our
government up and running and best serving the American people. The
legislation also includes a three-month fix of the Sustainable Growth
Rate, and it remains my hope that this will allow us enough time to
work towards a permanent, bipartisan solution.
While House Republicans have already put the solvency of our Nation's
finances in turmoil this year by putting politics ahead of people and
shutting down our government for seventeen days in October, I believe
we must not allow that to happen again, and Senator Murray and
Representative Ryan have taken this small but productive step towards
doing just that today. It is my hope that Majority Leader Reid will
have the Senate take up this legislation--including an extension of
emergency unemployment benefits--before December 28 in order to prevent
some 1.3 million Americans from losing their benefits just one week
after Christmas.
At its core, this compromise is a step in the right direction to
averting the harmful effects of the sequester, restoring a degree of
economic certainty, and beginning to return this Congress to a time
where crossing the aisle was rightly seen as an admirable and necessary
act to bring about compromise, tackle the great issues of the day, and
best serve the proud people of this Nation.
Mr. BACHUS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the Bipartisan
Budget Control Act of 2013. Allow me to thank Chairman Ryan for his
hard work in producing this important agreement. It is my belief that
we must begin to address our debt and deficit problem on a bipartisan
basis.
To that end, I would like to briefly discuss Section 203 of the
Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013. This section establishes a program under
which the Secretary of Commerce restricts access to the information
contained in the Death Master File for a three-year period beginning on
the date of the individual's death, except to persons who are certified
under a program to be established by the Secretary of Commerce.
The purpose of this provision of the law is to prevent misuse of the
Death Master File that leads to waste, fraud and abuse committed
against the Internal Revenue Service and other government agencies. The
law is designed to achieve this purpose by restricting access to
information contained in the Death Master File for three years after
the date of a person's death. In fact, my office has been contacted by
a woman who has been struggling with basic functions of life such as
opening a bank account or obtaining a driver's license because the
Death Master File proclaims her dead when she is in fact alive. It is
my firm belief that in addition to this step the Social Security
Administration must improve its systems to ensure that death
information is accurately updated on the Death Master File.
At the same time, the law also is designed to ensure that persons,
companies, financial institutions, government agencies, and other types
of entities continue to have access to the DMF in order to facilitate
legitimate commerce and business purposes.
The law requires the Department of Commerce to set up a program to
certify entities that are permitted access to the Death Master File.
The intent is that the certification criteria contained in the law
encompass the range of important functions that the DMF helps to
facilitate.
The use of the Death Master File has important purposes such as
preventing fraud, authenticating individuals, and preventing
unauthorized transactions. Using the Death Master File for these
important purposes helps to protect consumers from fraud and identity
theft. Businesses and government agencies need access to the Death
Master File to carry out these and other legitimate responsibilities.
Mr. CASTRO. Mr. Speaker, I'm encouraged to see the spirit of
bipartisanship at work on this budget deal displayed. This bill
mitigates the effects of sequestration and helps prevent another
government shutdown. I support H.J. Res. 59 because it offers relief
from the irresponsible sequestration cuts. Thousands of San Antonians
were furloughed for more than a week because of sequestration and then
found themselves out of a job again in October for almost two weeks as
a result of the government shutdown. However, this bill is not without
flaws. I am deeply concerned on how these changes will affect military
pension benefits. I am hopeful that in the coming years Congress will
continue to work together toward a sensible budget.
Mr. NEAL. Mr. Speaker, Section 203 in the Bipartisan Budget Act
restricts access to the Social Security Administration's Death Master
File (DMF).
This provision requires the Secretary of Commerce to create a program
to restrict access to the information contained in the DMF for a three-
year period after an individual's death. Under this program, only
individuals that are certified by the Secretary to have a legitimate
need for the information and agree to maintain the information under
safeguards may access DMF information.
In implementing this section, the Department of Commerce in
promulgating regulations for the certification program should provide
sufficient time for legitimate current users of DMF information to
comment on the regulations, especially as it relates to the timing of
the effectiveness of this Section and as it relates to the authority to
release the DMF to the public.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. All time for debate has expired.
Pursuant to House Resolution 438, the previous question is ordered.
The question is on the motion offered by the gentleman from Wisconsin
(Mr. Ryan).
The question was taken; and the Speaker pro tempore announced that
the ayes appeared to have it.
Recorded Vote
Mr. PITTS. Mr. Speaker, I demand a recorded vote.
A recorded vote was ordered.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, this 15-
minute vote on the motion offered by the gentleman from Wisconsin will
be followed by a 5-minute vote on the motion to suspend the rules and
adopt House Resolution 441.
The vote was taken by electronic device, and there were--ayes 332,
noes 94, not voting 7, as follows:
[Roll No. 640]
AYES--332
Aderholt
Amodei
Andrews
Bachus
Barber
Barletta
Barr
Barrow (GA)
Beatty
Becerra
Benishek
Bera (CA)
Bilirakis
Bishop (NY)
Bishop (UT)
Black
Blackburn
Blumenauer
Boehner
Bonamici
Boustany
Brady (PA)
Brady (TX)
Braley (IA)
Brooks (IN)
Brownley (CA)
Buchanan
Bucshon
Bustos
Butterfield
Calvert
Camp
Campbell
Cantor
Capito
Capps
Capuano
Cardenas
Carney
Carson (IN)
Carter
Cartwright
Cassidy
Castor (FL)
Chaffetz
Clark (MA)
Clay
Cleaver
Clyburn
Coble
Cohen
Cole
Collins (GA)
Collins (NY)
Conaway
Connolly
Cook
Cooper
Costa
Courtney
Cramer
Crenshaw
Crowley
Cuellar
Culberson
Cummings
Davis (CA)
Davis, Rodney
DeGette
Delaney
DelBene
Denham
Dent
Deutch
Diaz-Balart
Dingell
Doggett
Doyle
Duckworth
Duffy
Edwards
Ellmers
Engel
Enyart
Eshoo
Esty
Farenthold
Farr
Fattah
Fincher
Fitzpatrick
Fleischmann
Fleming
Flores
Forbes
Fortenberry
Foster
Foxx
Frelinghuysen
Gabbard
Gallego
Garamendi
Garcia
Gerlach
Gibbs
Gibson
Goodlatte
Granger
Graves (GA)
Graves (MO)
Grayson
Green, Al
Green, Gene
Griffin (AR)
Griffith (VA)
Grimm
Guthrie
Gutierrez
Hahn
Hanna
Harper
Hartzler
Hastings (FL)
Hastings (WA)
Heck (WA)
Hensarling
Herrera Beutler
Higgins
Himes
Hinojosa
Honda
Horsford
Hudson
Huffman
Huizenga (MI)
Hultgren
Hunter
Hurt
Israel
Issa
Jackson Lee
Jeffries
Jenkins
Johnson (GA)
Johnson (OH)
Johnson, E. B.
Joyce
Kaptur
Keating
Kelly (IL)
Kelly (PA)
Kennedy
Kildee
Kilmer
Kind
King (NY)
Kinzinger (IL)
Kirkpatrick
Kline
Kuster
LaMalfa
Lamborn
Lance
Langevin
Lankford
Larsen (WA)
Larson (CT)
Latham
Latta
Lewis
Lipinski
LoBiondo
Loebsack
Lofgren
Lowenthal
Lowey
Lucas
Luetkemeyer
Lujan Grisham (NM)
Lujan, Ben Ray (NM)
Lynch
Maffei
Maloney, Carolyn
Maloney, Sean
Marino
Matheson
Matsui
McAllister
McCarthy (CA)
McCaul
McCollum
McDermott
McGovern
McHenry
McKeon
McMorris Rodgers
McNerney
Meehan
Meeks
Meng
Messer
Mica
Michaud
Miller (FL)
Miller (MI)
Miller, Gary
Miller, George
Moore
Moran
Murphy (FL)
Murphy (PA)
Nadler
Napolitano
Neal
Noem
Nolan
Nunes
Nunnelee
[[Page H8084]]
O'Rourke
Owens
Palazzo
Pascrell
Pastor (AZ)
Paulsen
Payne
Pelosi
Perlmutter
Perry
Peters (CA)
Peters (MI)
Peterson
Petri
Pittenger
Pitts
Polis
Price (GA)
Price (NC)
Quigley
Rahall
Rangel
Reed
Reichert
Renacci
Ribble
Rice (SC)
Rigell
Roby
Roe (TN)
Rogers (AL)
Rogers (KY)
Rogers (MI)
Rokita
Rooney
Ros-Lehtinen
Roskam
Ross
Rothfus
Roybal-Allard
Royce
Ruiz
Runyan
Ruppersberger
Ryan (OH)
Ryan (WI)
Sarbanes
Schiff
Schneider
Schock
Schwartz
Scott (VA)
Scott, Austin
Scott, David
Sensenbrenner
Serrano
Sessions
Sewell (AL)
Shea-Porter
Sherman
Shimkus
Shuster
Simpson
Sinema
Sires
Smith (NJ)
Smith (TX)
Smith (WA)
Southerland
Speier
Stewart
Stivers
Stutzman
Swalwell (CA)
Takano
Terry
Thompson (CA)
Thompson (PA)
Thornberry
Tiberi
Tierney
Tipton
Titus
Tonko
Tsongas
Turner
Upton
Valadao
Van Hollen
Vargas
Veasey
Vela
Wagner
Walberg
Walden
Walorski
Walz
Wasserman Schultz
Waxman
Welch
Westmoreland
Whitfield
Williams
Wilson (FL)
Wilson (SC)
Wittman
Wolf
Womack
Woodall
Yarmuth
Yoder
Yoho
Young (AK)
Young (IN)
NOES--94
Amash
Bachmann
Barton
Bass
Bentivolio
Bridenstine
Brooks (AL)
Broun (GA)
Burgess
Chabot
Chu
Cicilline
Clarke (NY)
Coffman
Conyers
Cotton
Crawford
Daines
DeFazio
DeLauro
DeSantis
DesJarlais
Duncan (SC)
Duncan (TN)
Ellison
Frankel (FL)
Franks (AZ)
Fudge
Gardner
Garrett
Gingrey (GA)
Gohmert
Gosar
Gowdy
Grijalva
Hall
Hanabusa
Harris
Heck (NV)
Holding
Holt
Hoyer
Huelskamp
Johnson, Sam
Jones
Jordan
King (IA)
Kingston
Labrador
Lee (CA)
Levin
Long
Lummis
Marchant
Massie
McClintock
McIntyre
McKinley
Meadows
Mullin
Mulvaney
Negrete McLeod
Neugebauer
Nugent
Olson
Pallone
Pearce
Pingree (ME)
Pocan
Poe (TX)
Pompeo
Posey
Richmond
Rohrabacher
Salmon
Sanchez, Linda T.
Sanchez, Loretta
Sanford
Scalise
Schakowsky
Schrader
Schweikert
Slaughter
Smith (MO)
Smith (NE)
Stockman
Thompson (MS)
Velazquez
Visclosky
Waters
Watt
Weber (TX)
Webster (FL)
Wenstrup
NOT VOTING--7
Bishop (GA)
Brown (FL)
Castro (TX)
Davis, Danny
McCarthy (NY)
Radel
Rush
{time} 1825
Messrs. HALL, LONG, Ms. HANABUSA, Mrs. BACHMANN, Ms. SLAUGHTER,
Messrs. GARRETT and CONYERS changed their vote from ``aye'' to ``no.''
Messrs. O'ROURKE and FINCHER changed their vote from ``no'' to
``aye.''
So the motion to recede and concur was agreed to.
The result of the vote was announced as above recorded.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
____________________