Official Summaries

Unauthorized Spending Accountability Act

This bill reduces budgetary levels for certain federal programs that are funded through the annual appropriations process and do not have an authorization of appropriations.

Under the bill, budgetary levels are spending allocations provided to the congressional appropriations committees by a congressional budget resolution or a deeming resolution. The allocations are provided under the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 and are often referred to as 302(a) allocations.

The bill applies to programs included in the Congressional Budget Office's (CBO's) annual report listing programs that are funded through the appropriations process and have an authorization of appropriations that has either expired or will expire during the year. 

If a program is listed in the CBO report, the bill requires specified reductions to be implemented over a three-year period and terminates the unauthorized programs at the end of the third unauthorized year.

Current Full Text

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 143 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 143

   To establish a budgetary level reduction schedule, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            January 3, 2025

  Mrs. Cammack (for herself and Mr. Schmidt) introduced the following 
 bill; which was referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government 
Reform, and in addition to the Committees on the Budget, and Rules, for 
a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for 
consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the 
                          committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To establish a budgetary level reduction schedule, and for other 
                               purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Unauthorized Spending Accountability 
Act''.

SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT OF BUDGETARY LEVEL REDUCTION SCHEDULE.

    (a) In General.--There is hereby established a reoccurring three-
year budgetary level reduction cycle with respect to any unauthorized 
program, to begin in fiscal year 2026, consistent with the requirements 
of this Act.
    (b) Definitions.--In this Act:
            (1) Budgetary level.--The term ``budgetary level'' means 
        the allocation made under section 302(a) of the Congressional 
        Budget Act of 1974 (2 U.S.C. 633(a)) to the Committee on 
        Appropriations of the House of Representatives or the Senate in 
        a concurrent resolution on the budget for a fiscal year, and 
        includes any such allocation made pursuant to a deeming 
        resolution.
            (2) Expiring fiscal year.--The term ``expiring fiscal 
        year'' means, with respect to an unauthorized program, the 
        fiscal year during which authorizations of appropriations will 
        expire for such program.
            (3) Unauthorized program.--The term ``unauthorized 
        program'' means any program or activity listed in the annual 
        report published by the Congressional Budget Office, entitled 
        ``Expired and Expiring Authorizations of Appropriations'', or 
        any successor report, with respect to which authorizations of 
        appropriations will expire during the fiscal year in which such 
        report is published.
    (c) Application to Programs That Expired Before Fiscal Year 2026.--
For purposes of applying this Act to any unauthorized program funded 
during fiscal year 2026 and for which authorizations of appropriations 
expired before such fiscal year, such program shall be deemed to be a 
program or activity listed in the report referred to in subsection 
(b)(3) with respect to which authorizations of appropriations will 
expire during fiscal year 2026.

SEC. 3. REDUCTION IN BUDGETARY LEVEL FOR UNAUTHORIZED PROGRAMS.

    (a) Budgetary Level for Fiscal Year Following Expiration of 
Authorization.--With respect to any unauthorized program, on the date 
that a budgetary level is established for the fiscal year immediately 
following the expiring fiscal year, such level shall immediately be 
reduced by an amount equal to 10 percent of the funds appropriated for 
such program in the expiring fiscal year.
    (b) Budgetary Level for Second and Third Fiscal Years Following 
Expiration of Authorization.--With respect to any unauthorized program 
that results in a budgetary level reduction under subsection (a) that 
remains an unauthorized program in the second or third fiscal year 
following the expiring fiscal year, on the date that a budgetary level 
is established for either such second or third fiscal year, the 
budgetary level for either such fiscal year shall be reduced by an 
amount equal to 15 percent of the funds appropriated for such program 
in the expiring fiscal year.
    (c) Transmittal of New Budgetary Level.--Upon the reduction of a 
budgetary level (if any) under subsection (a) or (b), the chair of the 
Committee on the Budget of the House of Representatives and the Senate 
shall submit the revised budgetary level to the chair of the Committee 
on Appropriations of the House of Representatives and the Senate, 
respectively.

SEC. 4. TERMINATION OF UNAUTHORIZED PROGRAMS AFTER THIRD UNAUTHORIZED 
              YEAR.

    (a) In General.--Any unauthorized program that causes a budgetary 
level reduction under section 3(b) applicable to the third fiscal year 
following the expiring fiscal year shall, effective immediately on 
October 1 of the fiscal year immediately following such third fiscal 
year, be terminated, except that any unobligated amounts available for 
such program after the date of termination shall remain available for 
recording, adjusting, and liquidating valid obligations of such program 
issued before such termination date.
    (b) Obligation of Funds Prohibited Without Reauthorization.--No 
funds may be obligated for any program terminated pursuant to 
subsection (a) in any fiscal year without an express reauthorization of 
the program by Congress containing an authorization of appropriations 
period not to exceed three years.

SEC. 5. EXEMPTION FROM BUDGETARY LEVEL REDUCTION.

    (a) In General.--Consistent with subsection (b)--
            (1) any unauthorized program that causes a budgetary level 
        reduction applicable to a fiscal year under section 3 that is 
        expressly reauthorized during the fiscal year in which such 
        level is established shall not be subject to the requirements 
        of this Act; and
            (2) upon the date of such reauthorization, any such 
        reduction shall be restored.
    (b) Limitation.--Subsection (a) shall only apply if the 
reauthorization contains a sunset provision applicable to such program 
providing for an authorization of appropriations period of not more 
than three years.
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