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United States · Bill · HJRES

H.J.Res. 40 (116th)

Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States requiring that the Federal budget be balanced.

referredUnited States· United States Congress· EN

Introduced

30 January 2019

Last action

30 January 2019 · Introduced

Status

Referred to the Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties.

Sponsors

Barry Loudermilk, Doug Collins, H. Griffith, Jody Hice, Alexander Mooney, Rep. Weber, Randy K. Sr. [R-TX-14], Scott DesJarlais, Kevin Hern, Denver Riggleman, Ron Wright, Jeff Duncan

Subjects

Rule of law, Taxation, Budget

Source updated

4 December 2025

Rule of law · Taxation · Budget

Summary

Constitutional Amendment This joint resolution proposes a constitutional amendment prohibiting total outlays for a fiscal year from exceeding total receipts for that fiscal year or 18% of the U.S. gross domestic product unless Congress authorizes the excess by a two-thirds vote of each chamber. The prohibition excludes outlays for repayment of debt principal and receipts derived from borrowing. The amendment requires a two-thirds vote of each chamber of Congress to levy a new tax, increase the rate of any tax, or increase the debt limit. The amendment provides any Member of Congress with standing and a cause of action to seek judicial enforcement of this amendment if authorized by a petition signed by one-third of the Members of either house of Congress. Courts are prohibited from ordering any increase in revenue to enforce this amendment.

This text is taken from the official record. PoliticalRepo does not editorialize.

Timeline

  1. 30 January 2019

    Referred

    Referred to the Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties.

    Source: Committee

  2. 30 January 2019

    Introduced

    Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.

    Source: IntroReferral

  3. 30 January 2019

    Introduced

    Introduced in House

    Source: IntroReferral

  4. 30 January 2019

    Introduced

    Introduced in House

    Source: IntroReferral

Votes

No vote records are attached yet.

Versions

Documents

3 official files

Introduced in House (text)

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Sponsors

Related records

Sources

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