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H.J.Res. 6119th CongressIn committeeLatest action Jan 3, 2025Decoded by AI · checked against the record
Official title: Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States to provide for balanced budgets for the Government.
Introduced:
Read the official bill on Congress.govThe plain-language version leads. The official text is always the reference.
A proposed constitutional amendment would require a balanced federal budget unless two-thirds of Congress votes otherwise.
45-second read · 4 questions answered below
This bill proposes a constitutional amendment requiring the federal government to balance its budget yearly, generally barring spending beyond revenue. Deficit spending would need a two-thirds recorded vote in both chambers, except during a declared war, national emergency, or natural disaster approved by a simple majority joint resolution. The President would submit a balanced budget proposal annually, and Congress could pass enforcement laws.
All Americans would be affected indirectly, since the requirement could change how federal spending on programs like Social Security, Medicare, and defense is decided. Congress and the President would carry out the new budget procedures.
The requirement would not take effect immediately, needing approval by two-thirds of Congress, ratification by 38 states, and would start in the fifth fiscal year after ratification. It could significantly limit deficit spending, particularly during economic downturns when governments typically spend more than they collect.
AI-drafted summary. Verify it against the official text before you act on it. Read the official bill on Congress.gov
Right now: a House committee is reviewing it. If the Senate changes it, it goes back to the House — both chambers have to pass the same text, each by two thirds. A proposed constitutional amendment never goes to the President: it goes to the states, and three quarters of them have to ratify it before it takes effect.
Latest action: — Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.