11 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 of either House to change such rules (so far as relating to the procedure in such House) at any time, in the same manner and to the same extent as in the case of any other rule of such House. TITLE II-PRESIDENTIAL AUTHORITY AUTHORITY TO RESERVE FROM OUTLAY SEC. 201. (a) Notwithstanding the provisions of any 8 other law, the President shall, in accordance with subsections 9 (b) and (c), reserve from expenditure and net lending, 10 from appropriations or other obligational authority otherwise 11 available, such amounts as may be necessary to keep outlays 12 during each fiscal year (beginning with the fiscal year end13 ing June 30, 1975) within the limit prescribed for such year 14 under title I of this Act. 15 (b) In carrying out the provisions of subsection (a) the 16 President may reserve amounts from appropriations or other 17 obligational authority available for all programs and activi 18 ties, except for expenditures and net lending for— (1) interest; (2) veterans' benefits and services; (3) payments from social insurance trust funds; (5) public assistance maintenance grants; (6) social services grants under title IV of the Social Security Act, as amended; 4 (c) In carrying out the provisions of subsections (a) 5 and (b), no amount specified in any appropriation, or any 6 activity, program or item within such appropriation, may be 7 reduced by more than 10 percent. 8 9 APPLICATION OF CERTAIN FORMULAS SEC. 202. In the administration of any program as to 10 which 11 12 13 14 (1) the amount of expenditures is limited pursuant to section 201, and (2) the allocation, grant, apportionment, or other distribution of funds among recipients is required to be 18 the amount available for expenditure (as determined by the 19 President) shall be substituted for the amount appropriated 20 or otherwise made available in the application of the formula. 92-496 - 7311 [From the Congressional Record, Mar. 14, 1973] INTRODUCTION OF S. 1213 BY SENATOR SCHWEIKER OF PENNSYLVANIA THE FEDERAL SPENDING CONTROL ACT OF 1973 Mr. SCHWEIKER. Mr. President, I introduce a bill to establish a Joint Committee on Federal Spending, to require Congress to establish a limit on expenditure for each fiscal year, and for other purposes, and ask that it be appropriately referred. The purpose of this legislation is to provide a mechanism for Congress to get a handle on the continuing growth of Federal spending. President Nixon has submitted a budget request for fiscal year 1974 to Congress of $269 billion. This is a very healthy request, which includes an increase in the budget of about $19 billion over fiscal year 1973. The estimated budget deficit will be about $13 billion in fiscal year 1974, in comparison to a deficit of about $25 billion for fiscal year 1973. The amount of the increase in the budget for next year is fairly consistent with budget increases in recent years. Although the annual increment may not seem unusually large, if you compare the budget 10 years ago to the budget for the upcoming fiscal year, you can readily see how Federal spending has increased. In 1964, the budget was $119 billion. It will now be $269 billion. This amounts to a $150 billion increase in Federal spending in 10 short years. The increase over the 10-year period of $150 billion is more than the total budget of $119 billion in 1964. The gross national product has doubled during that period of time, but Government spending accounts for an increasing share of the economic pie. The budget level for fiscal year 1974 is designed to avoid the need of any tax increase this year. I certainly support the President in his efforts to avoid tax increases. Furthermore, I think that it is generally felt among Members of Congress that the amount of the fiscal 1974 budget request is adequate, even perhaps too generous. The real concern is over priorities-how to slice the piece of the budgetary pie. Last year, there was a vigorous debate in Congress over the President's request for $250 billion spending ceiling. I strongly supported settling that ceiling, and voted for it. In fact, legislation to establish a $250 billion ceiling passed both Houses of Congress. That spending ceiling never became law, however, mainly because of disagreement as to who would decide where and how the spending cuts would be made the President or the Congress. The Constitution gives the power of the purse to Congress. While I strongly support the President's efforts to establish firm limitations on the huge increase in Federal spending. I also believe that the authority to determine which programs will be funded and which will be cut must remain in Congress. This is a serious constitutional problem, but it is important that we not lose sight of the urgent need to control Federal spending while we are debating the Constitution. In the past, Congress has had no clear-cut mechanism for establishing limits on appropriations. We have simply appropriated on a piecemeal basis, without having any real idea as to where we are going to end up after the appropriations process has been completed. The President's budget message anticipates another $19 billion increase for fiscal year 1975 to a Federal budget level of $288 billion. Furthermore, the $269 billion figure for fiscal year 1974 does not include funds for the reconstruction of Vietnam and other countries in Indochina. It seems likely that before long a substantial request will be made to Congress for funds for that purpose. Thus, Federal budget continues to increase dramatically year by year. The national debt is about $465 billion at the present time. By the end of fiscal year 1974, it will be approximately $505 billion. This means that the national debt will have increased 25 percent in 5 short years. One-fourth of the total national debt will have been incurred in only 5 years. The other 75 percent accumulated over a 100-year period, which included World War I, World War II, and the Korean war. It is long past time for some real restraint. It is time for Congress to take up the challenge and establish some fiscal responsibility. The bill I introduce today, the Federal Spending Control Act of 1973, provides for the establishment of permanent Joint Committee on Federal Spending composed of five members of each Appropriations Committee Senate and House-three of the majority party and two of the minority party respectively, and three members each from the House Ways and Means Committee and the Senate Finance Committee, two of the majority party and one of the minority party, respectively. The members of the Joint Committee on Federal Spending will be selected by the membership of their respective committees. By March 1 of each year, the joint committee will make a report to the Congress on the President's budget proposal. Additionally, the joint committee will report a concurrent resolution to each House recommending a limit on the total amount of outlays to be made during the ensuing fiscal year. No appropriations bill can be adopted by either House until the concurrent resolution has passed both Houses. The limit on the total amount of outlays agreed to in the concurrent resolution can be changed only by two-thirds vote of each House. In other words, once the limit has been set, it can be changed only by a two-thirds vote of each House. In carrying out the will of Congress, the President is given authority to reserve from expenditure and net lending such amounts as may be necessary to keep outlays during the fiscal year within the limit prescribed by the Congress. However, the President may not make cuts in so-called "uncontrollable items" such as interest on the national debt, veterans benefits and services, payments from social insurance trust funds, medicaid, public assistance maintenance grants, social services grants under title IV of the Social Security Act, food stamps, military retirement pay, and judicial salaries. In addition, no program can be cut by more than 10 percent in order to meet the congressionally-imposed level of spending. These latter provisions are in accordance with the Jordan amendment, adopted by the Senate last year as part of the debt ceiling bill. Mr. President, the present controversy over the budget is being portrayed by many as a battle between the savers in the administration and the spenders in the Congress. I disagree with this conclusion. It is not accurate. I am confident that Congress wants to limit Federal spending fully as much as the President does. The question is whether Congress will live up to its responsibility to make appropriations in a responsible way so that we can avoid additional tax increases, fund only programs that are working, and cut the fat out of wasteful programs. I am confident Congress wants to do this and can do it. The Federal Spending Control Act of 1973 offers a practical way of accomplishing this goal. |