WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Thom Tillis (R-NC) co-sponsored a balanced budget amendment to the U.S. Constitution introduced by Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS) that requires the President and Congress to enact annual balanced budgets.
The joint resolution proposes a constitutional amendment outlining requirements for the submission and approval of annual balanced budgets.
“The rapidly growing national debt is a threat to our future, and with the necessary spending for pandemic relief, the threat has become more severe,” said Senator Tillis. “The need for a balanced budget has never been more timely, and I urge Congress to take up this legislation so that taxpayer dollars and the nation’s future fiscal health are handled responsibly.”
The legislation proposes a constitutional amendment that would:
- Require the President to submit a balanced budget
- Require Congress to pass a balanced budget
- Restrict federal spending to 18 percent of the Gross Domestic Product
- Require two-thirds majority votes in the House and Senate to raise taxes
- Require a new three-fifths majority vote in both houses of Congress to raise the debt limit
The joint resolution also includes certain spending waivers for use during wartime or imminent danger to national security.
Additional co-sponsors are U.S. Senators John Barrasso (R-WY), Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Mike Crapo (R-ID), John Cornyn (R-TX), Joni Ernst (R-IA), Deb Fischer (R-NE), Bill Hagerty (R-TN), John Hoeven (R-ND), James Inhofe (R-OK), Jerry Moran (R-KS), James Risch (R-ID), Marco Rubio (R-FL), and Todd Young (R-IN).
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