Developing Debt-Limit Legislation: The House's "Gephardt Rule"

Developing Debt-Limit Legislation:
The House’s “Gephardt Rule”
Updated July 1, 2008
Bill Heniff Jr.
Analyst on the Congress and Legislative Process
Government and Finance Division



Developing Debt-Limit Legislation:
The House’s “Gephardt Rule”
Summary
The amount of money the federal government is allowed to borrow generally is
subject to a statutory limit. From time to time, Congress and the President enact
legislation to adjust this limit.
The House may develop debt-limit legislation under House Rule XXVII,
commonly referred to as the Gephardt rule, named after its author, former
Representative Richard Gephardt. The rule, which was established by P.L. 96-78 and
first applied in calendar year 1980, provides for the automatic engrossment and
transmittal to the Senate of a joint resolution changing the public debt limit, upon the
adoption by Congress of the budget resolution, thereby avoiding a separate vote in
the House on the public debt-limit legislation. The Senate has no comparable
procedure; if it chooses to consider a House-passed joint resolution, it does so under
the regular legislative process.
The House also may develop and consider 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 42 public-debt limit
changes enacted into law during the period 1980 to the present, 28 were enacted
without resorting to the Gephardt rule.
In 11 of the 29 years since the Gephardt rule was established, the rule did not
apply, due to its suspension or repeal by the House (calendar years 1988, 1990-1991,
1994-1997, and 1999-2002). In most cases, the House suspended the rule because
legislation changing the statutory limit was not necessary; at the time, the existing
public debt limit was expected to be sufficient.
During the remaining 18 years, when the rule was in effect, the House originated
19 joint resolutions under this procedure; 14 were signed into law. The first seven
of these 18 joint resolutions were generated under the Gephardt rule in its original
form. The rule was modified in 1983; the current rule is substantively the same as
the 1983 form of the rule. The subsequent 12 joint resolutions were generated under
this modified language. In three years (calendar years 1998, 2004, and 2006), the
House and Senate did not agree to a conference report on the budget resolution and
therefore the automatic engrossment process under the Gephardt rule was not
utilized.
The Senate passed 15 of the 19 joint resolutions automatically engrossed
pursuant to the Gephardt rule, passing 10 without amendment and five with
amendments. Only one of these 15 joint resolutions was not signed into law. Of the
remaining four joint resolutions, the Senate began consideration on one but came to
no resolution on it, took no action on two, and has not taken action on the most recent
one (H.J.Res. 92, 110th Congress).
This report will be updated as developments warrant.



Contents
In troduction ......................................................1
Legislative History of the Gephardt Rule...............................2
Current Features of the Gephardt Rule.................................3
Implementation of the Gephardt Rule..................................4
Appendix. Text of the Gephardt Rule.................................11
List of Tables
Table 1. House Joint Resolutions Increasing the Public Debt Limit
Automatically Engrossed Pursuant to the Gephardt Rule, 1980-2008.....6



Developing Debt-Limit Legislation:
The House’s “Gephardt Rule”
Introduction
The amount of money the federal government is allowed to borrow generally 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 and the President enact legislation adjusting
the limit.1 Legislation adjusting the debt limit takes the form of an amendment to 31
U.S.C. 3101(b), usually striking the current dollar limitation and inserting a new one.
The House may develop debt-limit legislation under House Rule XXVII,
commonly referred to as the Gephardt rule, named after its author, former
Representative Richard Gephardt. The rule, which first applied in calendar year
1980, provides for the automatic engrossment and transmittal to the Senate of a joint
resolution changing the public debt limit, upon the adoption by Congress of the
budget resolution, thereby avoiding a separate vote in the House on the public debt-
limit legislation. The Senate has no comparable procedure; if it chooses to consider
a House-passed joint resolution, it does so under the regular legislative process.
The House also may develop and consider 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.2 Regardless of the process by
which debt-limit legislation is developed, the House Ways and Means Committee
maintains exclusive jurisdiction over debt-limit legislation. (In the Senate, the
Finance Committee has exclusive jurisdiction over debt-limit legislation.)
This report describes the legislative history of the Gephardt rule, explains its
current features, and reviews its implementation from its inception through the
present.


1 For more information on the debt limit, see CRS Report RL31967, The Debt Limit:
History and Recent Increases, by D. Andrew Austin.
2 For more information on these alternative procedures, see CRS Report RS21519,
Legislative Procedures for Adjusting the Public Debt Limit: A Brief Overview, by Bill
Heniff Jr.

Legislative History of the Gephardt Rule
The Gephardt rule, initially codified as Rule XLIX of the Standing Rules of the
House of Representatives, was established by P.L. 96-78 (93 Stat. 589-591), an act
to provide for a temporary increase in the public debt limit. The House adopted the3
legislation (H.R. 5369) by a vote of 219-198 on September 26, 1979.
During consideration of the measure, Representative Gephardt explained that
the purpose of the new House rule was to place the consideration of the public debt
limit within the context of the overall budget policies contained in the annual budget
resolution. In addition, it was intended to reduce the amount of time spent and the
number of votes in the House and in committees on the issue of raising the public
debt limit.
One of the aggregate figures required to be included in the annual budget
resolution is the appropriate level of the public debt. As the budget resolution has
evolved over time from a single-year time frame to a multi-year time frame, the
budget resolution has gone from including a debt-limit level for only one fiscal year
to including debt-limit levels for each fiscal year over a multi-year period. Because
a budget resolution does not become law, it is necessary to enact legislation in order
to implement budget resolution policies regarding debt-limit adjustments. The
Gephardt rule enables the House to combine the finalization of the budget resolution
and the initiation of debt-limit legislation into a single step.
Representative Gephardt stated that the new automatic engrossment process:
puts the consideration of the appropriate level for the debt ceiling where it
legitimately and logically belongs. That is in the context of when we vote for the4
spending that creates the need to change the debt ceiling.
In its original form, the rule required the engrossment of a joint resolution
changing the temporary public debt limit. In 1983, the existing, separate temporary
and permanent statutory limits on the public debt were combined into one permanent
statutory limit (P.L. 98-34). Subsequently, the House amended the Gephardt rule to
reflect this change by agreeing to H.Res. 241 (98th Congress) by voice vote on June
23, 1983.5 Under the modified rule, the automatically engrossed joint resolution
would contain a change to the permanent statutory limit. In addition to this
modification,
The rules change also provided that where a budget resolution contains more
than one public debt limit figure (for the current and the next fiscal year), only


3 For the consideration in the House, see Congressional Record, vol. 125 (September 26,

1979), pp. 26337-26350. The Senate passed H.R. 5369 by a vote of 49-29 on September 28,


1979. For the consideration in the Senate, see Congressional Record, vol. 125 (September

28, 1979), pp. 26669-26691. The President signed the legislation into law on September 29,


1979.


4 Congressional Record, vol. 125 (September 26, 1979), p. 26342.
5 See Congressional Record, vol. 129 (June 23, 1983), pp. 17162-17164.

one joint resolution be engrossed, containing the debt limit figure for the current
fiscal year with a time limitation, and the debt limit figure for the following fiscal6
year as the permanent limit.
During consideration of H.Res. 241, Representative Butler C. Derrick explained
the limitation of a single joint resolution by stating that:
The Committee on Rules ... believes that it is unnecessary and confusing to have
... a single concurrent resolution on the budget trigger the engrossment and
passage of two separate joint resolutions to increase or decrease the public debt7
[limit].
At the beginning of the 106th Congress, the House recodified the rule as House
Rule XXIII. Certain language was deleted and modified from the existing rule but
the revisions were intended to continue the automatic engrossment process “without8
substantive change.”
The House repealed the rule at the beginning of the 107th Congress.9 On the
opening day of the 108th Congress, the House reinstated this automatic engrossing10
process as a new rule, Rule XXVII. The current rule contains the exact language
as Rule XXIII of the 106th Congress.
Current Features of the Gephardt Rule
House Rule XXVII requires that the House clerk automatically engross and
transmit to the Senate, upon the adoption of the budget resolution, a joint resolution
changing the public debt limit to the level specified in the budget resolution. The
rule stipulates that the joint resolution is deemed to have passed the House by the
same vote as the conference report on the budget resolution.
Under clause 2 of the current rule:
If an adopted concurrent resolution under clause 1 sets forth different appropriate
levels of the public debt for separate periods, only one engrossed joint resolution


6 U.S. Congress, Constitution, Jefferson’s Manual, and Rules of the House of
Representatives of the United States, One Hundred Tenth Congress, 109th Cong., 2nd sess.,
H.Doc. 109-157 (Washington: GPO, 2007), p. 981.
7 Congressional Record, vol. 129 (June 23, 1983), p. 17163.
8 See Congressional Record, vol. 145 (January 6, 1999), pp. 206-208; or U.S. Congress,
House Committee on Rules, The Recodification of the Rules of the House ofthst
Representatives, committee print, 106 Cong., 1 sess. (Washington: GPO, 1999), pp. 172-

174.


9 It was repealed by H.Res. 5, adopted on January 3, 2001. See Congressional Record, vol.

147 (January 3, 2001), pp. 24-37.


10 Section 2(t) of H.Res. 5, which was agreed to by the House on January 7, 2003. See
Congressional Record, vol. 149 (January 7, 2003), pp. 7-21.

shall be prepared under clause 1; and the blank referred to in the preceding
sentence shall be filled with the limitation that is to apply for each period.
Further, clause 3(a) of Rule XXVII requires the House Budget Committee and
the conference committee on the budget resolution to issue a clear statement
regarding the impact of the automatically engrossed joint resolution on the public
debt.11 Specifically, clause 3(a) states:
The report of the Committee on the Budget on a concurrent resolution described
in clause 1 and the joint explanatory statement of the managers on a conference
report to accompany such a concurrent resolution each shall contain a clear
statement of the effect the eventual enactment of a joint resolution engrossed
under this rule would have on the statutory limit on the public debt.
The full text of the Gephardt rule in its current form is provided in the
Appendix.
Implementation of the Gephardt Rule
Table 1 provides information on the joint resolutions changing the public debt
limit that were engrossed and deemed passed by the House pursuant to the Gephardt
rule during calendar years 1980-2008.
In 11 of the 29 years since the Gephardt rule was first established, the rule did
not apply, due to its suspension or repeal by the House (calendar years 1988, 1990-
1991, 1994-1997, and 1999-2002).12 In most cases, the House suspended the rule
because legislation changing the statutory limit was not necessary; at the time, the
existing public debt limit was expected to be sufficient. In three cases, the House
passed, or was expected to pass, separate legislation to increase the statutory limit.
As noted above, the rule was repealed at the beginning of the 107th Congress and
therefore did not apply in 2001 and 2002.
During the remaining 18 years, when the rule was in effect, the House originated
19 joint resolutions under this procedure. The first seven of these 18 joint resolutions
were generated under the Gephardt rule in its original form. As mentioned above,
the rule was modified in 1983; the current rule is substantively the same as this 1983
form of the rule. The subsequent 12 joint resolutions were generated under this
modified language. In three years (calendar years 1998, 2004, and 2006), while the
rule was in effect, the House and Senate did not agree to a conference report on the
budget resolution and therefore the automatic engrossment process under the
Gephardt rule was not utilized.


11 For a recent example of such a statement, see U.S. Congress, Committee of Conference,
Concurrent Resolution on the Budget for Fiscal Year 2008, conference report to accompanythst
S.Con.Res. 21, 110 Cong., 1 sess., H.Rept. 110-153 (Washington: GPO, 2007), p. 133.
12 For each of these cases, a brief explanation regarding the rule’s suspension is provided in
the notes at the end of Table 1.

As Table 1 shows, although budget resolutions adopted during this period
contained debt limit amounts for between three and 11 different fiscal years (as the
time frame of each budget resolution dictated), the joint resolutions automatically
engrossed under the Gephardt rule contained debt limit amounts for only one or two
fiscal years, depending on the requirements of the rule at the time. As noted above,
the 1983 modification provided that the automatically engrossed joint resolution
could include multiple debt-limit increases, one temporary and another permanent.
The first three of the 11 joint resolutions automatically engrossed pursuant to this
modified version of the rule contained two different public debt limits and the other
eight contained a single public debt limit.
The Senate passed 15 of the 19 joint resolutions automatically engrossed
pursuant to the Gephardt rule, passing 10 without amendment and five with
amendments. Only one of these 15 joint resolutions was not signed into law.13 Of
the remaining four joint resolutions, the Senate began consideration on one but came
to no resolution on it, took no action on two, and has not taken action on the mostth
recent one (H.J.Res. 92, 110 Congress).
Of the 19 joint resolutions originated by the House under the Gephardt rule, 14
were enacted into law.14


13 Specifically, during the second session of the 99th Congress, the Senate passed, as
amended, the joint resolution (H.J.Res. 668) automatically engrossed by the House and
requested a conference with the House, but no further action was taken (as indicated in
Table 1).
14 During this period, a total of 42 public-debt limit changes were signed into law as
independent measures or as parts of other legislation. For a listing of such changes through
2006, see Table 7.3 in Office of Management and Budget, Historical Tables, Budget of the
U.S. Government, Fiscal Year 2008 (Washington: GPO, 2007), pp. 129-132. The most
recent change (P.L. 110-91) was enacted on September 29, 2007.

CRS-6
Table 1. House Joint Resolutions Increasing the Public Debt Limit
Automatically Engrossed Pursuant to the Gephardt Rule, 1980-2008
Budget ResolutionDebt-limit Resolution
Congress/Senate Initial DispositionFinal Disposition
Session(Date of Action)(Date of Action)Fiscal Year andNumber of Public DebtJoint Resolution #Number of Public Debt
Resolution #Amounts SpecifiedAmounts Set Forth
96/2FY1981 (first)3H.J.Res. 5691Passed without amendmentP.L. 96-286
H.Con.Res. 307(06-26-1980)(06-28-1980)
H.J.Res. 5701Passed without amendmentP.L. 96-556
iki/CRS-RL31913 (12-12-1980) (12-19-1980)
g/wFY1981 (second)3H.J.Res. 6361Laid aside
s.orH.Con.Res. 448(12-12-1980)
leak
97/1FY19823H.J.Res. 2651Passed without amendmentP.L. 97-49
://wikiH.Con.Res. 115(09-29-1981)(09-30-1981)
httpH.J.Res. 2661Passed without amendmentP.L. 97-48
(09-29-1981) (09-30-1981)
97/2FY19833H.J.Res. 5191Passed without amendmentP.L. 97-204
S.Con.Res. 92(06-23-1982)(06-28-1982)
H.J.Res. 5201Passed without amendmentP.L. 97-270
(09-23-1982) (09-30-1982)
98/1FY19844H.J.Res. 3082Passed, amendedP.L. 98-161
H.Con.Res. 91(11-17-1983)(11-21-1983)



CRS-7
Budget ResolutionDebt-limit Resolution
Congress/Senate Initial DispositionFinal Disposition
Session(Date of Action)(Date of Action)Fiscal Year andNumber of Public DebtJoint Resolution #Number of Public Debt
Resolution #Amounts SpecifiedAmounts Set Forth
98/2FY19854H.J.Res. 6542Passed without amendmentP.L. 98-475
H.Con.Res. 280(10-12-1984)(10-13-1984)
99/1FY19864H.J.Res. 3722Passed, amendedP.L. 99-177
S.Con.Res. 32(10-10-1985)(12-12-1985)
99/2FY19873H.J.Res. 6681Passed, amendedSenate requested
S.Con.Res. 120(08-09-1986)conference
iki/CRS-RL31913(08-09-1986) and nofurther action was
g/w take n
s.or
leak100/1FY19883H.J.Res. 3241Passed, amendedP.L. 100-119
H.Con.Res. 93(07-31-1987)(09-29-1987)
://wiki
http100/2FY1989H.Con.Res. 268a3
101/1FY19903H.J.Res. 2801Passed, amendedP.L. 101-140
H.Con.Res. 106(11-07-1989)(11-08-1989)
101/2FY1991b5
H.Con.Res. 310
102/1FY1992c6
H.Con.Res. 121
102/2FY19935H.J.Res. 4941No action taken


H.Con.Res. 287

CRS-8
Budget ResolutionDebt-limit Resolution
Congress/Senate Initial DispositionFinal Disposition
Session(Date of Action)(Date of Action)Fiscal Year andNumber of Public DebtJoint Resolution #Number of Public Debt
Resolution #Amounts SpecifiedAmounts Set Forth
103/1FY19945H.J.Res. 1741No action taken
H.Con.Res. 64
103/2FY1995d5
H.Con.Res. 218
104/1FY1996e7
H.Con.Res. 67
iki/CRS-RL31913104/2FY19976
g/wH.Con.Res. 178f
s.or
leak105/1FY1998g5
H.Con.Res. 84
://wiki105/2FY19996
httpH.Con.Res. 284
106/1FY2000i10
H.Con.Res. 68
106/2FY2001j6
H.Con.Res. 290
107/1FY2002k11
H.Con.Res. 83
107/2FY2003k5


H.Con.Res. 353

CRS-9
Budget ResolutionDebt-limit Resolution
Congress/Senate Initial DispositionFinal Disposition
Session(Date of Action)(Date of Action)Fiscal Year andNumber of Public DebtJoint Resolution #Number of Public Debt
Resolution #Amounts SpecifiedAmounts Set Forth
108/1FY200411H.J.Res. 511Passed without amendmentP.L. 108-24
H.Con.Res. 95(05-23-2003)(05-27-2003)
108/2FY2005l5
S.Con.Res. 95
109/1FY20066H.J.Res. 471Passed without amendmentP.L. 109-182
H.Con.Res. 95(03-16-2006)(03-20-2006)
iki/CRS-RL31913109/2FY20075
g/wH.Con.Res. 376m
s.or
leak110/1FY20086H.J.Res. 431Passed without amendmentP.L. 110-91
S.Con.Res. 21(09-27-2007)(09-29-2007)
://wiki110/2FY20096H.J.Res. 921No action taken (as of July
httpS.Con.Res. 701, 2008)
Sources: Legislative Information System [http://www.congress.gov] and Congressional Record, various years.
Notes: The Gephardt rule provides for the automatic engrossment of a House joint resolution increasing the public debt limit once Congress agrees to the conference report on a budget resolution.th
Initially, the rule was codified as House Rule XLIX. The rule was recodified as House Rule XXIII at the beginning of the 106 Congress, and subsequently was repealed at the beginning ofthth
the 107 Congress. The rule was restored as a new rule, Rule XXVII, by H.Res. 5 at the beginning of the 108 Congress.
a. Pursuant to H.Res. 461, the Gephardt rule was suspended because there was no need to increase the public debt limit. See comments by Rep. Butler C. Derrick in Congressional Record, vol.
134 (May 26, 1988), p. 12529.
b. Pursuant to H.Res. 488, the Gephardt rule was suspended because the House previously had passed and sent to the Senate legislation (H.R. 5355) providing for a long-term increase in the
public debt limit. See comments by Rep. Derrick in Congressional Record, vol. 136 (Oct. 4, 1990), p. 27590.



CRS-10
c. Pursuant to H.Res. 157, the Gephardt rule was suspended because the previous year’s reconciliation act (P.L. 101-508) provided a sufficient increase. See comments by Rep. Derrick in
Congressional Record, vol. 137 (May 22, 1991), p. 11856.
d. Pursuant to H.Res. 418, the Gephardt rule was suspended because at the time the current public debt limit was expected to be sufficient until spring or summer 1995. See comments by Rep.
Anthony C. Beilenson in Congressional Record, vol. 140 (May 5, 1994), pp. 9411-9412.
e. Pursuant to H.Res. 149, the Gephardt rule was suspended because some Members wanted the House to have a separate vote on legislation increasing the public debt limit instead of an automatic
engrossment of such legislation. See comments by Rep. Gerald B. H. Solomon in Congressional Record, vol. 141 (May 17, 1995), pp. 13275-13276.
f. Pursuant to H.Res. 435, the Gephardt rule was suspended because at the time the current public debt limit was expected to be sufficient until at least October 1997. See comments by Rep.
Solomon in Congressional Record, vol. 142 (May 16, 1996), p. 11477.
g. Pursuant to H.Res. 152, the Gephardt rule was suspended because legislation increasing the public debt limit was contemplated by the balanced budget agreement with the White House in
the context of reconciliation legislation. See comments by Rep. Solomon in Congressional Record, vol. 143 (May 20, 1997), pp. 8904-8905.
iki/CRS-RL31913h. The House and Senate did not complete action on the FY1999 budget resolution and therefore the automatic engrossment process under the Gephardt rule was not utilized.
g/w
s.ori. Pursuant to H.Res. 131, the Gephardt rule was suspended, presumably because at the time legislation increasing the public debt limit was not necessary due to expected future surpluses. See
leakCongressional Record, vol. 145 (March 25, 1999), pp. 5671-5672.
://wikij. Pursuant to H.Res. 446, the Gephardt rule was suspended, presumably, as in 1999, because at the time legislation increasing the public debt limit was not necessary due to expected futuresurpluses. See Congressional Record, vol. 146 (March 23, 2000), pp. 3442-3443.
http
k. The Gephardt rule was repealed at the beginning of the 107th Congress by H.Res. 5, adopted on January 3, 2001. See Congressional Record, vol. 147 (Jan. 3, 2001), pp. 24-37.
l. The House and Senate did complete action on the FY2005 budget resolution and therefore the automatic engrossment process under the Gephardt rule was not utilized.
m. The House and Senate did complete action on the FY2007 budget resolution and therefore the automatic engrossment process under the Gephardt rule was not utilized.



Appendix. Text of the Gephardt Rule
(House Rule XXVII)
STATUTORY LIMIT ON PUBLIC DEBT
1. Upon adoption by Congress of a concurrent resolution on the budget under
section 301 or 304 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 that sets forth, as the
appropriate level of the public debt for the period to which the concurrent resolution
relates, an amount that is different from the amount of the statutory limit on the
public debt that otherwise would be in effect for that period, the Clerk shall prepare
an engrossment of a joint resolution increasing or decreasing, as the case may be, the
statutory limit on the public debt in the form prescribed in clause 2. Upon
engrossment of the joint resolution, the vote by which the concurrent resolution on
the budget was finally agreed to in the House shall also be considered as a vote on
passage of the joint resolution in the House, and the joint resolution shall be
considered as passed by the House and duly certified and examined. The engrossed
copy shall be signed by the Clerk and transmitted to the Senate for further legislative
action.
2. The matter after the resolving clause in a joint resolution described in clause
1 shall be as follows: “That subsection (b) of section 3101 of title 31, United States
Code, is amended by striking out the dollar limitation contained in such subsection
and inserting in lieu thereof ‘$______’.”, with the blank being filled with a dollar
limitation equal to the appropriate level of the public debt set forth pursuant to
section 301(a)(5) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 in the relevant concurrent
resolution described in clause 1. If an adopted concurrent resolution under clause 1
sets forth different appropriate levels of the public debt for separate periods, only one
engrossed joint resolution shall be prepared under clause 1; and the blank referred to
in the preceding sentence shall be filled with the limitation that is to apply for each
period.
3. (a) The report of the Committee on the Budget on a concurrent resolution
described in clause 1 and the joint explanatory statement of the managers on a
conference report to accompany such a concurrent resolution each shall contain a
clear statement of the effect the eventual enactment of a joint resolution engrossed
under this rule would have on the statutory limit on the public debt.
(b) It shall not be in order for the House to consider a concurrent resolution
described in clause 1, or a conference report thereon, unless the report of the
Committee on the Budget or the joint explanatory statement of the managers
complies with paragraph (a).

4. Nothing in this rule shall be construed as limiting or otherwise affecting —


(a) the power of the House or the Senate to consider and pass bills or joint
resolutions, without regard to the procedures under clause 1, that would change the
statutory limit on the public debt; or
(b) the rights of Members, Delegates, the Resident Commissioner, or
committees with respect to the introduction, consideration, and reporting of such bills
or joint resolutions.



5. In this rule the term “statutory limit on the public debt” means the maximum
face amount of obligations issued under authority of chapter 31 of title 31, United
States Code, and obligations guaranteed as to principal and interest by the United
States (except such guaranteed obligations as may be held by the Secretary of the
Treasury), as determined under section 3101(b) of such title after the application of
section 3101(a) of such title, that may be outstanding at any one time.