Establishing the budget for the United States Government for fiscal year 2016 and setting forth appropriate…

Establishes the congressional budget for the federal government for FY2016 and sets forth budgetary levels for FY2017-FY2025.

TITLE I--RECOMMENDED LEVELS AND AMOUNTS

(Sec. 101) Recommends levels and amounts for FY2016-FY2025 for federal revenues, new budget authority, budget outlays, deficits (on-budget), debt subject to limit, and debt held by the public.

(Sec. 102) Recommends levels of new budget authority and outlays for FY2016-FY2025 for each major functional category, including:

• National Defense;
• International Affairs;
• General Science, Space, and Technology;
• Energy;
• Natural Resources and Environment;
• Agriculture;
• Commerce and Housing Credit;
• Transportation;
• Community and Regional Development;
• Education, Training, Employment, and Social Services;
• Health;
• Medicare;
• Income Security;
• Social Security;
• Veterans Benefits and Services;
• Administration of Justice;
• General Government;
• Net Interest;
• Allowances;
• Government-wide Savings;
• Undistributed Offsetting Receipts;
• Overseas Contingency Operations/ Global War on Terrorism; and
• Across-the-Board Adjustment.

TITLE II--RECONCILIATION

(Sec. 201) Includes reconciliation instructions directing 13 House authorizing committees to submit to the House Budget Committee by July 15, 2015, legislation reducing the deficit by specified amounts over FY2016-FY2025. (Under the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, reconciliation bills are considered by Congress using expedited legislative procedures that prevent a filibuster and restrict amendments in the Senate.)

(Sec. 202) Requires the chairman of the House Budget Committee to use the Congressional Budget Office's (CBO's) January 2015 baseline when estimating the costs of legislation. Permits the chairman to determine whether adjustments to the baseline made after this resolution is adopted should be used. Requires the committees directed to submit reconciliation legislation to determine the most effective methods for repealing the Affordable Care Act. Permits the chairman to revise budgetary levels and allocations to reflect the impact of reconciliation legislation.

(Sec. 203) Authorizes the chairman to develop additional guidelines providing further information, budgetary levels and amounts, and other explanatory materials to guide committees required to submit reconciliation legislation.

TITLE III--SUBMISSIONS FOR THE ELIMINATION OF WASTE, FRAUD, AND ABUSE

(Sec. 301) Requires specified House committees to submit to the House Budget Committee findings identifying changes in law to achieve savings through eliminating waste, fraud, and abuse. Requires the Government Accountability Office to report to Congress on legislative changes the committees may make to improve the economy, efficiency, and effectiveness of programs within their jurisdiction.

TITLE IV--BUDGET ENFORCEMENT

(Sec. 401) Requires CBO and the Joint Committee on Taxation to incorporate macroeconomic effects in estimates of specified legislation (commonly referred to as dynamic scoring).

(Sec. 402) Prohibit Congress from considering legislation in FY2016 that reduces the actuarial balance of the Social Security trust funds below specified levels.

(Sec. 403) Provides that the administrative expenses of the Social Security Administration and the United States Postal Service are reflected in the allocation to the House Appropriations Committee to ensure that the Committee retains control over the expenses through the annual appropriations process.

(Sec. 404) Requires transfers of funds from the general fund of the Treasury to the Highway Trust Fund to be counted as new budget authority and outlays in the year the transfer occurs.

(Sec. 405) Prohibits advanced appropriations unless: (1) the appropriation is provided for an account listed as an exception in the report accompanying this resolution, and (2) total advanced appropriations do not exceed a specified amount. (Under this resolution, an advanced appropriation is any new discretionary budget authority provided in appropriations legislation for the fiscal year following FY2016.)

(Sec. 406) Requires CBO, upon request of the chairman or ranking Member of the House Budget Committee, to include an estimate of the current actual or estimated market values representing the ''fair value'' of assets and liabilities in estimates for certain federal credit programs under the Federal Credit Reform Act of 1990. Permits the chair to use the estimates to determine compliance with the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 and other budget enforcement controls.

(Sec. 407) Establishes a point of order against legislation with a net effect of increasing direct spending by more than $5 billion in any of the four consecutive ten-year periods beginning in FY2026.

(Sec. 408) Provides the House Appropriations Committee with a separate allocation for Overseas Contingency Operations/Global War on Terrorism and specifies procedures for enforcing the allocation.

(Sec. 409) Authorizes the chairman of the House Budget Committee to adjust committee allocations and levels in this resolution if legislation decreases direct spending in any fiscal year and authorizes appropriations for the same purpose.

(Sec. 410) Sets forth procedures for the adjustment of allocations, aggregates, and other levels included in this resolution.

(Sec. 411) Affirms that the adoption of the budget resolution is an exercise of the House's rulemaking power and that the House has the constitutional right to change these rules.

TITLE V--RESERVE FUNDS

Establishes reserve funds that permit the chairman of the House Budget Committee to adjust the levels and allocations included in the budget resolution to accommodate health, tax reform, trade, education, retirement, transportation, and defense legislation that meets specified conditions.

(Sec. 501) Establishes a reserve fund for legislation that repeals or modifies the Affordable Care Act and the health care-related provisions of the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010.

(Sec. 502) Establishes a deficit-neutral reserve fund for health care reform legislation that would not increase the deficit over the FY2016-FY2025 period.

(Sec. 503) Establishes a deficit-neutral reserve fund for legislation that repeals Medicare spending decreases included in the Affordable Care Act or the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 and would not increase the deficit over the FY2016-FY2025 period.

(Sec. 504) Establishes a deficit-neutral reserve fund for legislation that extends the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) and would not increase the deficit over the FY2016-FY2025 period.

(Sec. 505) Establishes a deficit-neutral reserve fund for legislation that reforms, expands access to, and improves graduate medical education programs and would not increase the deficit over the FY2016-FY2025 period.

(Sec. 506) Establishes a deficit-neutral reserve fund for legislation that implements a trade agreement and would not increase the deficit over the FY2016-FY2025 period.

(Sec. 507) Establishes a deficit-neutral reserve fund for legislation that reforms the tax code and would not increase the deficit over the FY2016-FY2025 period.

(Sec. 508) Establishes a deficit-neutral reserve fund for legislation that decreases revenue and would not increase the deficit over the FY2016-FY2025 period.

(Sec. 509) Establishes a deficit-neutral reserve fund for legislation that reforms policies and programs to reduce poverty and increase opportunity and upward mobility, without adversely impacting job creation or increasing the deficit over the period of FY2016 -FY2025.

(Sec. 510) Establishes a deficit-neutral reserve fund for legislation that maintains the solvency of the Highway Trust Fund and would not increase the deficit over the FY2016-FY2025 period.

(Sec. 511) Establishes a deficit-neutral reserve fund for legislation that reforms, improves, and updates the federal retirement system and would not increase the deficit over the period of FY2016 -FY2025.

(Sec. 512) Establishes a deficit-neutral reserve fund for legislation that supports specified defense activities and would not increase the deficit (without counting any net revenue increases in the legislation) over the period of FY2016-FY2025.

TITLE VI--ESTIMATES OF DIRECT SPENDING

(Sec. 601) Provides estimates for the rate of growth in means-tested and non-means-tested direct spending and proposes changes to Medicare, Medicaid, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly known as the food stamp program), and federal employee retirement contributions.

TITLE VII--RECOMMENDED LONG-TERM LEVELS

(Sec. 701) Recommends long-term levels for revenues, outlays, deficits, and debt as a percentage of the gross domestic product of the United States in FY2030, FY2035, and FY2040.

TITLE VIII--POLICY STATEMENTS

(Sec. 801) States the policy of this resolution that Congress should pass and send to the states for approval a joint resolution to amend the Constitution to require an annual balanced budget.

(Sec. 802) States the policy of this resolution that Congress must restructure and reform the budget process, reassert its role as the government's spending authority, and change the treatment of tax cut extensions in the baseline.

(Sec. 803) States the policy of this resolution to promote faster economic growth and job creation.

(Sec. 804) States the policy of this resolution that Congress should enact legislation that provides comprehensive tax reform to promote economic growth, create jobs, increase wages; and benefit consumers, investors, and workers.

(Sec. 805) States the policy of this resolution to pursue international trade, global commerce, and a modern and competitive U.S. international tax system to promote job creation in the United States.

(Sec. 806) States the policy of this resolution that Congress should work on a bipartisan basis to make Social Security sustainably solvent and reform the Disability Insurance program prior to its insolvency in 2016.

(Sec. 807) States the policy of this resolution to repeal the Affordable Care Act and promote health care reforms.

(Sec. 808) States the policy of this resolution to preserve Medicare for those in or near retirement and strengthen the program for future beneficiaries. Sets forth the assumptions of this resolution regarding Medicare reform.

(Sec. 809) States the policy of this resolution to support the work of medical innovators, including the private sector, medical centers and the National Institutes of Health.

(Sec. 810) States the policy of this resolution that the public is currently burdened by excessive regulation and that Congress should enact legislation protecting the public from additional, unnecessary regulations.

(Sec. 811) States the policies of this resolution for addressing higher education affordability and the failings in the current workforce development system.

(Sec. 812) States the policy of this resolution to support the continued oversight efforts of the Department of Veterans Affairs by Congress and its committees.

(Sec. 813) States the policy of this resolution that Congress should adopt reforms of budget and accounting practices to enable the public to better understand the fiscal situation of the United States and the options best suited to improving it.

(Sec. 814) States the policy of the House of Representatives to more effectively allocate and accurately enforce budget targets by agreeing to a procedure for addressing the direct out-year budgetary effects of changes to mandatory programs included in appropriations legislation.

(Sec. 815) States the policy of this resolution that each authorizing committee must submit to the House Budget Committee recommendations for reductions in spending that result from oversight activities, and that each congressional committee must annually review its programs to ensure they are operating efficiently and effectively.

(Sec. 816) States the policy of this resolution that congressional committees should identify and achieve savings for deficit reduction through the cancellation or rescission of unobligated balances.

(Sec. 817) States the policy of this resolution that Congress must reassert its constitutional prerogative to control spending and conduct oversight by enacting legislation requiring programs funded through fees, offsetting receipts, or offsetting collections to be allocated new budget authority annually.

(Sec. 818) States the policy of this resolution to identify savings that can be achieved through greater productivity and efficiency gains in the operation and maintenance of the House of Representatives.

(Sec. 819) States the policy of this resolution that Congress should agree to a budget resolution every year and that compensation for Members of Congress should be withheld if either chamber has not agreed to a budget resolution by April 15, as required by the Congressional Budget Act of 1974.

(Sec. 820) States the policy of this resolution to ensure robust funding for national defense while maintaining overall fiscal discipline and to encourage an immediate reevaluation of federal government priorities to maintain the strength of America's national security posture.

Written by the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service. All summary versions on Congress.gov