To amend the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to simplify annual concurrent resolutions on the budget and to budget for emergencies.

February 16, 2005

Mr. BARRETT of South Carolina (for himself and Mr. GREEN of Wisconsin) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Budget, and in addition to the Committee on Rules, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

To amend the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to simplify annual concurrent resolutions on the budget and to budget for emergencies.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the `Emergency Spending Control Act of 2005'.

TITLE I--ONE-PAGE BUDGET RESOLUTIONS

SEC. 101. ONE-PAGE BUDGET RESOLUTIONS.

(a) Content of Annual Concurrent Resolutions on the Budget- Section 301(a)(4) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 is amended to read as follows:

`(4) subtotals of new budget authority and outlays for nondefense discretionary spending, defense discretionary spending, direct spending (excluding interest), interest, and emergencies (for the reserve fund in section 316(b) and for military operations in section 316(c));'.

(b) Additional Matters in Concurrent Resolution- Section 301(b) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 is amended as follows:

(1) Strike paragraphs (2), (4), and (6) through (9).

(2) After paragraph (1), insert the following new paragraph:

`(2) require such other congressional procedures, relating to the budget, as may be appropriate to carry out the purposes of this Act;'.

(3) At the end of paragraph (3), insert `and' and redesignate paragraph (5) as paragraph (4) and in such paragraph strike the semicolon and insert a period.

(c) Required Contents of Report- Section 301(e)(2) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 is amended as follows:

(1) Redesignate subparagraphs (A), (B), (C), (D), (E), and (F) as subparagraphs (B), (C), (E), (F), and (G), respectively.

(2) Before subparagraph (B) (as redesignated), insert the following new subparagraph:

`(A) new budget authority and outlays for each major functional category, based on allocations of the total levels set forth pursuant to subsection (a)(1);'.

(3) In subparagraph (C) (as redesignated), strike `mandatory' and insert `direct spending'.

(d) Additional Contents of Report- Section 301(e)(3) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 is amended by striking `and' at the end of subparagraph (D), by striking the period and inserting `; and' at the end of subparagraph (E), and by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:

`(F) reconciliation directives described in section 310.'.

(e) President's Budget Submission to the Congress- (1) The first two sentences of section 1105(a) of title 31, United States Code, are amended to read as follows:

`On or after the first Monday in January but not later than the first Monday in February of each year the President shall submit a budget of the United States Government for the following fiscal year which shall set forth the following levels:

`(A) totals of new budget authority and outlays;

`(B) total Federal revenues and the amount, if any, by which the aggregate level of Federal revenues should be increased or decreased by bills and resolutions to be reported by the appropriate committees;

`(C) the surplus or deficit in the budget;

`(D) subtotals of new budget authority and outlays for nondefense discretionary spending, defense discretionary spending, direct spending (excluding interest), interest, and emergencies (for the reserve fund in section 316(b) and for military operations in section 316(c)); and

`(E) the public debt.

Each budget submission shall include a budget message and summary and supporting information and, as a separately delineated statement, the levels required in the preceding sentence for at least each of the 4 ensuing fiscal years.'.

(2) The third sentence of section 1105(a) of title 31, United States Code, is amended by inserting `submission' after `budget'.

(f) Conforming Amendments to Section 310 Regarding Reconciliation Directives- (1) Section 310(a) of such Act is amended by striking `A' and inserting `The joint explanatory statement accompanying the conference report on a'.

(2) The first sentence of section 310(b) of such Act is amended by striking `If' and inserting `If the joint explanatory statement accompanying the conference report on'.

(3) Section 310(c)(1) of such Act is amended by inserting `the joint explanatory statement accompanying the conference report on' after `pursuant to'.

TITLE II--EMERGENCIES

SEC. 201. REPEAL OF ADJUSTMENTS FOR EMERGENCIES.

(a) Elimination of Emergency Designation- Sections 251(b)(2)(A), 252(e), and 252(d)(4)(B) of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 are repealed.

(b) Elimination of Adjustments- Section 314(b) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 is amended by striking paragraph (1) and by redesignating paragraphs (2) through (5) as paragraphs (1) through (4), respectively.

(c) Conforming Amendment- Clause 2 of rule XXI of the Rules of the House of Representatives is amended by repealing paragraph (e) and by redesignating paragraph (f) as paragraph (e).

SEC. 202. OMB EMERGENCY CRITERIA.

Section 3 of the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 is amended by adding at the end the following new paragraph:

`(11)(A) The term `emergency' means an underlying situation that--

`(i) requires new budget authority and outlays (or new budget authority and the outlays flowing therefrom) for the prevention or mitigation of, or response to, loss of life or property, or a threat to national security; and

`(ii) is unanticipated.

`(B) As used in subparagraph (A), the term `unanticipated' means that the situation is--

`(i) sudden, which means quickly coming into being or not building up over time;

`(ii) urgent, which means a pressing and compelling need requiring immediate action;

`(iii) unforeseen, which means not predicted or anticipated as an emerging need; and

`(iv) temporary, which means not of a permanent duration.'.

SEC. 203. DEVELOPMENT OF GUIDELINES FOR APPLICATION OF EMERGENCY DEFINITION.

Not later than 5 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the chairmen of the Committees on the Budget (in consultation with the President) shall, after consulting with the chairmen of the Committees on Appropriations and applicable authorizing committees of their respective Houses and the Directors of the Congressional Budget Office and the Office of Management and Budget, jointly publish in the Congressional Record guidelines for application of the definition of emergency set forth in section 3(11) of the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974.

SEC. 204. RESERVE FUND FOR EMERGENCIES IN PRESIDENT'S BUDGET.

Section 1105(f) of title 31, United States Code is amended by adding at the end the following new sentences: `Such budget submission shall also comply with the requirements of subsections (b) and (c) of section 316 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 and, in the case of any budget authority requested for an emergency, such submission shall include a detailed justification of why such emergency is an emergency within the meaning of section 3(11) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974.'.

SEC. 205. BUDGETING FOR EMERGENCIES.

(a) Emergencies- Title III of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 is amended by adding at the end the following new section:

`EMERGENCIES

`SEC. 316. (a) Adjustments-

`(1) IN GENERAL- After the reporting of a bill or joint resolution or the submission of a conference report thereon that provides budget authority for any emergency as identified pursuant to subsection (d) that is not covered by subsection (c)--

`(A) the chairman of the Committee on the Budget of the House of Representatives or the Senate shall determine and certify, pursuant to the guidelines referred to in section 203 of the , the portion (if any) of the amount so specified that is for an emergency within the meaning of section 3(11); and

`(B) such chairman shall make the adjustment set forth in paragraph (2) for the amount of new budget authority (or outlays) in that measure and the outlays flowing from that budget authority.

`(2) MATTERS TO BE ADJUSTED- The adjustments referred to in paragraph (1) are to be made to the allocations made pursuant to the appropriate concurrent resolution on the budget pursuant to section 302(a) and shall be in an amount not to exceed the amount reserved for emergencies pursuant to the requirements of subsection (b).

`(b) Reserve Fund for Nonmilitary Emergencies- The amount set forth in the reserve fund for emergencies for budget authority and outlays for a fiscal year pursuant to section 301(a)(4) shall equal--

`(1) the average of the enacted levels of budget authority for emergencies (other than those covered by subsection (c)) in the 5 fiscal years preceding the current year; and

`(2) the average of the levels of outlays for emergencies in the 5 fiscal years preceding the current year flowing from the budget authority referred to in paragraph (1), but only in the fiscal year for which such budget authority first becomes available for obligation.

`(c) Treatment of Emergencies to Fund Certain Military Operations- Whenever the Committee on Appropriations reports any bill or joint resolution that provides budget authority for any emergency that is a threat to national security and the funding of which carries out a military operation authorized by a declaration of war or a joint resolution authorizing the use of military force (or economic assistance funding in furtherance of such operation) and the report accompanying that bill or joint resolution, pursuant to subsection (d), identifies any provision that increases outlays or provides budget authority (and the outlays flowing therefrom) for such emergency, the enactment of which would cause the total amount of budget authority or outlays provided for emergencies for the budget year in the joint resolution on the budget (pursuant to section 301(a)(4)) to be exceeded:

`(1) Such bill or joint resolution shall be referred to the Committee on the Budget of the House or the Senate, as the case may be, with instructions to report it without amendment, other than that specified in paragraph (2), within 5 legislative days of the day in which it is reported from the originating committee. If the Committee on the Budget of either House fails to report a bill or joint resolution referred to it under this subparagraph within such 5-day period, the committee shall be automatically discharged from further consideration of such bill or joint resolution and such bill or joint resolution shall be placed on the appropriate calendar.

`(2) An amendment to such a bill or joint resolution referred to in this subsection shall only consist of an exemption from section 251 of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 of all or any part of the provisions that provide budget authority (and the outlays flowing therefrom) for such emergency if the committee determines, pursuant to the guidelines referred to in section 203 of the Emergency Spending Control Act of 2005, that such budget authority is for an emergency within the meaning of section 3(11).

`(3) If such a bill or joint resolution is reported with an amendment specified in paragraph (2) by the Committee on the Budget of the House of Representatives or the Senate, then the budget authority and resulting outlays that are the subject of such amendment shall not be included in any determinations under section 302(f) or 311(a) for any bill, joint resolution, amendment, motion, or conference report.

`(d) Committee Notification of Emergency Legislation- Whenever the Committee on Appropriations or any other committee of either House (including a committee of conference) reports any bill or joint resolution that provides budget authority for any emergency, the report accompanying that bill or joint resolution (or the joint explanatory statement of managers in the case of a conference report on any such bill or joint resolution) shall identify all provisions that provide budget authority and the outlays flowing therefrom for such emergency and include a statement of the reasons why such budget authority meets the definition of an emergency pursuant to the guidelines referred to in section 203 of the Emergency Spending Control Act of 2005.'.

(b) Conforming Amendment- The table of contents set forth in section 1(b) of the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 315 the following new item:

`316. Emergencies.'.

SEC. 206. APPLICATION OF SECTION 306 TO EMERGENCIES IN EXCESS OF AMOUNTS IN RESERVE FUND.

Section 306 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 is amended by inserting at the end the following new sentence: `No amendment reported by the Committee on the Budget (or from the consideration of which such committee has been discharged) pursuant to section 316(c) may be amended.'.

SEC. 207. UP-TO-DATE TABULATIONS.

Section 308(b)(2) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 is amended by striking `and' at the end of subparagraph (B), by striking the period at the end of subparagraph (C) and inserting `; and', and by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:

`(D) shall include an up-to-date tabulation of amounts remaining in the reserve fund for emergencies.'.

END