FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, Contact: (202) 225-3625
September 18, 2000
No. FC 34-A
Congressman Bill Archer (R-TX), Chairman of the Committee on Ways and Means, today announced that on Thursday, September 14, 2000, the Committee ordered favorably reported, as amended, H.R. 5173, the "Debt Relief Lock-Box Reconciliation Act for Fiscal Year 2001," by a recorded vote of 33-0.
DESCRIPTION OF H.R. 5173 AS APPROVED:
Title I. Debt Reduction Lock-Box
A "Public Debt Reduction Payment Account" would be established in the U.S. Department of the Treasury. Money deposited to the account would be off-budget and would be used to reduce the publicly-held debt.
In fiscal year 2001, $42 billion of the on-budget surplus would be deposited into the Public Debt Reduction Payment Account. The statutory limit on the public debt would be reduced by an equal amount.
The Secretary of the Treasury and the Director of the Office of Management and Budget would be required to use the deposited money to promptly reduce the publicly-held debt in a manner consistent with sound debt management policies and goals.
Within 30 days after the deposit is made to the Public Debt Reduction Payment Account, the Secretary would be required to submit a report to the Committee on Ways and Means and the Committee on Finance confirming the establishment of the account, the amount of the deposit, and the Secretary's plans to use the deposit for debt reduction.
No later than October 31, 2002, the Secretary would be required to submit a second report detailing the amount of the deposit, the amount of debt reduction, and a description of the debt instruments that were actually redeemed. The Comptroller General of the United States would be required to submit a report confirming this information no later than November 15, 2002.
The receipts and outlays of the Public Debt Reduction Payment Account would be excluded from official government budget documents and would be submitted separately.
Title II. Social Security and Medicare Lock-Box
It would not be in order in the House of Representatives or the Senate to consider any budget resolution or conference report that would cause the on-budget surplus to be less than the projected surplus in the Medicare Hospital Insurance Trust Fund in any fiscal year.
It would not be in order to consider any subsequent legislation that would cause the on-budget surplus to be less than the projected surplus in the Medicare Hospital Insurance Trust Fund for any fiscal year. An exception would apply to any legislation designated as saving Social Security or Medicare.
These new points of order would effectively prevent the Social Security and Medicare Trust Fund surpluses from being used for other purposes. The surpluses would therefore be used to reduce the publicly-held debt until legislation to save Social Security and Medicare is passed.
The receipts and outlays of the Social Security Trust Funds would be required to be excluded from official government budget documents and would be submitted separately.