Fiscal Responsibility

Articles & Analysis

The House's Fake Budget Process Changes

During the week of Jan. 30, the House began debating a slew of budget reform measures, part of a package of 10 bills proposed by the House Budget Committee that affect everything from budget resolutions to the president’s veto power. Of the 10 pieces of legislation, two have passed the House so far.

The State of the Nation's Budget

The state of the nation's budget can be summarized in one word: underutilized. The economy is still clawing its way back from the worst recession since the Great Depression, but Congress voted to drastically scale back federal spending in 2011 instead of investing in initiatives to spur demand. As President Obama prepares to give his annual State of the Union speech later tonight (Jan. 24), we hope he will argue that in the short run, the federal government should do more, rather than less, to create demand in the economy and leave deficit reduction to 2013 and beyond.

"Do-Nothing" the Best Prescription for Deficit Reduction, but a Bad Approach for the Country

Congress was busy in the days leading up to the winter holidays. At the 11th hour, the fiscal year (FY) 2012 budget finally passed, three months late, along with an extension of the payroll tax cut and a package of other assorted cuts and credits. The only real substantive legislative change coming out of the session was the death of the ethanol tax credit – because Congress failed to pass it. In the year ahead, this might be a theme: change only happens when Congress does nothing.

Fiscal Policy: The Best and Worst of 2011

Welcome to OMB Watch's year-end fiscal policy review, where we give you a retrospective of the good, the bad, and the ugly of fiscal policy in 2011. Some acts, such as increased contracting transparency, made for enjoyable viewing, while others, like the congressional budgeting process, left us crying for a new script. Read on for our take on the year's highlights in revenue, budgeting, and spending.

Congress Votes on Balanced Budget Amendment

Even though the Super Committee is stealing the limelight, this summer's debt ceiling deal didn't just create the deficit-cutting committee. It also forces both the House and the Senate to vote on a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution. On Nov. 18, House leadership brought an amendment to the floor, where it failed to get the two-thirds vote necessary to pass. However, the close House vote and the impending Senate vote mean that this is not the end of the balanced budget amendment.

OMB Watch Lauds End of Undemocratic "Super Committee"

WASHINGTON, Nov. 21—The so-called Super Committee announced today that it did not come to an agreement on deficit reduction. This should not be viewed as a failure. OMB Watch decried this undemocratic, unrepresentative, nontransparent process from its inception.

Deal or No Deal: The False Choice of the Super Committee

The so-called “Super Committee,” charged with creating a $1.2 trillion deficit reduction plan by Thanksgiving, seems to be stalling. If the committee cannot agree to a deal, or if Congress doesn't approve of the plan that the committee produces, the debt ceiling package that passed in August will trigger almost a trillion dollars in automatic spending cuts to both defense and non-defense spending. Congress as a whole appears to be waffling between voting for a deficit reduction plan that many constituents will find unpalatable or allowing the automatic cuts to proceed, which will also make voters unhappy. However, this problem presents a false choice because there is another option: Congress could vote to select "none of the above."

Congress Should Streamline Budget Process

Along with all the attention the federal budget is receiving these days, the budget process itself is coming under greater scrutiny. Both the House and Senate budget committees held hearings recently to discuss how to reform the budget process. The panels featured former budget directors and academics, but curiously, there was little talk of fixing the immediate problem of budgetary gridlock.

Obama’s Deficit Reduction Plan Has Room for Improvement

The nation is less than two months away from what could be a seminal moment in its fiscal history. In late November, the new “Super Committee,” formed by the recent debt ceiling deal, will release its set of recommendations to cut the federal budget deficit by $1.2 trillion. In an effort to influence the hectic debate the committee’s recommendations are sure to start, President Obama released on Sept. 19 a $3.3 trillion deficit reduction plan as a package of recommendations for the committee to adopt.

Despite Debt Ceiling Deal, Future Budget Road Looks Bumpy

Although the recent debt ceiling deal theoretically brings Republicans and Democrats into agreement on spending levels for the next 10 years, the two parties remain miles apart on key budgetary issues. These fissures are likely to become apparent as Congress comes back into session and legislators begin work on a stop-gap continuing resolution over the coming weeks to stave off a government shutdown at the beginning of the next fiscal year, which starts Oct. 1.