(OT) H.R.3293 Debt Limit Reform Act Proposes to Stop Counting Intragovernmental Debt

As if that reduces the actual amount of the national debt.

I thought it was a joke when I saw the headline at Zero Hedge, so I followed the link in the article. And there it was, the bill by Florida Congressman Alcee Hastings (who happens to be one of only eight federal officials in the US history to be impeached and removed from office - he was a Judge on the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida).

From Govtrack.us:

HR 3293 IH
113th CONGRESS1st SessionH. R. 3293To reform the public debt limit.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

October 15, 2013

Mr. HASTINGS of Florida introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means

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A BILLTo reform the public debt limit.

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 ‘Debt Limit Reform Act’.

SEC. 2. REFORM OF THE PUBLIC DEBT LIMIT.

(a) Authority of President To Increase Public Debt Limit- Section 3101 of title 31, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:

‘(d) The dollar amount in effect under subsection (b) shall be increased at such times and in such amounts as the President of the United States, or his designee, may provide.’.

(b) Government-Held Debt Not Taken Into Account for Purposes of the Public Debt Limit- Section 3101 of title 31, United States Code, as amended by subsection (a) is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:

‘(e) Obligations held by the United States Government (including any obligation which is classified as an intragovernmental holding by the Secretary of the Treasury or which is held by any agency or instrumentality of the United States) shall not be taken into account for purposes of applying the limitation imposed under subsection (b).’.

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