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H.R. 6144 (114th): Accurate Accounting Act of 2016

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The text of the bill below is as of Sep 22, 2016 (Introduced).

I

114th CONGRESS

2d Session

H. R. 6144

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

September 22, 2016

introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Budget, and in addition to the Committees on Rules, and Ways and Means, 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 amend the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to include the outlays and revenue totals relating to social security benefits in a concurrent resolution on the budget, and for other purposes.

1.

Short title

This Act may be cited as the Accurate Accounting Act of 2016.

I

Social Security on budget

101.

Content of concurrent resolution on the budget

(a)

Congressional Budget Act of 1974

Section 301(a) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 (2 U.S.C. 632(a)) is amended by striking the matter following paragraph (7).

(b)

Budget Enforcement Act of 1990

Section 13301 of the Budget Enforcement Act of 1990 (2 U.S.C. 632 note) is amended by striking subsection (a) and inserting the following:

(a)

Exclusion of Social Security from All Budgets

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the receipts and disbursements of the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund and the Federal Disability Insurance Trust Fund shall not be counted as new budget authority, outlays, receipts, or deficit or surplus for the purpose of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (2 U.S.C. 900 et seq.).

.

102.

Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010

Section 3(4) of the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010 (2 U.S.C. 932(4)) is amended by adding at the end the following:

(D)

The term savings does not include budgetary effects that increase the receipts or decrease the disbursements of the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund or the Federal Hospital Insurance Trust Fund.

.

II

Zero-based budgeting

201.

Findings; sense of the House of Representatives

(a)

Findings

Congress finds that—

(1)

Congress has the authority and responsibility under the Constitution of the United States over financial and budgetary matters, including the power to appropriate funds;

(2)

it is recognized that the incremental budgeting does not lend itself to cost control nor accountability in spending;

(3)

a zero-based budget would offer tangible savings achieved through more thorough planning and more efficient allocation of resources; and

(4)

zero-based budgeting would establish a budget based upon current needs rather than previous expenditures.

(b)

Sense of the House of Representatives

It is the sense of the House of Representatives that Congress should establish a plan to apply zero-based budgeting to the Federal budgetary process.

202.

Zero-based budgeting

Section 1105 of title 31, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:

(i)
(1)

The President shall submit with materials related to the budget transmitted under subsection (a) on or after January 1, 2017, and not less than once every 4 years thereafter, a budget for each department and agency that contains the following information:

(A)

A description of each activity for which the department or agency receives an appropriation in the current fiscal year or for which the department or agency requests an appropriation for the fiscal year for which the budget is submitted.

(B)

The legal basis for each activity described in subparagraph (A).

(C)

For each activity described in subparagraph (A)—

(i)

three alternative funding levels for the fiscal year in which the budget is submitted;

(ii)

a summary of the priorities that would be accomplished within each level; and

(iii)

the additional increments of value that would be added by the higher funding levels, not fewer than two of which shall be not greater than the funding level for the current fiscal year.

(D)

For each activity, one or more measures of cost efficiency and effectiveness of the activity.

(2)

As soon as practicable, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget shall publish guidelines to carry out this subsection, including guidelines that require that—

(A)

the baseline budget of each department or agency is assumed to be zero; and

(B)

each proposed expenditure shall be justified as if the proposed expenditure is a new expenditure.

.

III

Off-budget program accountability

401.

Study by the General Accounting Office of forms of Federal financial commitments that are not reviewed annually by Congress

The second sentence of section 404 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 (2 U.S.C. 654) is amended by striking from time to time and not less than once every 5 years.