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Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States to provide for balanced budgets for the Government.
Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States to provide for balanced budgets for the Government.
Summary
This joint resolution proposes a constitutional amendment requiring that total federal outlays not exceed total receipts for each fiscal year, unless Congress approves a specific deficit by a two-thirds majority vote in both chambers. The President would be required to submit a balanced budget proposal each fiscal year. The amendment could be waived by Congress during wartime, national emergencies, or natural disasters, each with different approval requirements. The amendment would take effect beginning in the fifth fiscal year after ratification.
AI-generated plain-language summary of the bill text — neutral, and may be imperfect. See the full text below for the exact wording.
Sponsor (1)
Money behind the sponsor
Top reported contributors to Brian K. Fitzpatrick’s campaign committee (2024 cycle) — who funds the bill’s sponsor, not a claim about this bill. Data from FEC.
Organizations whose employees gave the most — itemized individual contributions grouped by the donor’s reported employer (FEC Schedule A). Full finance for Brian K. Fitzpatrick → · Outside spending →
Actions (2)
- Jan 3, 2025 Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary. · house
- Jan 3, 2025 Introduced in House
Similar bills (6)
Bills with similar text or summary — includes reintroductions across Congresses. Ranked by semantic similarity of the bill text (computed locally); a neutral discovery aid, not a claim the bills are duplicates.
Text versions (1)
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Full text
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
January 3, 2025
Mr. Fitzpatrick submitted the following joint resolution; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary
JOINT RESOLUTION
Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States to provide for balanced budgets for the Government.
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:
“Article—
“Section 1. Total outlays for any fiscal year shall not exceed total receipts for that fiscal year, unless two-thirds of the whole number of each House of Congress shall provide by law for a specific excess of outlays over receipts by a rollcall vote. “Section 2. Prior to each fiscal year, the President shall transmit to the Congress a proposed budget for the United States Government for that fiscal year in which total outlays do not exceed total receipts. “Section 3. The Congress may waive the provisions of this article for any fiscal year in which a declaration of war is in effect by a rollcall vote. “Section 4. The Congress may waive the provisions of this article for any fiscal year in which a declaration of national emergency is in effect, as so declared by a joint resolution, adopted by a majority of the whole number of each House, which becomes law. “Section 5. The Congress may waive the provisions of this article for any fiscal year in which a declaration of a natural disaster is in effect, as so declared by a joint resolution, adopted by a majority of the whole number of each House, which becomes law. “Section 6. The Congress shall enforce and implement this article by appropriate legislation, which may rely on estimates of outlays and receipts. “Section 7. This article shall take effect beginning with the fifth fiscal year beginning after its ratification.”. <all>
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