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1 (January 28, 2004)

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                                                                Order Code RS20095
                                                           Updated January 28, 2004



 CRS Report for Congress

              Received through the CRS Web



        The Congressional Budget Process:

                       A Brief Overview

                            James V. Saturno
                       Specialist on the Congress
                    Government and Finance Division


Summary


     The term budget process, when applied to the federal government, actually refers
 to a number of processes that have evolved separately and that occur with varying
 degrees of coordination. This overview, and the accompanying flow chart, are intended
 to describe each of the parts of the budget process that involve Congress, clarify the role
 played by each, and explain how they operate together. They include: the President's
 budget submission, the budget resolution, reconciliation, sequestration, authorizations,
 and appropriations. This report will be updated to reflect any changes in the budget
 process.


    The Basic Framework. The Constitution grants the power of the purse to
Congress,' but does not establish any specific procedure for the consideration of
budgetary legislation. Although a number of laws and congressional rules contribute to
the federal budget process, two statutes in particular form the basic framework.

    The Budget and Accounting Act of 1921, as codified in Title 31 of the United States
Code, established the statutory basis for an executive budget process by requiring the
President to submit to Congress annually a proposed budget for the federal government.
It also created the Bureau of the Budget (reorganized as the Office of Management and
Budget (OMB) in 1970) to assist him in carrying out his responsibilities, and the General
Accounting Office (GAO) to assist Congress as the principal auditing agency of the
federal government.

    The Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 (P.L. 93-344, 88
Stat. 297) established the statutory basis for a congressional budget process, and provided


1 Article I, Section 8 provides that The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes,
Duties, Imposts and Excises, and Section 9 provides that No Money shall be drawn from the
Treasury, but in Consequence of Appropriations made by Law.


       Congressional Research Service **o The Library of Congress

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