Congressional Pay for Performance Act of 2017

Congressional Pay for Performance Act of 2017

This bill withholds the salaries of Members of a house of Congress for specified time periods if the house has not: (1) agreed to a budget resolution for the upcoming fiscal year by May 15 of any calendar year, or (2) passed each of the regular appropriations bills for the upcoming fiscal year by July 31 of any calendar year.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2153 Introduced in House (IH)]

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115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2153

To hold the salaries of Members of a House of Congress in escrow if the 
House of Congress does not agree to a budget resolution or pass regular 
appropriation bills on a timely basis during a Congress, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 26, 2017

  Mr. Rothfus (for himself, Ms. Sinema, Mr. Cooper, and Mr. Loebsack) 
 introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
                          House Administration

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To hold the salaries of Members of a House of Congress in escrow if the 
House of Congress does not agree to a budget resolution or pass regular 
appropriation bills on a timely basis during a Congress, and for other 
                               purposes.

    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 ``Congressional Pay for Performance 
Act of 2017''.

SEC. 2. HOLDING SALARIES OF MEMBERS OF CONGRESS IN ESCROW UPON FAILURE 
              TO AGREE TO BUDGET RESOLUTION.

    (a) Holding Salaries in Escrow.--If by May 15 of any calendar year 
(beginning with 2017), a House of Congress has not agreed to a 
concurrent resolution on the budget pursuant to section 301 of the 
Congressional Budget Act of 1974 for the fiscal year which begins on 
October 1 of that calendar year, during the period described in 
subsection (b) the payroll administrator of that House of Congress 
shall deposit in an escrow account all payments otherwise required to 
be made during such period for the compensation of Members of Congress 
who serve in that House of Congress, and shall release such payments to 
such Members only upon the expiration of such period.
    (b) Period Described.--With respect to a House of Congress and a 
calendar year, the period described in this paragraph is the period 
which begins on May 16 of the calendar year and ends on the earlier 
of--
            (1) the day on which the House of Congress agrees to a 
        concurrent resolution on the budget for the fiscal year which 
        begins on October 1 of that calendar year; or
            (2) the last day of the Congress during which that calendar 
        year occurs.

SEC. 3. HOLDING SALARIES OF MEMBERS OF CONGRESS IN ESCROW UPON FAILURE 
              TO PASS REGULAR APPROPRIATION BILLS.

    (a) Holding Salaries in Escrow.--If by July 31 of any calendar year 
(beginning with 2017), a House of Congress has not passed each of the 
regular appropriation bills for the fiscal year which begins on October 
1 of that calendar year, during the period described in subsection (b) 
the payroll administrator of that House of Congress shall deposit in an 
escrow account all payments otherwise required to be made during such 
period for the compensation of Members of Congress who serve in that 
House of Congress, and shall release such payments to such Members only 
upon the expiration of such period.
    (b) Period Described.--With respect to a House of Congress and a 
calendar year, the period described in this paragraph is the period 
which begins on August 1 of the calendar year and ends on the earlier 
of--
            (1) the first day by which the House of Congress has passed 
        each of the regular appropriation bills for the fiscal year 
        which begins on October 1 of that calendar year; or
            (2) the last day of the Congress during which that calendar 
        year occurs.
    (c) Regular Appropriation Bill Defined.--The term ``regular 
appropriation bill'' means any annual appropriation bill which, with 
respect to the Congress involved, is under the jurisdiction of a single 
subcommittee of the Committee on Appropriations of the House of 
Representatives (pursuant to the Rules of the House of Representatives 
for that Congress) and a single subcommittee of the Committee on 
Appropriations of the Senate (pursuant to the Standing Rules of the 
Senate).

SEC. 4. ADMINISTRATION OF ESCROW.

    (a) Withholding and Remittance of Amounts From Payments Held in 
Escrow.--The payroll administrator shall provide for the same 
withholding and remittance with respect to a payment deposited in an 
escrow account under section 2 or section 3 that would apply to the 
payment if the payment were not subject to such section.
    (b) Role of Secretary of the Treasury.--The Secretary of the 
Treasury shall provide the payroll administrators of the Houses of 
Congress with such assistance as may be necessary to enable the payroll 
administrators to carry out this Act.

SEC. 5. RELEASE OF AMOUNTS AT END OF A CONGRESS.

    In order to ensure that this Act is carried out in a manner 
consistent with the twenty-seventh article of amendment to the 
Constitution of the United States, the payroll administrator of a House 
of Congress shall release for payments to Members of that House of 
Congress any amounts remaining in any escrow account under this Act on 
the last day of the Congress during which the amounts were deposited in 
such account.

SEC. 6. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act--
            (1) the term ``Member'' includes a Delegate or Resident 
        Commissioner to the Congress; and
            (2) the ``payroll administrator'' of a House of Congress 
        means--
                    (A) in the case of the House of Representatives, 
                the Chief Administrative Officer of the House of 
                Representatives, or an employee of the Office of the 
                Chief Administrative Officer who is designated by the 
                Chief Administrative Officer to carry out this Act; and
                    (B) in the case of the Senate, the Secretary of the 
                Senate, or an employee of the Office of the Secretary 
                of the Senate who is designated by the Secretary to 
                carry out this Act.
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