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Monday, November 20, 2006
GAO Budget Process Reforms: Walker Shows the Way
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GAO memo today from David M. Walker, Comptroller General of the United States, entitled "Suggested Areas for Oversight for the 110th Congress" says that "fiscal policy is on an unsustainable path."
Among the memo's suggestions are the following "needing Congressional attention":
--> Reimpose caps on discretionary spending. Under caps, consider special rules for well-defined “emergency” designations.
--> Reintroduce pay-as-you-go (PAYGO) requirements—on both the spending and revenue side of the ledger
--> Consider budget triggers that would signal the need for action when there is significant growth in mandatory programs
--> Review the use of supplementals and earmarks in order to determine needed reforms
--> Require estimates of long-term cost implications of major policy proposals (tax and spending) before they are acted upon
OMB Watch applauds Walker's efforts to focus Congress' attention on these reforms. We will be issuing a proposal shortly, based on the last of these suggestions, to require a JCT estimate of the debt implications of legislation to cuts taxes and increase spending.
Posted by Dana Chasin
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