[Constitution, Jefferson's Manual, and the Rules of the House of Representatives, 117th Congress]
[117th Congress]
[House Document 116-177]
[Legislate Procedures Enacted in Law]
[Pages 1321-1328]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]


29. Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act [2 U.S.C. 904(i), 

                               907a-907c]



[[Page 1322]]


SEC. 254. REPORTS AND ORDERS.
* * * * *
  These excerpts are provided for quick reference. They include the 
provisions of the Act that relate directly to House procedure. Sections 
258-258C primarily provide for reporting and consideration of 
legislation in the Senate; therefore, only portions of those sections 
are carried here.

  (i) Low-Growth Report.--At any time, CBO shall notify the Congress 
if--

          (1) during the period consisting of the quarter during which 

        such notification is given, the quarter preceding such 

        notification and the 4 quarters following such notification, CBO 

        or OMB has determined that real economic growth is projected or 

        estimated to be less than zero with respect to each of any 2 

        consecutive quarters within such period; or

          (2) the most recent of the Department of Commerce's advance 

        preliminary or final reports of actual real economic growth 

        indicate that the rate of real economic growth for each of the 

        most recently reported quarter and the immediately preceding 


* * * * *
SEC. 258. SUSPENSION IN THE EVENT OF WAR OR LOW GROWTH.
        quarter is less than one percent.

  (a) Procedures in the Event of a Low-Growth Report.--

          (1) Trigger.--Whenever CBO issues a low-growth report under 

        section 254(i), the Majority Leader of the House of 

        Representatives may, and the Majority Leader of the Senate 

        shall, introduce a joint resolution (in the form set forth in 

        paragraph (2)) declaring that the conditions specified in 

        section 254(i) are met and suspending the relevant provisions of 

        this title, titles III and VI of the Congressional Budget Act of 

        1974, and section 1103 of title 31, United States Code.

          (2) Form of joint resolution.--

                  (A) The matter after the resolving clause in any joint 

                resolution introduced pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be 

                as follows: ``That the Congress declares that the 

                conditions specified in section 254(j) of the Balanced 

                Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 are 

                met, and the implementation of the Congressional Budget 

                and Impoundment Control Act of 1974, chapter 11 of title 

                31, United States Code, and part C of the Balanced 

                Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 are 


[[Page 1323]]

                modified as described in section

                258(b) of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit 

                Control Act of 1985.''.

                  (B) The title of the joint resolution shall be ``Joint 

                resolution suspending certain provisions of law pursuant 

                to section 258(a)(2) of the Balanced Budget and 

                Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985.''; and the joint 

                resolution shall not contain any preamble.

          (3) Committee action.--Each joint resolution introduced 

        pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be referred to the appropriate 

        committees of the House of Representatives or the Committee on 

        the Budget of the Senate, as the case may be; and such Committee 

        shall report the joint resolution to its House without amendment 

        on or before the fifth day on which such House is in session 

        after the date on which the joint resolution is introduced. If 

        the Committee fails to report the joint resolution within the 

        five-day period referred to in the preceding sentence, it shall 

        be automatically discharged from further consideration of the 

        joint resolution, and the joint resolution shall be placed on 

        the appropriate calendar.

          (4) Consideration of joint resolution.--(A) A vote on final 

        passage of a joint resolution reported to the Senate or 

        discharged pursuant to paragraph (3) shall be taken on or before 

        the close of the fifth calendar day of session after the date on 

        which the joint resolution is reported or after the Committee 

        has been discharged from further consideration of the joint 

        resolution. If prior to the passage by one House of a joint 

        resolution of that House, that House receives the same joint 

        resolution from the other House, then--

                  (i) the procedure in that House shall be the same as 

                if no such joint resolution had been received from the 

                other House, but

                  (ii) the vote on final passage shall be on the joint 

                resolution of the other House.

        When the joint resolution is agreed to, the Clerk of the House 

        of Representatives (in the case of a House joint resolution 

        agreed to in the House of Representatives) or the Secretary of 

        the Senate (in the case of a Senate joint resolution agreed to 

        in the Senate) shall cause the joint resolution to be engrossed, 


[[Page 1324]]

        certified,

        and transmitted to the other House of the Congress as soon as 


        practicable.
* * * * *

  (b) Suspension of Sequestration Procedures.--Upon the enactment of a 
declaration of war or a joint resolution described in subsection (a)--

          (1) the subsequent issuance of any sequestration report or any 

        sequestration order is precluded;

          (2) sections 302(f), 310(d), 311(a), and title VI of the 

        Congressional Budget Act of 1974 are suspended; and

          (3) section 1103 of title 31, United States Code, is 


        suspended.

  (c) Restoration of Sequestration Procedures.--(1) In the event of a 
suspension of sequestration procedures due to a declaration of war, 
then, effective with the first fiscal year that begins in the session 
after the state of war is concluded by Senate ratification of the 
necessary treaties, the provisions of subsection (b) triggered by that 
declaration of war are no longer effective.


SEC. 258A. MODIFICATION OF PRESIDENTIAL ORDER.
  (2) In the event of a suspension of sequestration procedures due to 
the enactment of a joint resolution described in subsection (a), then, 
effective with regard to the first fiscal year beginning at least 12 
months after the enactment of that resolution, the provisions of 
subsection (b) triggered by that resolution are no longer effective.



[[Page 1325]]


  (a) Introduction of Joint Resolution.--At any time after the Director 
of OMB issues a final sequestration report under section 254 for a 
fiscal year, but before the close of the twentieth calendar day of the 
session of Congress beginning after the date of issuance of such report, 
the majority leader of either House of Congress may introduce a joint 
resolution which contains provisions directing the President to modify 
the most recent order issued under section 254 or provide an alternative 
to reduce the deficit for such fiscal year. After the introduction of 
the first such joint resolution in either House of Congress in any 
calendar year, then no other joint resolution introduced in such House 
in such calendar year shall be subject to the procedures set forth in 
this section.


  (b) Procedures for Consideration of Joint Resolutions.--
* * * * *

          (7) Resolution from other house.--If, before the passage by 

        the Senate of a joint resolution of the Senate introduced under 

        subsection (a), the Senate receives from the House of 

        Representatives a joint resolution introduced under subsection 

        (a), then the following procedures shall apply:

                  (A) The joint resolution of the House of 

                Representatives shall not be referred to a committee and 

                shall be placed on the calendar.

                  (B) With respect to a joint resolution introduced 

                under subsection (a) in the Senate--

                        (i) the procedure in the Senate shall be the 

                    same as if no joint resolution had been received 

                    from the House; but

                        (ii)(I) the vote on final passage shall be on 

                    the joint resolution of the House if it is identical 

                    to the joint resolution then pending for passage in 

                    the Senate; or

                        (II) if the joint resolution from the House is 

                    not identical to the joint resolution then pending 

                    for passage in the Senate and the Senate then passes 

                    the Senate joint resolution, the Senate shall be 

                    considered to have passed the House joint resolution 

                    as amended by the text of the Senate joint 

                    resolution.

                  (C) Upon disposition of the joint resolution received 

                from the House, it shall no longer be in order to 

                consider the resolution originated in the Senate.

          (8) Senate action on house resolution.--If the Senate receives 

        from the House of Representatives a joint resolution introduced 

        under subsection (a) after the Senate has disposed of a Senate 

        originated resolution which is identical to the House passed 

        joint resolution, the action of the Senate with regard to the 

        disposition of the Senate originated joint resolution shall be 

        deemed to be the action of the Senate with regard to the House 

        originated joint resolution. If it is not identical to the House 

        passed joint resolution, then the Senate shall be considered to 

        have passed the joint resolution of the House as amended by the 



[[Page 1326]]


SEC. 258B. FLEXIBILITY AMONG DEFENSE PROGRAMS, PROJECTS, AND ACTIVITIES.
        text of the Senate joint resolution.


  (a) Subject to subsections (b), (c), and (d), new budget authority and 
unobligated balances for any programs, projects, or activities within 
major functional category 050 (other than a military personnel account) 
may be further reduced beyond the amount specified in an order issued by 
the President under section 254 for such fiscal year. To the extent such 
additional reductions are made and result in additional outlay 
reductions, the President may provide for lesser reductions in new 
budget authority and unobligated balances for other programs, projects, 
or activities within major functional category 050 for such fiscal year, 
but only to the extent that the resulting outlay increases do not exceed 
the additional outlay reductions, and no such program, project, or 
activity may be increased above the level actually made available by law 
in appropriation Acts (before taking sequestration into account). In 
making calculations under this subsection, the President shall use 
account outlay rates that are identical to those used in the report by 
the Director of OMB under section 254.


  (b) No actions taken by the President under subsection (a) for a 
fiscal year may result in a domestic base closure or realignment that 
would otherwise be subject to section 2687 of title 10, United States 
Code.

  (c) The President may not exercise the authority provided by this 
paragraph for a fiscal year unless--

          (1) the President submits a single report to Congress 

        specifying, for each account, the detailed changes proposed to 

        be made for such fiscal year pursuant to this section;

          (2) that report is submitted within 5 calendar days of the 

        start of the next session of Congress; and

          (3) a joint resolution affirming or modifying the changes 

        proposed by the President pursuant to this paragraph becomes 


        law.


  (d) Within 5 calendar days of session after the President submits a 
report to Congress under subsection (c)(1) for a fiscal year, the 
majority leader of each House of Congress shall (by request) introduce a 
joint resolution which contains provisions affirming the changes 
proposed by the President pursuant to this paragraph.


[[Page 1327]]

as follows: ``That the report of the President as submitted on [Insert 
Date] under section 258B is hereby approved.''.
  (e)(1) The matter after the resolving clause in any joint resolution 
introduced pursuant to subsection (d) shall be

  (2) The title of the joint resolution shall be ``Joint resolution 
approving the report of the President submitted under section 258B of 
the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985.''.


* * * * *

  (3) Such joint resolution shall not contain any preamble.

  (l) If, before the passage by the Senate of a joint resolution of the 
Senate introduced under subsection (d), the Senate receives from the 
House of Representatives a joint resolution introduced under subsection 
(d), then the following procedures shall apply:

          (1) The joint resolution of the House of Representatives shall 

        not be referred to a committee.

          (2) With respect to a joint resolution introduced under 

        subsection (d) in the Senate--

                  (A) the procedure in the Senate shall be the same as 

                if no joint resolution had been received from the House; 

                but

                  (B)(i) the vote on final passage shall be on the joint 

                resolution of the House if it is identical to the joint 

                resolution then pending for passage in the Senate; or

                  (ii) if the joint resolution from the House is not 

                identical to the joint resolution then pending for 

                passage in the Senate and the Senate then passes the 

                Senate joint resolution, the Senate shall be considered 

                to have passed the House joint resolution as amended by 

                the text of the Senate joint resolution.

          (3) Upon disposition of the joint resolution received from the 

        House, it shall no longer be in order to consider the joint 


        resolution originated in the Senate.


[[Page 1328]]

House as amended by the text of the Senate joint resolution.
  (m) If the Senate receives from the House of Representatives a joint 
resolution introduced under subsection (d) after the Senate has disposed 
of a Senate originated joint resolution which is identical to the House 
passed joint resolution, the action of the Senate with regard to the 
disposition of the Senate originated joint resolution shall be deemed to 
be the action of the Senate with regard to the House originated joint 
resolution. If it is not identical to the House passed joint resolution, 
then the Senate shall be considered to have passed the joint resolution 
of the




                                                           Sec. 1130(30)