Line Item Veto Act of 1996

Section 1025

TITLE X—IMPOUNDMENT CONTROL

PART C—LINE ITEM VETO

expedited congressional consideration of disapproval bills

Sec. 1025.^[1] (a) Receipt and Referral of Special Message.—Each special message transmitted under this part shall be referred to the Committee on the Budget and the appropriate committee or committees of the Senate and the Committee on the Budget and the appropriate committee or committees of the House of Representatives. Each such message shall be printed as a document of the House of Representatives.^[2]

(b) Time Period for Expedited Procedures.—

(1) There shall be a congressional review period of 30 calendar days of session, beginning on the first calendar day of session after the date on which the special message is received in the House of Representatives and the Senate, during which the procedures contained in this section shall apply to both Houses of Congress.

(2) In the House of Representatives the procedures set forth in this section shall not apply after the end of the period described in paragraph (1).

(3) If Congress adjourns at the end of a Congress prior to the expiration of the period described in paragraph (1) and a disapproval bill was then pending in either House of Congress or a committee thereof (including a conference committee of the two Houses of Congress), or was pending before the President, a disapproval bill for the same special message may be introduced within the first five calendar days of session of the next Congress and shall be treated as a disapproval bill under this part, and the time period described in paragraph (1) shall commence on the day of introduction of that disapproval bill.

(c) Introduction of Disapproval Bills.—(1) In order for a disapproval bill to be considered under the procedures set forth in this section, the bill must meet the definition of a disapproval bill and must be introduced no later than the fifth calendar day of session following the beginning of the period described in subsection (b)(1).

(2) In the case of a disapproval bill introduced in the House of Representatives, such bill shall include in the first blank space referred to in section 1026(6)(C) a list of the reference numbers for all cancellations made by the President in the special message to which such disapproval bill relates.

(d) Consideration in the House of Representatives.—(1) Any committee of the House of Representatives to which a disapproval bill is referred shall report it without amendment, and with or without recommendation, not later than the seventh calendar day of session after the date of its introduction. If any committee fails to report the bill within that period, it is in order to move that the House discharge the committee from further consideration of the bill, except that such a motion may not be made after the committee has reported a disapproval bill with respect to the same special message. A motion to discharge may be made only by a Member favoring the bill (but only at a time or place designated by the Speaker in the legislative schedule of the day after the calendar day on which the Member offering the motion announces to the House his intention to do so and the form of the motion). The motion is highly privileged. Debate thereon shall be limited to not more than one hour, the time to be divided in the House equally between a proponent and an opponent. The previous question shall be considered as ordered on the motion to its adoption without intervening motion. A motion to reconsider the vote by which the motion is agreed to or disagreed to shall not be in order.

(2) After a disapproval bill is reported or a committee has been discharged from further consideration, it is in order to move that the House resolve into the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union for consideration of the bill. If reported and the report has been available for at least one calendar day, all points of order against the bill and against consideration of the bill are waived. If discharged, all points of order against the bill and against consideration of the bill are waived. The motion is highly privileged. A motion to reconsider the vote by which the motion is agreed to or disagreed to shall not be in order. During consideration of the bill in the Committee of the Whole, the first reading of the bill shall be dispensed with. General debate shall proceed, shall be confined to the bill, and shall not exceed one hour equally divided and controlled by a proponent and an opponent of the bill. The bill shall be considered as read for amendment under the five minute rule. Only one motion to rise shall be in order, except if offered by the manager. No amendment to the bill is in order, except any Member if supported by 49 other Members (a quorum being present) may offer an amendment striking the reference number or numbers of a cancellation or cancellations from the bill. Consideration of the bill for amendment shall not exceed one hour excluding time for recorded votes and quorum calls. No amendment shall be subject to further amendment, except pro forma amendments for the purposes of debate only. At the conclusion of the consideration of the bill for amendment, the Committee shall rise and report the bill to the House with such amendments as may have been adopted. The previous question shall be considered as ordered on the bill and amendments thereto to final passage without intervening motion. A motion to reconsider the vote on passage of the bill shall not be in order.

(3) Appeals from decisions of the Chair regarding application of the rules of the House of Representatives to the procedure relating to a disapproval bill shall be decided without debate.

(4) It shall not be in order to consider under this subsection more than one disapproval bill for the same special message except for consideration of a similar Senate bill (unless the House has already rejected a disapproval bill for the same special message) or more than one motion to discharge described in paragraph (1) with respect to a disapproval bill for that special message.

(e) Consideration in the Senate.—

(1) Referral and reporting.—Any disapproval bill introduced in the Senate shall be referred to the appropriate committee or committees. A committee to which a disapproval bill has been referred shall report the bill not later than the seventh day of session following the date of introduction of that bill. If any committee fails to report the bill within that period, that committee shall be automatically discharged from further consideration of the bill and the bill shall be placed on the Calendar.

(2) Disapproval bill from the house.—When the Senate receives from the House of Representatives a disapproval bill, such bill shall not be referred to committee and shall be placed on the Calendar.

(3) Consideration of single disapproval bill.—After the Senate has proceeded to the consideration of a disapproval bill for a special message, then no other disapproval bill originating in that same House relating to that same message shall be subject to the procedures set forth in this subsection.

(4) Amendments.—

(A) Amendments in order.—The only amendments in order to a disapproval bill are—

(i) an amendment that strikes the reference number of a cancellation from the disapproval bill; and

(ii) an amendment that only inserts the reference number of a cancellation included in the special message to which the disapproval bill relates that is not already contained in such bill.

(B) Waiver or appeal.—An affirmative vote of three-fifths of the Senators, duly chosen and sworn, shall be required in the Senate—

(i) to waive or suspend this paragraph; or

(ii) to sustain an appeal of the ruling of the Chair on a point of order raised under this paragraph.

(5) Motion nondebatable.—A motion to proceed to consideration of a disapproval bill under this subsection shall not be debatable. It shall not be in order to move to reconsider the vote by which the motion to proceed was adopted or rejected, although subsequent motions to proceed may be made under this paragraph.

(6) Limit on consideration.—(A) After no more than 10 hours of consideration of a disapproval bill, the Senate shall proceed, without intervening action or debate (except as permitted under paragraph (9)), to vote on the final disposition thereof to the exclusion of all amendments not then pending and to the exclusion of all motions, except a motion to reconsider or to table.

(B) A single motion to extend the time for consideration under subparagraph (A) for no more than an additional five hours is in order prior to the expiration of such time and shall be decided without debate.

(C) The time for debate on the disapproval bill shall be equally divided between the Majority Leader and the Minority Leader or their designees.

(7) Debate on amendments.—Debate on any amendment to a disapproval bill shall be limited to one hour, equally divided and controlled by the Senator proposing the amendment and the majority manager, unless the majority manager is in favor of the amendment, in which case the minority manager shall be in control of the time in opposition.

(8) No motion to recommit.—A motion to recommit a disapproval bill shall not be in order.

(9) Disposition of senate disapproval bill.—If the Senate has read for the third time a disapproval bill that originated in the Senate, then it shall be in order at any time thereafter to move to proceed to the consideration of a disapproval bill for the same special message received from the House of Representatives and placed on the Calendar pursuant to paragraph (2), strike all after the enacting clause, substitute the text of the Senate disapproval bill, agree to the Senate amendment, and vote on final disposition of the House disapproval bill, all without any intervening action or debate.

(10) Consideration of house message.—Considera­tion in the Senate of all motions, amendments, or ap­peals necessary to dispose of a message from the House of Representatives on a disapproval bill shall be limited to not more than four hours. Debate on each motion or amendment shall be limited to 30 minutes. Debate on any appeal or point of order that is submitted in con­nection with the disposition of the House message shall be limited to 20 minutes. Any time for debate shall be equally divided and controlled by the proponent and the majority manager, unless the majority manager is a proponent of the motion, amendment, appeal, or point of order, in which case the minority manager shall be in control of the time in opposition.

(f) Consideration in Conference.—

(1) Convening of conference.—In the case of disagreement between the two Houses of Congress with respect to a disapproval bill passed by both Houses, conferees should be promptly appointed and a conference promptly convened, if necessary.

(2) House consideration.—(A) Notwithstanding any other rule of the House of Representatives, it shall be in order to consider the report of a committee of conference relating to a disapproval bill provided such report has been available for one calendar day (excluding Saturdays, Sundays, or legal holidays, unless the House is in session on such a day) and the accompanying statement shall have been filed in the House.

(B) Debate in the House of Representatives on the conference report and any amendments in disagreement on any disapproval bill shall each be limited to not more than one hour equally divided and controlled by a proponent and an opponent. A motion to further limit debate is not debatable. A motion to recommit the conference report is not in order, and it is not in order to move to reconsider the vote by which the conference report is agreed to or disagreed to.

(3) Senate consideration.—Consideration in the Senate of the conference report and any amendments in disagreement on a disapproval bill shall be limited to not more than four hours equally divided and controlled by the Majority Leader and the Minority Leader or their designees. A motion to recommit the conference report is not in order.

(4) Limits on scope.—(A) When a disagreement to an amendment in the nature of a substitute has been referred to a conference, the conferees shall report those cancellations that were included in both the bill and the amendment, and may report a cancellation included in either the bill or the amendment, but shall not include any other matter.

(B) When a disagreement on an amendment or amendments of one House to the disapproval bill of the other House has been referred to a committee of conference, the conferees shall report those cancellations upon which both Houses agree and may report any or all of those cancellations upon which there is disagreement, but shall not include any other matter.

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counsel NOTES

Endnotes

[1] This section was originally classified to the U.S. Code at 2 U.S.C. 691a (section omitted from code).

[2] On November 13, 1997, President William J. Clinton vetoed H.R. 2631, the first disapproval bill to reach his desk under the provisions of the Line Item Veto Act of 1996. The House voted to override on Feb. 5, 1998 (347-69), and the Senate voted to do so on Feb. 25, 1998 (78-20). Hence the disapproval bill was enacted over the President’s veto (P.L. 105-159).

CODIFICATION

Section 1025 was codified as section 691d in title 2 of the U.S. Code, Pub. L. 93–344, title X, §1025, as added by section 2 of Pub. L. 104–130, §2(a), Apr. 9, 1996, 110 Stat. 1203, related to expedited congressional consideration of disapproval bills.

Joint Statement of Managers on the Line Item Veto Act of 1996

The Conference Report on the Line Item Veto Act of 1996 (H. Rept. 104-491):

Sec. 1025. Expedited congressional consideration of disapproval bills

Section 1025 adopts the House provision with modifications providing for expedited procedures to consider disapproval bills. The conferees clearly intend this language to stand separate and apart from the language currently found in part B of title X of the Budget Act with regard to consideration of proposed rescissions, reservations, and deferrals of budget authority. The language of the conference report is directed solely at Congress’ ability to respond to the cancellation authority of the Executive and is in no way intended to impact on or be defined by existing title X procedures.

The conference report provides Congress with 30 calendar days of session to consider a disapproval bill under expedited procedures. A “calendar day of session” is defined as only those days during which both Houses of Congress are in session. It is assumed Congress would want to act quickly on any disapproval bills. This time period is available to provide Congress with flexibility to schedule consideration of a disapproval bill during a busy legislative session.

During this time period, a disapproval bill may qualify for the expedited procedures in each House. However, upon the expiration of this period, a disapproval bill may no longer qualify for these expedited procedures in the House of Representatives. In the Senate, a disapproval bill which began consideration under these expedited procedures may continue within such procedures notwithstanding the expiration of the time period.

Upon final Congressional adjournment, if a disapproval bill relating to a special message was pending before either House of Congress or any committee thereof or was pending before the President (i.e. a pocket veto), and the time period has not expired, a new disapproval bill with respect to the same message may be introduced within the first five calendar days of session of the next Congress. This disapproval bill qualifies for the expedited procedures outlined above and the period for Congressional consideration begins anew.

A special Presidential message relating to a law could include a number of cancellations. In establishing expedited procedures for the consideration of a disapproval bill, the conference report seeks to find a balance between providing a procedure to guarantee that Congress can quickly disapprove the President’s cancellations while giving Congress the flexibility to pick and choose among the cancellations to include in the disapproval bill. In both Houses of Congress, quick action is encouraged in that only one bill may ultimately be acted upon for each special message using these expedited procedures.

It should be noted that the expedited procedures provide strict time limitations at all stages of floor consideration of a disapproval bill. The conferees intend to provide both Houses of Congress with the means to expeditiously reach a resolution and to foreclose any and all delaying tactics (including, but clearly not limited to: extraneous amendments, repeated quorum calls, motions to recommit, or motions to instruct conferees).

The conferees believe these expedited procedures provide ample time for Congress to consider the President’s cancellations and work its will upon them.
Section 1025(a) provides for the receipt and referral of the special message in both Houses of Congress. Upon the cancellation of a dollar amount of discretionary budget authority, an item of direct spending or a limited tax benefit under section 1021(a), the President must transmit to Congress a special message outlining the cancellation as required by section 1022.

When Congress receives this special message it shall be referred to the Budget Committees and the appropriate committee or committees in each House. For example, the message pertaining to the cancellation of a dollar amount of discretionary budget authority from an appropriation law would be referred to the Committee on Appropriations of each House. A special message pertaining to the cancellation of an item of direct spending would be referred to the authorizing committee or committees of each House from which the original authorization law derived. Any special message relating to more than one committee’s jurisdiction, i.e. a cancellation message from a large omnibus law such as a reconciliation law, shall be referred to the appropriate committees in each House. Each special message shall be printed as a document of the House of Representatives.

[U.S. Congress, Joint Explanatory Statement on the Committee of Conference on S.4; (H. Rept. 104-491), Committee on Government Reform, House of Representatives, 104^th Congress, 2d Session, Washington D.C. 1996.]

Expedited Procedures of the House and the Senate 

This section established expedited procedures in both the House and the Senate for the “special messages” sent by the President upon his veto of any line item. For a more information on these procedures, see the  Joint Explanatory Statement of Managers of Managers for section 1025.

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LEGISLATIVE HISTORY NOTES

PUBLIC LAWS

Pub. L. 93–344, title IV. Section §1025 was added to the Impoundment Control Act of 1974 by Section 2 of the Line Item Veto Act (Pub. L. 104–130, 110 Stat. 1200).

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[BCR § 195]