This Act creates the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform inside the legislative branch. The Commission will have 18 members appointed by the President and congressional leaders, with two co-chairs from different parties. Its job is to identify policies that improve the medium-term fiscal situation and achieve long-term fiscal sustainability.
The Commission must propose recommendations that: (1) balance the budget (excluding interest on the debt) within 10 years after the Commission is established to stabilize the debt-to-GDP ratio, and (2) meaningfully improve the long-term fiscal outlook, including addressing growth in entitlement spending and the gap between projected revenues and spending. The Commission must vote on a final report within one year of member appointments. A report can be issued only if at least 12 members approve it and those approving include at least 4 members from each of the two main House parties.
The Commission may hold hearings, request information from federal agencies, and must create a website to publish recommendations and member attendance records within 72 hours after meetings. The GAO, CBO, and the Joint Committee on Taxation must provide technical assistance. Members serve without extra pay but may receive travel expenses. The Commission ends 30 days after it submits its final report.
If the Commission submits a report, the President must send Congress a special message and a proposed joint resolution with legislative language to implement the recommendations within 60 days. The President must consult relevant congressional committees, the GAO, and the CBO when preparing that resolution. The Act creates expedited, no-amendment procedures in both the House and Senate for consideration of that Commission joint resolution, with firm timelines for committee reporting and floor votes.
The Act sets up a temporary, bipartisan group to study the federal budget and suggest specific changes aimed at balancing spending and stabilizing the debt ratio within ten years. The Commission will make its recommendations public on a website. The President will send a proposed joint resolution to Congress to put the recommendations into law, and Congress must consider that resolution under fast-track rules. Members of the public can read the Commission report and the President’s special message once they are published.
The Act directs a bipartisan commission to propose specific ways to balance the budget (excluding interest) within ten years and to address long-term drivers of the deficit, like entitlement spending and the revenue-expenditure gap. It also requires technical input from GAO, CBO, and the Joint Committee on Taxation and creates a process to move the Commission’s recommendations quickly through Congress.
No publicly available information.