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Read. Follow. Verify.Extraordinary Measures Transparency Act (H.R. 3526)
Last action · May 18, 2023: Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.Sponsor: Zachary Nunn
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What This Bill Would Do
This bill requires the Secretary of the Treasury to provide Congress with detailed reports whenever the federal government uses '' to avoid hitting the . It mandates reporting before, during, and after the use of these financial maneuvers to track their costs and impacts.
This bill would change how the Treasury Department communicates with Congress during debt ceiling crises by mandating daily disclosures of specific financial transfers and administrative costs associated with avoiding default.
Who It Would Affect
Groups the bill's text would affect if enacted, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
Treasury Department
The agency is required to prepare and submit new daily and periodic reports regarding debt management.
Federal Employees
The bill involves the potential suspension of investments in the Civil Service Retirement and Disability Fund and the Thrift Savings Fund.
Postal Service Retirees
The bill involves the potential suspension of investments in the Postal Service Retiree Health Benefits Fund.
Key Facts
- Requires the Treasury Secretary to report to Congress 30 days before the public debt is projected to reach the debt limit.
- Pre-debt limit reports must include a description of intended extraordinary measures, estimated costs, projected duration of funding, and administrative costs.
- Requires the Treasury Secretary to issue daily reports to Congress while extraordinary measures are actively in use.
- Daily reports must detail specific extraordinary measures taken, including the exact dollar amounts transferred and the accounts involved.
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- Requires a final report to Congress after the period of using extraordinary measures concludes, summarizing actions taken and total administrative costs.
- Defines 'administrative cost' to include personnel, consultant fees, and other associated government expenses.
- Explicitly defines 'extraordinary measures' to include suspending investments in the Thrift Savings Fund, Civil Service Retirement and Disability Fund, and Postal Service Retiree Health Benefits Fund.
- Includes the sale or redemption of assets from retirement funds and the suspension of State and Local Government Series Treasury securities as extraordinary measures.
- Amends Title 31 of the United States Code to codify these reporting requirements.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are 'extraordinary measures'?
How often would the Treasury have to report during a debt crisis?
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News Coverage
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
Currently in committee. The next step in the legislative lifecycle is Floor Vote.
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
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Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
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Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Increased Oversight of Treasury Maneuvers
The bill shifts the Treasury's debt management from a period of relative discretion during crises to a regime of daily mandatory disclosure.
Connected Entities
Sources
www.congress.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance65How much this matters to a regular citizen
- Controversy40Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment15Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz25Current news / social attention level
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