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HJRES 12 114th Congress House

Proposing a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution of the United States.

Introduced: February 25, 2016 See on congress.gov
Economics and Public Finance Budget deficits and national debtConstitution and constitutional amendmentsIncome tax ratesLegislative rules and procedure
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This bill died when the 114th Congress ended
It never became law before the 114th Congress (2015–2016) adjourned, and bills don't carry over to the next Congress. It would have to be reintroduced. You can still save it for reference, but it won't receive updates.
 Everywhere this bill has been 3 steps
Introduced
In committee
Reported out
Passed House
Passed Senate
To President
Became law
Jan 12, 2015
Referred to the Subcommittee on the Constitution and Civil Justice.
Jan 9, 2015
Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
Jan 9, 2015
Introduced in House
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 Latest action January 12, 2015

Referred to the Subcommittee on the Constitution and Civil Justice.

 Plain-English summary Congressional Research Service

Constitutional Amendment

This joint resolution proposes a constitutional amendment prohibiting total outlays for a fiscal year from exceeding total receipts for that fiscal year unless Congress authorizes the excess by a three-fifths roll call vote of each chamber. The prohibition excludes outlays for repayment of debt principal and receipts derived from borrowing.

The amendment prohibits total outlays for any fiscal year from exceeding one-fifth of the economic output of the United States, unless two-thirds of each house of Congress provides for a specific increase above this amount.

The amendment requires a three-fifths roll call vote of each chamber of Congress to increase the public debt limit or to increase revenue. It also requires the President to submit a balanced budget to Congress annually.

Congress is authorized to waive these requirements when a declaration of war is in effect or if the United States is engaged in a military conflict which causes an imminent and serious military threat to national security.

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  • HJRES 1 Identical bill Proposing a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution of the United States.
 Bill text 1 version

Source documents hosted by congress.gov.

 Committees of jurisdiction 2
 Cosponsors 2
All 2 Republican 1
R
Loudermilk, Barry
Georgia · Feb 25, 2016
Brat, Dave
· Feb 12, 2016
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APA
U.S. Congress. (2026). H.J. Res. 12: Proposing a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution of the United States.. 114th Congress. Open America. https://openamerica.io/bill/114-HJRES-12/
MLA
"H.J. Res. 12: Proposing a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution of the United States.." 114th Congress, 2026, Open America, https://openamerica.io/bill/114-HJRES-12/.
Bluebook (legal)
H.J. Res. 12, 114th Cong. (2026), https://openamerica.io/bill/114-HJRES-12/.
Markdown link
[H.J. Res. 12: Proposing a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution of the United States.](https://openamerica.io/bill/114-HJRES-12/)
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