The House on Wednesday failed to pass legislation that would require the federal government to operate under a balanced budget, Politico reported.
The House voted 211-207 against the resolution, which needed to clear each chamber of Congress by a two-thirds vote, then be ratified by three-fourths of all the states.
"Many of us have been agitating for years to do a balanced budget amendment and out of the blue, [House GOP leaders] said, 'We're ready to do it,'" Rep. Andy Biggs, R-Ariz., the bill's sponsor, told the news outlet.
"They didn't ask me to do anything, didn't offer anything," he said when asked whether leaders scheduled the vote to court.
"Just out of the blue, I got a call," Biggs said.
The amendment would permanently bar deficit spending by capping total federal outlays at the average annual revenue from the prior three years, adjusted for inflation and population growth.
Exceptions would be limited to national emergencies and wartime situations.
Congress could exceed the cap only with a two-thirds supermajority vote in both chambers, ensuring any increase is both necessary and widely supported.
In times of declared war, lawmakers would retain flexibility to go beyond the limit to address national security demands.
The national debt — roughly $39 trillion — has been built up over decades of deficits, tax cuts, wars, recession responses, and rising interest costs.
Solange Reyner ✉
Solange Reyner is a writer and editor for Newsmax. She has more than 15 years in the journalism industry reporting and covering news, sports and politics.
© 2026 Newsmax. All rights reserved.