Proposing a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution of the United States.

Constitutional Amendment

This joint resolution proposes a constitutional amendment prohibiting total outlays from exceeding total receipts for a fiscal year unless Congress authorizes the excess by a three-fifths roll call vote of each chamber. The prohibition excludes outlays for repayment of debt principal and receipts derived from borrowing.

The President must submit a balanced budget to Congress annually. If the President does not submit a balanced budget for a fiscal year, no executive orders may be issued until the earlier of the submission of a balanced budget or the first day of the fiscal year.

A three-fifths roll call vote of each chamber of Congress is required to increase the public debt limit.

Congress may waive the requirements for any period during which the United States is engaged in military conflict that causes an imminent and serious military threat to national security.

[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.J. Res. 79 Introduced in House (IH)]

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114th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. J. RES. 79

Proposing a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution of the United 
                                States.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           December 16, 2015

Mr. Hardy introduced the following joint resolution; which was referred 
                   to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                            JOINT RESOLUTION


 
Proposing a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution of the United 
                                States.

    Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United 
States of America in Congress assembled   (two-thirds of each House 
concurring therein), That the following article is proposed as an 
amendment to the Constitution of the United States, which shall be 
valid to all intents and purposes as part of the Constitution when 
ratified by the legislatures of three-fourths of the several States 
within seven years after the date of its submission for ratification:

                              ``Article--

    ``Section 1. Total outlays for any fiscal year shall not exceed 
total receipts for that fiscal year, unless three-fifths of the whole 
number of each House of Congress provides by law for a specific excess 
of outlays over receipts by a roll-call vote. Such total outlays do not 
include those for repayment of debt principal and such total receipts 
may not include those derived from borrowing.
    ``Section 2. Before each fiscal year, the President shall transmit 
to the Congress a proposed budget for such fiscal year for the 
Government in which total outlays do not exceed total receipts. If the 
President fails to perform the duty imposed by this section, no 
Executive orders may be issued until the earlier of the date on which 
the President corrects such failure or the first day of such fiscal 
year.
    ``Section 3. The limit on the debt of the United States held by the 
public shall not be increased unless three-fifths of the whole number 
of each House of Congress provides by law for such an increase by a 
roll-call vote.
    ``Section 4. The Congress may waive this article for any period 
during which the United States is engaged in military conflict that 
causes an imminent and serious military threat to national security and 
is so declared by a joint resolution, adopted by a majority of the 
whole number of each House of Congress, which becomes law.
    ``Section 5. The Congress shall enforce and implement this article 
by appropriate legislation, which may rely on estimates of outlays and 
receipts.
    ``Section 6. Sections 1, 2, and 3 shall take effect with the 
beginning of the third fiscal year beginning after its ratification.''.
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