S. 57 — Introduced in Senate

II 113th CONGRESS 1st Session S. 57 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES January 22 (legislative day, January 3), 2013 Mrs. Boxer introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance A BILL To establish a timely and expeditious process for voting on the statutory debt limit. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the U.S.A. AAA Credit Restoration Act. 2. Amendment to title 31 Section 3101(b) of title 31, United States Code, is amended to read as follows: (b) Limit (1) In general Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the face amount of obligations issued under this chapter and the face amount of obligations whose principal and interest are guaranteed by the United States Government (except guaranteed obligations held by the Secretary of the Treasury) may not be more than an amount determined by the Secretary, as provided by this section. (2) Secretarial message (A) Timing On the same day the President submits a budget to Congress as required by section 1105 the Secretary shall submit to the Congress a message on the public debt limit. (B) Contents The message shall include an estimate of the amount the public debt limit will need to be increased, if necessary, for the period of time between the submission of the current Secretarial message and the Secretarial message that will be submitted the following year, as required by subparagraph (A), based on estimates of Federal revenues, mandatory expenditures, and discretionary expenditures. (3) Federal register notice On the same day the Secretary submits the message described in paragraph (2), the Secretary shall publish in the Federal Register the amount of the public debt limit that would be necessary to accommodate the requirements described in paragraph (2)(B). (4) Congressional disapproval process (A) Joint resolution For purposes of this section, the term joint resolution means only a joint resolution introduced in the period beginning on the date on which the notice described in paragraph (3) is published in the Federal Register and ending 3 days thereafter (excluding days either House of Congress is adjourned for more than 3 days during a session of Congress), the matter after the resolving clause of which is as follows: That Congress disapproves of the Secretary’s exercise of authority to increase the debt limit, as exercised pursuant to the certification under section 3101(b) of title 31, United States Code.. (B) Expedited consideration in House of Representatives (i) Reconvening Upon publication of the Federal Register notice described in paragraph (3) the Speaker, if the House would otherwise be adjourned, shall notify the Members of the House that, pursuant to this subsection, the House shall convene not later than the second calendar day after receipt of such certification. (ii) Reporting and discharge If the committee to which is referred a joint resolution described in subparagraph (A) has not reported such joint resolution at the end of 6 calendar days after the publication of the Federal Register notice described in paragraph (3), such committee may be discharged from further consideration of such joint resolution upon a petition supported in writing by 218 Members of the House of Representatives, and such joint resolution shall be placed on the calendar. (iii) Timing A petition to discharge the joint resolution must be filed no later than 6 calendar days after the publication of the Federal Register notice described in paragraph (3). (iv) Proceeding to consideration After each committee authorized to consider a joint resolution reports it to the House or has been discharged from its consideration, it shall be in order, not later than the 3 calendar days after the joint resolution under subparagraph (A) is reported or discharged, to move to proceed to consider the joint resolution in the House. All points of order against the motion are waived. Such a motion shall not be in order after the House has disposed of a motion to proceed on a joint resolution addressing a particular submission. The previous question shall be considered as ordered on the motion to its adoption without intervening motion. The motion shall not be debatable. A motion to reconsider the vote by which the motion is disposed of shall not be in order. (v) Consideration The joint resolution shall be considered as read. All points of order against the joint resolution and against its consideration are waived. The previous question shall be considered as ordered on the joint resolution to its passage without intervening motion except two hours of debate equally divided and controlled by the proponent and an opponent. A motion to reconsider the vote on passage of the joint resolution shall not be in order. (C) Expedited procedure in the Senate (i) Reconvening Upon publication of the Federal Register notice described in paragraph (3), if the Senate has adjourned or recessed for more than 2 days, the majority leader of the Senate, after consultation with the minority leader of the Senate, shall notify the Members of the Senate that, pursuant to this section, the Senate shall convene not later than the second calendar day after publication of such notice. (ii) Reporting and discharge If the committee to which is referred a joint resolution described in subparagraph (A) has not reported such joint resolution at the end of 6 calendar days after the publication of Federal Register notice described in paragraph (3), such committee may be discharged from further consideration of such joint resolution upon a petition supported in writing by 40 Members of the Senate, and such joint resolution shall be placed on the calendar. (iii) Timing A petition to discharge the joint resolution must be filed no later than 6 calendar days after the publication of the Federal Register notice described in paragraph (3). (iv) Proceeding to consideration When the committee to which a joint resolution described in subparagraph (A) is referred has reported, or when a committee is discharged, it is at any time thereafter in order for a motion to proceed to the consideration of the joint resolution, and all points of order against the joint resolution (and against consideration of the joint resolution) are waived. The motion is not subject to amendment, or to a motion to postpone, or to a motion to proceed to the consideration of other business. A motion to reconsider the vote by which the motion is agreed to or disagreed to shall not be in order. If a motion to proceed to the consideration of the joint resolution is agreed to, the joint resolution shall remain the unfinished business of the Senate until disposed of. (v) Consideration Consideration of the joint resolution described in subparagraph (A) and on all debatable motions and appeals in connection therewith, shall be limited to not more than 10 hours, which shall be divided equally between those favoring and those opposing the joint resolution. A motion further to limit debate is in order and not debatable. An amendment to, or a motion to postpone, or a motion to proceed to the consideration of other business, or a motion to recommit the joint resolution is not in order. (vi) Vote on passage If the Senate has voted to proceed to the joint resolution described in subparagraph (A), the vote on passage of the joint resolution shall occur immediately following the conclusion of consideration of the joint resolution, and a single quorum call at the conclusion of the debate if requested in accordance with the rules of the Senate. (vii) Rulings of the chair on procedure Appeals from the decisions of the Chair relating to the application of the rules of the Senate to the procedure relating to a joint resolution described in subparagraph (A) shall be decided without debate. (D) Amendment not in order A joint resolution considered pursuant to this subsection shall not be subject to amendment in either the House of Representatives or the Senate. (E) Coordination with action by other house If, before passing the joint resolution described in subsection (A), one House receives from the other a joint resolution— (i) the joint resolution of the other House shall not be referred to a committee; (ii) the procedure in the receiving House shall be the same as if no joint resolution had been received from the other House until the vote on passage, when the joint resolution received from the other House shall supplant the joint resolution of the receiving House; (iii) if the Senate fails to introduce or consider a joint resolution under this section, the joint resolution of the House shall be entitled to expedited floor procedures under this section; (iv) if, following passage of the joint resolution in the Senate, the Senate then receives the companion measure from the House of Representatives, the companion measure shall not be debatable; and (v) debate on a veto message in the Senate under this section shall be 1 hour equally divided between the majority and minority leaders or their designees. (F) Rules of house of representatives and senate This paragraph is enacted by Congress— (i) as an exercise of the rulemaking power of the Senate and House of Representatives, respectively, and as such it is deemed a part of the rules of each House, respectively, but applicable only with respect to the procedure to be followed in that House in the case of a joint resolution, and it supersedes other rules only to the extent that it is inconsistent with such rules; and (ii) with full recognition of the constitutional right of either House to change the rules (so 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. . 3. Effective date The amendment made by section 2 shall take effect January 1, 2014.