110th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 905
To increase accountability and equity in the Federal budget.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
February 7, 2007
Mr. UDALL of Colorado introduced the following bill; which was referred
to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and in addition to
the Committees on Ways and Means, and 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
A BILL
To increase accountability and equity in the Federal budget.
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 `Commission on Unfair Tax Breaks and Subsidies
(or `CUTS') Act of 2007'.
SEC. 2. PURPOSE.
The purpose of this Act is to establish a congressional advisory commission
to identify and evaluate inequitable Federal subsidies.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
(a) In General- For purposes of this Act, the term `inequitable Federal
subsidy' means a payment, benefit, service, or tax advantage that--
(1) is provided by the Government to any corporation, partnership, joint
venture, association, business trust, or industry other than--
(A) a nonprofit organization described under section 501(c)(3) of the
Internal Revenue Code of 1986 that is exempt from taxation under section
501(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986; or
(B) a State or local government or Indian Tribe or Alaska Native village
or regional or village corporation as defined in or established pursuant
to the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.);
(2) is provided without a reasonable expectation, demonstrated with the
use of reliable performance criteria, that actions or activities undertaken
or performed in return for such payment, benefit, service, or tax advantage
would result in a return or benefit, quantifiable or nonquantifiable,
to the public at least as great as the payment, benefit, service, or tax
advantage; and
(3) provides an unfair competitive advantage or financial windfall.
(b) Exception- Such term shall not include a payment, benefit, service,
or tax advantage that--
(1) is awarded for the purposes of research and development that--
(A) is in the broad public interest on the basis of a peer reviewed
or other open, competitive, merit-based procedure;
(B) is for a purpose consistent with the mission of the agency;
(C) supports competing technologies at levels appropriate to their potential,
as determined by an appropriate priority setting process; and
(D) the private sector cannot reasonably be expected to undertake without
Federal support at a level or in a timeframe consistent with the payment,
benefit, service, or tax advantage's potential to provide broad economic
or other public benefit;
(2) PRIMARILY BENEFITS OR PROMOTES-
(A) public health, safety, or the environment,
(B) development or use of energy from renewable sources;
(C) more efficient generation, transmission, or use of energy;
(D) national security, including homeland security; or
(3) is necessary to comply with international trade or treaty obligations;
or
(4) is for the purpose of procurement of property or services by the United
States Government.
SEC. 4. COMMISSION.
(a) Establishment- There is established an independent commission to be
known as the `Commission on Unfair Tax Breaks and Subsidies' (hereafter
in this Act referred to as the `Commission').
(b) Duties- The Commission shall--
(1) examine the programs and tax laws of the Government and identify programs
and tax laws that provide inequitable Federal subsidies;
(2) review inequitable Federal subsidies; and
(3) submit the report required under section 206 to the Congress.
(1) CREATION OF NEW PROGRAMS OR TAXES- This Act is not intended to result
in the creation of new programs or taxes, and the Commission established
in this section shall limit its activities to reviewing programs or tax
laws as of the date of enactment of this Act with the goal of ensuring
fairness and equity in the operation and application thereof.
(2) ELIMINATION OF AGENCIES AND DEPARTMENTS- The Commission shall limit
its recommendations to the termination or reduction of payments, benefits,
services, or tax advantages, rather than the termination of Federal agencies
or departments.
(d) Advisory Committee- The Commission shall be considered an advisory committee
within the meaning of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.).
(1) MEMBERS- The Commissioners shall be appointed for the life of the
Commission and shall be composed of 5 members of whom--
(A) one shall be appointed jointly by the Speaker of the House of Representatives
and the majority leader of the Senate;
(B) one shall be appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives;
(C) one shall be appointed by the minority leader of the House of Representatives;
(D) one shall be appointed by the majority leader of the Senate; and
(E) one shall be appointed by the minority leader of the Senate.
Such appointments shall be made not later than 90 days after the date
of the enactment of this Act.
(2) CONSULTATION REQUIRED- The Speaker of the House of Representatives,
the minority leader of the House of Representatives, the majority leader
of the Senate, and the minority leader of the Senate shall consult among
themselves prior to the appointment of the members of the Commission in
order to achieve, to the maximum extent possible, fair and equitable representation
of various points of view with respect to the matters to be studied by
the Commission under subsection (b).
(3) CHAIRMAN- The chairman of the Commission shall be the member appointed
as provided in paragraph (1)(A).
(4) BACKGROUND- The members shall represent a broad array of expertise
covering, to the extent practical, all subject matter, programs, and tax
laws the Commission is likely to review.
(f) Terms- Each member of the Commission including the chairman shall serve
until the termination of the Commission.
(1) INITIAL MEETING- Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment
of this Act, the Commission shall conduct its first meeting. The first
nonadministrative business of the Commission shall be to establish criteria
for evaluating whether a payment, benefit, service, or tax advantage is
an inequitable Federal subsidy for purposes of this Act.
(2) OPEN MEETINGS- Each meeting of the Commission shall be open to the
public. In cases where classified information, trade secrets, or personnel
matters are discussed, the chairman may close the meeting. All proceedings,
information, and deliberations of the Commission shall be available, upon
request, to the chairman and ranking member of the relevant committees
of Congress.
(h) Vacancies- A vacancy on the Commission--
(1) shall be filled in the same manner as the original appointment not
later than 30 days after the Commission is given notice of the vacancy,
and
(2) shall not affect the power of the remaining members to execute the
duties of the Commission.
(i) Pay and Travel Expenses-
(1) PAY- Notwithstanding section 7 of the Federal Advisory Committee Act
(5 U.S.C. App.), each commissioner, other than the chairman, shall be
paid at a rate equal to the daily equivalent of the minimum annual rate
of basic pay for level IV of the Executive Schedule under section 5315
of title 5, United States Code, for each day (including travel time) during
which the member is engaged in the actual performance of duties vested
in the Commission.
(2) CHAIRMAN- Notwithstanding section 7 of the Federal Advisory Committee
Act (5 U.S.C. App.), the chairman shall be paid for each day referred
to in paragraph (1) at a rate equal to the daily payment of the minimum
annual rate of basic pay payable for level III of the Executive Schedule
under section 5314 of title 5, United States Code.
(3) TRAVEL EXPENSES- Members shall receive travel expenses, including
per diem in lieu of subsistence, in accordance with section 5702 and 5703
of title 5, United States Code.
(1) QUALIFICATIONS- The chairman shall appoint a Director who has not
served in any of the entities or industries that the Commission intends
to review during the 12 months preceding the date of such appointment.
(2) PAY- Notwithstanding section 7 of the Federal Advisory Committee Act
(5 U.S.C. App.), the Director shall be paid at the rate of basic pay payable
for level IV of the Executive Schedule under section 5315 of title 5,
United States Code.
(3) REPORTS- On administrative and personnel matters, the Director shall
submit periodic reports to the Chairman of the Commission and the chairman
and ranking member of the Committee on Governmental Affairs of the Senate
and the Committee on Government Reform of the House of the Representatives.
(1) ADDITIONAL PERSONNEL- Subject to paragraphs (2) and (4), the Director,
with the approval of the Commission, may appoint and fix the pay of additional
personnel.
(2) APPOINTMENTS- The Director may make such appointments without regard
to the provisions of title 5, United States Code, governing appointments
in the competitive service, and any personnel so appointed may be paid
without regard to the provisions of chapter 51 and subchapter III of chapter
53 of that title relating to classification and General Schedule pay rates.
(3) DETAILEES- Upon the request of the Director, the head of any Federal
department or agency may detail any of the personnel of that department
or agency to the Commission to assist the Commission in accordance with
an agreement entered into with the Commission.
(4) RESTRICTIONS ON PERSONNEL AND DETAILEES- The following restrictions
shall apply to personnel and detailees of the Commission:
(A) PERSONNEL- No more than one-third of the personnel detailed to the
Commission may be on detail from Federal agencies that deal directly
or indirectly with the Federal payments the Commission intends to review.
(B) ANALYSTS- No more than one-fifth of the professional analysts of
the Commission may be persons detailed from a Federal agency that deals
directly or indirectly with the Federal payments the Commission intends
to review.
(C) LEAD ANALYST- No person detailed from a Federal agency to the Commission
may be assigned as the lead professional analyst with respect to an
entity or industry the Commission intends to review if the person has
been involved in regulatory or policy-making decisions affecting any
such entity or industry in the 12 months preceding such assignment.
(D) DETAILEE- A person may not be detailed from a Federal agency to
the Commission if, within 12 months before the detail is to begin, that
person participated personally and substantially in any matter within
that particular agency concerning the preparation of recommendations
under this Act.
(E) FEDERAL OFFICER OR EMPLOYEE- No member of a Federal agency, and
no officer or employee of a Federal agency, may--
(i) prepare any report concerning the effectiveness, fitness, or efficiency
of the performance on the staff of the Commission of any person detailed
from a Federal agency to that staff;
(ii) review the preparation of such report; or
(iii) approve or disapprove such a report.
(F) LIMITATION ON STAFF SIZE-
(i) Subject to clause (ii), there may not be more than 50 persons
(including any detailees) on the staff at any time.
(ii) The Commission may increase personnel in excess of the limitation
under clause (i), 15 days after submitting notification of such increase
to the Committee on Governmental Affairs of the Senate and the Committee
on Government Reform of the House of Representatives.
(G) LIMITATION ON FEDERAL OFFICER- No member of a Federal agency and
no employee of a Federal agency may serve as a Commissioner or receive
additional compensation by reason of being a member of the staff.
(A) IN GENERAL- The Comptroller General of the United States may provide
assistance, including the detailing of employees, to the Commission
in accordance with an agreement entered into with the Commission.
(B) CONSULTATION- The Commission and the Comptroller General of the
United States shall consult with the Committee on Governmental Affairs
of the Senate and the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform of
the House of Representatives on the agreement referred to under subparagraph
(A) before entering into such agreement.
(1) EXPERTS AND CONSULTANTS- The Commission may procure by contract, to
the extent funds are available, the temporary or intermittent services
of experts or consultants pursuant to section 3109 of title 5, United
States Code.
(2) LEASING- The Commission may lease space and acquire personal property
to the extent that funds are available.
(1) COMMISSION- There are authorized to be appropriated to the Commission
such funds as are necessary to carry out its duties under this Act.
(2) COMPTROLLER GENERAL- There are authorized to be appropriated to the
Comptroller General of the United States such funds as are necessary to
carry out its duties under subsection (k)(5).
(n) Termination- The Commission shall terminate on the 90th day after the
date that the Commission submits its report under section 205(a)(1).
SEC. 5. REPORT; CONGRESSIONAL CONSIDERATION.
(a) Report of Commission-
(A) IN GENERAL- Not later than 1 year after the date of the first meeting
of the Commission, the Commission shall submit to each House of Congress
a report containing--
(i) the Commission's findings, and
(ii) any recommendations agreed to by at least 4 Commission members
for the termination, reduction, or revision of any of the inequitable
Federal subsidies reviewed by the Commission.
(B) SPECIFICATIONS- Such findings and recommendations shall specify--
(i) all actions, circumstances, and considerations relating to or
bearing upon the recommendations; and
(ii) to the maximum extent practicable, the estimated effect of the
recommendations upon the policies, laws and programs directly or indirectly
affected by the recommendations.
(2) REVIEW OF PRELIMINARY REPORT BY COMPTROLLER GENERAL-
(A) IN GENERAL- Not later than 120 days before the submission of the
report under paragraph (1), the Commission shall submit the most recent
version of such report to Comptroller General of the United States.
(B) ANALYSIS BY COMPTROLLER GENERAL- Not later than 60 days after receiving
the version of the report referred to in subparagraph (A), the Comptroller
General of the United States shall submit to the Commission a report
containing a detailed analysis of such version of the report.
(b) Submission of Recommendations to the Senate and House of Representatives-
(1) SUBMISSION TO CONGRESS- The recommendations submitted to the Congress
under subsection (a) shall be submitted to the Senate and the House of
Representatives on the same day, and shall be delivered to the Secretary
of the Senate if the Senate is not in session, and to the Clerk of the
House of Representatives if the House is not in session.
(2) PUBLICATION- Any recommendations and accompanying information submitted
under subsection (a) shall be published and made available to the public
by the Commission.
(c) Introduction- Not later than 30 days after the date the report under
subsection (a) is submitted to the Congress, the majority leaders of the
Senate and the House of Representatives or their respective designees, shall
introduce a bill to implement the recommendations submitted under subsection
(a).
(d) Committee Referral and Action-
(A) IN GENERAL- Any committee to which a bill or bills introduced under
subsection (c) is referred shall report such bill no later than 20 days
after the date of referral. No amendment during committee consideration
of a bill or bills introduced under subsection (c) shall be in order
unless that amendment is confined to terminating, or reducing an inequitable
Federal subsidy as defined in section 4 of this Act. Any such reported
bill shall be referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration
of the Senate and the Committee on Rules of the House of Representatives,
as applicable.
(B) TAX BILLS- Any bill referred to the Committee on Finance of the
Senate or the Committee on Ways and Means of the House of Representatives
that contains revenue increases may be amended to include reductions
in revenues in the form of tax cuts in an amount up to the amount of
the revenue increases, but no amendment shall be in order that would
result in a limited tax benefit as defined in subparagraph (C) of this
paragraph.
(C) LIMITED TAX BENEFIT- For purposes of this paragraph, the term `limited
tax benefit' means--
(i) any revenue-losing provision which provides a Federal tax deduction,
credit, exclusion, or preference to 100 or fewer beneficiaries under
the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 in any fiscal year for which the
provision is in effect; and
(ii) any Federal tax provision which provides temporary or permanent
transitional relief for 10 or fewer beneficiaries in any fiscal year
from a change to the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.
(D) EXCEPTIONS- A provision shall not be treated as a limited tax benefit
if the effect of that provision is that--
(i) all persons in the same industry or engaged in the same type of
activity receive the same treatment;
(ii) all persons owning the same type of property, or issuing the
same type of investment, receive the same treatment; or
(iii) any difference in the treatment of persons is based solely on--
(I) in the case of businesses and associations, the size or form
of the business or association involved;
(II) in the case of individuals, general demographic conditions,
such as income, marital status, number of dependents, or tax return
filing status;
(III) the amount involved; or
(IV) a generally-available election under the Internal Revenue Code
of 1986.
(E) FURTHER EXCEPTIONS- A provision shall not be treated as a limited
tax benefit if--
(i) it provides for the retention of prior law with respect to all
binding contracts or other legally enforceable obligations in existence
on a date contemporaneous with congressional action specifying such
date; or
(ii) it is a technical correction to previously enacted legislation
that is estimated to have no revenue effect.
(F) TREATMENT- For purposes of this paragraph--
(i) all businesses and associations which are related within the meaning
of sections 707(b) and
(ii) all qualified plans of an employer shall be treated as a single
beneficiary;
(iii) all holders of the same bond issue shall be treated as a single
beneficiary; and
(iv) if a corporation, partnership, association, trust or estate is
the beneficiary of a provision, the shareholders of the corporation,
the partners of the partnership, the members of the association, or
the beneficiaries of the trust or estate shall not also be treated
as beneficiaries of such provision.
(G) REVENUE-LOSING PROVISION- For purposes of this paragraph, the term
`revenue-losing provision' means any provision which results in a reduction
in Federal tax revenues for any one of the two following periods--
(i) the first fiscal year for which the provision is effective; or
(ii) the period of the 5 fiscal years beginning with the first fiscal
year for which the provision is effective.
(H) The terms used in this paragraph shall have the same meaning as
those terms have generally in the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, unless
otherwise expressly provided.
(2) DISCHARGE- If a committee does not report a bill within the 120-day
period as provided under paragraph (1), such bill shall be discharged
from the committee and referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration
of the Senate or the Committee on Rules of the House of Representatives,
as applicable.
(3) REPORT TO FLOOR; CONSOLIDATION-
(A) IN GENERAL- No later than the first day the Senate or the House
of Representatives (as applicable) is in session following 10 calendar
days in session after the end of the period described under paragraphs
(1) and (2), the Committee on Rules and Administration of the Senate
and the Committee on Rules of the House of Representatives, as applicable,
shall--
(i) consolidate all bills referred under paragraphs (1) and (2) into
a single bill (without substantive amendment) and report such bill
to the Senate or the House of Representatives; or
(ii) if only 1 bill is referred under paragraph (1) or (2), report
such bill (without amendment) to the Senate or House of Representatives.
(B) LEGISLATIVE CALENDAR- The bill reported under subparagraph (A) shall
be placed on the legislative calendar of the appropriate House.
(e) Procedure in Senate After Report of Committee; Debate; Amendments-
(1) DEBATE ON BILL- Debate in the Senate on a bill reported under subsection
(d)(3), and all amendments thereto and debatable motions and appeals in
connection therewith, shall be limited to not more than 30 hours. The
time shall be equally divided between, and controlled by, the majority
leader and minority leader or their designees.
(2) DEBATE ON AMENDMENTS- Debate in the Senate on any amendment to the
bill shall be limited to 1 hour, to be equally divided between, and controlled
by, the mover and the manager of the bill, and debate on any amendment
to an amendment, debatable motion, or appeal shall be limited to 30 minutes,
to be equally divided between, and controlled by, the mover and the manager
of the bill, except that in the event the manager of the bill is in favor
of any such amendment, motion or appeal, the time in opposition thereto
shall be controlled by the minority leader or his designee.
(A) A motion to further limit debate is not debatable. A motion by the
majority leader or his designee to extend debate is not debatable. A
motion to recommit is not in order.
(B) No amendment to the bill reported under subsection (d)(3) shall
be in order unless--
(i) that amendment is confined to terminating or reducing an inequitable
Federal payment as defined by section 4 of this Act;
(ii) that amendment is germane to the bill reported by the Committee
on Governmental Affairs; and
(iii) for the purposes of such bill, `germane' means only amendments
which strike language from such bill, or restore language in the bill
or bills introduced under subsection (c).
(A) MOTION TO PROCEED- A motion to proceed to the consideration of the
conference report on a bill subject to the procedures of this section
and reported to the Senate may be made even though a previous motion
to the same effect has been disagreed to.
(B) TIME LIMITATION- The consideration in the Senate of the conference
report on the bill and any amendments in disagreement thereto, including
all debatable motions and appeals in connection therewith, shall be
limited to 5 hours, to be equally divided between, and controlled by,
the majority leader and minority leader or their designees. Debate on
any debatable motion, appeal related to the conference report, or any
amendment to an amendment in disagreement, shall be limited to 30 minutes,
to be equally divided between, and controlled by, the mover and the
manager of the conference report (or a message between Houses).
(f) Procedure in House of Representatives After Report of the Committee;
Debate-
(1) MOTION TO CONSIDER- When the Committee on Rules of the House of Representatives
reports a bill under subsection (d)(3) it is in order (at any time after
the fifth day (excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays) following
the day on which any committee report filed on a bill referred under subsection
(d)(1) to the Committee on Rules has been available to Members of the
House) to move to proceed to the consideration of the bill reported to
the House of Representatives. The motion is highly privileged and is not
debatable. An amendment to the motion is not in order, and it is not in
order to move to reconsider the vote by which the motion is agreed to
or disagreed to.
(2) DEBATE- General debate on the bill in the House of Representatives
shall be limited to not more than 10 hours, which shall be divided equally
between the majority and minority parties. A motion further to limit debate
is not debatable. A motion to postpone debate is not in order, and it
is not in order to move to reconsider the vote by which the bill is agreed
to or disagreed to.
(3) TERMS OF CONSIDERATION- Consideration of the bill by the House of
Representatives shall be in the Committee of the Whole, and the bill shall
be considered for amendment under the 5-minute rule in accordance with
the applicable provisions of rule XXIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives
for the 110th Congress. After the committee rises and reports the bill
back to the House, the previous question shall be considered as ordered
on the bill and any amendments thereto to final passage without intervening
motion.
(4) LIMIT ON DEBATE- Debate in the House of Representatives on the conference
report on a bill subject to the procedures under this section and reported
to the House of Representatives shall be limited to not more than 5 hours,
which shall be divided equally between the majority and minority parties.
A motion further to limit debate is not debatable. A motion to recommit
the conference report is not in order, and it is not in order to move
to reconsider the vote by which the conference report is agreed to or
disagreed to. A motion to postpone is not in order.
(5) APPEALS- Appeals from decisions of the chair relating to the application
of the Rules of the House of Representatives to the procedure relating
to the bill shall be decided without debate.
(g) Rules of the Senate and House of Representatives- This section is enacted
by Congress--
(1) as an exercise of the rulemaking power of the Senate and the House
of Representatives, respectively, but applicable only with respect to
the procedure to be followed in that House in the case of a bill under
this section, and it supersedes other rules only to the extent that it
is inconsistent with such rules; and
(2) with full recognition of the constitutional right of either House
to change the rules as far as relating to the procedure of that House
at any time, in the same manner, and to the same extent as in the case
of any other rule of that House.
END
