{
  "id": "RL31913",
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      "title": "Debt Limit Legislation: The House \u201cGephardt Rule\u201d",
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      "source": "EveryCRSReport.com",
      "id": 591348,
      "date": "2019-02-13",
      "retrieved": "2019-12-20T19:59:26.825121",
      "title": "Debt Limit Legislation: The House \u201cGephardt Rule\u201d",
      "summary": "Essentially all of the outstanding debt of the federal government is subject to a statutory limit, which is set forth as a dollar limitation in 31 U.S.C. 3101(b). From time to time, Congress considers and passes legislation to adjust or suspend this limit.\nAt the beginning of the 116th Congress, the House adopted a standing rule that would provide for legislation suspending the statutory debt limit to be considered as passed by the House, without a separate vote, when the House adopts the budget resolution for a fiscal year. This House rule is similar to a previous one related to the debt limit (commonly referred to as the \u201cGephardt rule,\u201d named after its original sponsor, former Representative Richard Gephardt), which was first adopted in 1979 but was repealed at the beginning of the 112th Congress in 2011.\nThe House may also consider debt limit legislation without resorting to the new debt limit rule (and also did so under the former Gephardt rule) either as freestanding legislation, as part of another measure, or as part of a budget reconciliation bill. The Senate does not have (and has never had) a comparable procedure. If it chooses under the new rule to consider such debt-limit legislation, it would do so under its regular legislative process.\nThis report first explains the current House debt limit rule, particularly in relation to the former Gephardt rule. Then, it describes the legislative history of the former rule and reviews how the former rule operated before it was repealed at the beginning of the 112th Congress.\nUnder the former Gephardt rule, in 11 of the 31 years between 1980 and 2010, the rule was either suspended (1988, 1990-1991, 1994-1997, and 1999-2000) or repealed (2001-2002) by the House. In most years in which the rule was suspended, legislation changing the statutory limit was not necessary\u2014that is, at the time, the existing public debt limit was expected to be sufficient.\nDuring the years in which the rule applied (i.e., in the remaining 20 of the 31 years between 1980 and 2010), the rule led to the automatic engrossment of 20 House joint resolutions increasing the statutory limit on the public debt. In effect, under the rule, in these cases, the House was able to initiate legislation increasing the level of the public debt limit without a separate, direct vote on the legislation. Of these 20 joint resolutions, 15 became law. In 10 of these 15 cases, the Senate passed the measure without change, allowing it to be sent to the President for his signature without any further action by the House. In the remaining 5 cases, the Senate amended the rule-initiated legislation, requiring the House to vote on the amended legislation before it could be sent to the President.\nDuring this period, the House also originated and considered debt limit legislation without resorting to the Gephardt rule either as freestanding legislation, as part of another measure, or as part of a budget reconciliation bill. Of the 47 public debt limit changes enacted into law during the period 1980-2010, 32 were enacted without resorting to the Gephardt rule, each requiring the House to vote on such legislation.\nIn total, between 1980 and 2010, the rule effectively allowed the House to avoid a separate, direct vote on 10 of the 47 measures changing the debt limit that were ultimately enacted into law.\nThis report updates the previous one (dated July 27, 2015) with a description of the changes to the former rule.",
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      "source": "EveryCRSReport.com",
      "id": 443382,
      "date": "2015-07-27",
      "retrieved": "2016-04-06T22:44:37.403395",
      "title": "Debt Limit Legislation: The House \"Gephardt Rule\"",
      "summary": "Essentially all of the outstanding debt of the federal government is subject to a statutory limit, which is set forth as a dollar limitation in 31 U.S.C. 3101(b). From time to time, Congress considers and passes legislation to adjust or suspend this limit.\nFormer House Rule XXVIII (commonly referred to as the \u201cGephardt rule,\u201d named after its author, former Representative Richard Gephardt) allowed the House to pass debt limit legislation without requiring a separate vote on the initial consideration of such legislation. The rule, which was established by P.L. 96-78 and first applied in calendar year 1980, provided for the automatic engrossment of a House joint resolution changing the statutory limit on the public debt when the Congress had completed action on the congressional budget resolution. The Senate has never had a comparable procedure; if it chose to consider such a House-passed joint resolution, it did so under its regular legislative process. At the beginning of the 112th Congress (2011-2012), the House repealed House Rule XXVIII.\nIn 11 of the 31 years between 1980 and 2010, the rule was either suspended (1988, 1990-1991, 1994-1997, and 1999-2000) or repealed (2001-2002) by the House. In most years in which the rule was suspended, legislation changing the statutory limit was not necessary; that is, at the time, the existing public debt limit was expected to be sufficient.\nDuring the years in which the rule applied (i.e., in the 20 of the 31 years between 1980 and 2010), the rule led to the automatic engrossment of 20 House joint resolutions increasing the statutory limit on the public debt. In effect, under the rule, in these cases, the House was able to initiate legislation increasing the level of the public debt limit without a separate, direct vote on the legislation. Of these 20 joint resolutions, 15 became law. In 10 of these 15 cases, the Senate passed the measure without change, allowing it to be sent to the President for his signature without any further action by the House. In the remaining five cases, the Senate amended the rule-initiated legislation, requiring the House to vote on the amended legislation before it could be sent to the President.\nDuring this period, the House also originated and considered debt limit legislation without resorting to the Gephardt rule, either as freestanding legislation, as part of another measure, or as part of a budget reconciliation bill. Of the 47 public-debt limit changes enacted into law during the period 1980 to 2010, 32 were enacted without resorting to the Gephardt rule, each requiring the House to vote on such legislation.\nIn total, between 1980 and 2010, the rule effectively allowed the House to avoid a separate, direct vote on 10 of the 47 measures changing the debt limit that were ultimately enacted into law.",
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    {
      "source": "University of North Texas Libraries Government Documents Department",
      "sourceLink": "https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc806571/",
      "id": "RL31913_2008Jul01",
      "date": "2008-07-01",
      "retrieved": "2016-03-19T13:57:26",
      "title": "Developing Debt-Limit Legislation: The House\u2019s \u201dGephardt Rule\u201d",
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  "topics": [
    "Legislative Process"
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}