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1 1 (November 15, 2021)

handle is hein.crs/goveeuz0001 and id is 1 raw text is: ressional Raseavh $arvnze Ln& rrrdri~j th*. I 4d d~v #bA~ rge 1)14 November 15, 2021 Plus-Minus Amendments to Regular Appropriations Measures P us-Minus Amendments In current practice, the House of Representatives typically provides for Members to offer amendments during the initial consideration ofregular appropriations bills. Among the various types of amendments that Members may offer are so-called plus-minus amendments. These amendments are typically drafted in such a way thatno substantive changes would be made to thetext of the bill. Instead, such amendments provide for an amount of funding to be both added to and subtracted froma specified account or activity. By offering an amendment of this type, Members can obtain floor time to speakduring the consideration of an appropriations measure. Many Members use theirremarks to signal informal support for an agency to use its existing discretionto allot funds in a particular manner or to highlight a particular is sue related to the appropriations measure. In recent years, Members have offered an increasing number of plus -minus amendments. This In Focus addresses the changing role that these amendments play in the Hous e's consideration ofregular appropriations measures. It provides an overview ofthe amendments' typical form and principal functions in the House's current appropriations process, outlines several key procedural considerations related to their use, andprovides statistics about their use and disposition during the 113th_ 416th Congresses. Typical Form and Function Plus-minus amendments have a unique form, which distinguishes themfromother types of amendments that aie offered during the House's consideration ofregular appropriations measures. The text of aplus -minus amendment proposes to modify the amount of budget authority provided in an appropriations measure by inserting two parenthetical phrases that would increase and decrease a dollar amount by equal and offsetting amounts. The following plus-minus amendment offered during the House's consideration ofH.R.4502 (117' Congres s)-an omnibus measure containing the text ofsevenFY2022 regular appropriations bills-provides an illustrative example of their typical form: Page 71, line 8, after the dollar amount inseit (reduced by $10,000,000) (increased by $10,000,000). (Congressional Record, daily edition, vol. 167 (July 27, 2021), p. H4064) Even if they are agreed to on the floor, plus-minus amendments would not change the amount of funding provided by an appropriations measure, nor would they https :/c rs repo impose any statutory conditions on the useof the appropriation by an agency. Instead, these amendments allow Members to speak during the floor consideration of an appropriations measure. After offering aplus--minus amendment on the floor, Members are recognized to speak on their amendments and may use their floor remarks to highlight a particular is sue or request an agency to use its existing discretion to allot an appropriation for a specific purpose (e.g., to submit a report to Congress, allocate funds in a certain way, or take a specific administrative action). These types ofremarks allow Members to publicly signal their spending priorities in a way that would not substantively modify the text of an appropriations measure. Members have also usedplus-minus amendments to make more general floor remarks (e.g., making general comments about thebill under consideration, advocating for a particularissue orpolicy change, ormarking a significant anniversary or historical event). For example, a Member offered an amendment to H.R. 3055 (116 Congress)-the Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2020-thatproposed to increase and decrease the National Space Council's appropriationby $1,969 dollars (H.Amdt. 394). Once recognized, the Member who offered the amendmentused his floor remaks to comment on the 50 anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission. (CongressionalRecord, daily edition, vol. 165 (June 19, 2019), p. H4888). The dollar amount specified in a plus -minus amendment may be chosen to reflect the costs associated with a Member's request to an agency, or it may be chos en for its symbolic value, as in the example above. It is also common for Members to offer plus-minus amendments with nominal increases and decreases of a single dollar. (See amendments number 20 and 31, Congressional Record, daily edition, vol. 165 (June 26, 2019), p. H5177). Procedural Considerations A procedural advantage of plus-minus amendments is that because the amendment has no netbudgetary effect and does notinclude any substantive language concerning the use of funds or agency duties or authority, these amendments are consistent with the requirements of House rules. Although the majority ofplus -minus amendments are agreed to by the House, these amendments donotimpose any statutory requirements on the agency receiving an appropriation or change the amount of funding provided by an appropriations measure. Any text insertedby plus-minus .conqgress.gov 9