Download Locations

• Open CRS (User submitted)
• WikiLeaks

Summary

On April 30, 2008, the Bureau of Economic Analysis of the Department of Commerce announced that two consecutive quarters of less than 1% growth in the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) recently had occurred (0.6% growth for both the fourth quarter of 2007 and the first quarter of 2008). In the past, the principal budget enforcement laws provided for the suspension of selected budget enforcement procedures because of low economic growth (e.g., at least two consecutive quarters of GDP growth below 1% or negative growth) or war. With regard to low economic growth, a suspension procedure set forth in the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985, as amended, would have been triggered automatically by the issuance of a "low-growth report" by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO). Under the suspension procedure, certain budget enforcement procedures would have been suspended if Congress and the President enacted a "suspension resolution." Action on a suspension was required in the Senate but was optional in the House. During the years that these suspension provisions were available, the United States was in a period of sustained low economic growth only twice -- in late 1990/early 1991 and in late 2001/early 2002. CBO issued low-growth reports three times in 1991, but in each instance a measure to suspend enforcement procedures was defeated in the Senate by a wide margin. More recently, CBO issued low-growth reports on October 31, 2001, and on January 30, 2002. In each instance, the Senate Budget Committee reported unfavorably a suspension resolution that subsequently was defeated on the floor. The Senate rejected S.J.Res. 28 on November 13, 2001, by a vote of 1-99, and rejected S.J.Res. 31 on February 14, 2002, by voice vote. No suspension resolutions were enacted, although the Senate considered (and rejected) a total of five such measures in the 102nd and 107th Congresses. The House did not consider any suspension resolutions under this procedure. In 2008, any determination by CBO of low economic growth would not lead to the issuance of a low-growth report by the agency, or House or Senate consideration of a suspension resolution, because the suspension procedure in the 1985 Balanced Budget Act expired on September 30, 2006. While this procedure no longer may be used to suspend budget enforcement procedures, the House and Senate may employ other common techniques to waive the procedures on a bill-by-bill basis. On February 13, 2008, for example, President George W. Bush signed the Economic Stimulus Act of 2008 (P.L. 110-185) into law; the act increases the deficits for FY2008 and FY2009 by a total of $168 billion. The House passed the bill on January 29, 2008, under the "suspension of the rules procedure" (which requires a two-thirds affirmative vote), by a vote of 385-35. The Senate passed the measure on February 6, 2008, employing various procedural devices to expedite its consideration and including a waiver of budget enforcement rules in Section 301 of the act.

Related Legislation:
• S.J.RES.28
• S.J.RES.31

XML - JSON