About | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline
LOG IN
LOG IN

B-201962 1 (1981-05-22)

handle is hein.gao/gaobabjcc0001 and id is 1 raw text is: .~ ,COMPTROLLER GENERAL OF THE UNITED STATES . I WASHINGTON D.C. 20548 ' -. I B-201962 Rp May 22, 1981 The Honorable Jack Brooks ., Chairman, Committee on Government Operations C, House of Representatives _41 Dear Mr. Chairman: This responds to your request for our omments on H.R. 325, a bill to provide for the inclusion of certain Federal entities in the budget totals. We are pleased to note that the purpose of the bill is similar to the views we have expressed in our reports and testimony over the years (see enclosure). We believe that early legislative action is needed to put the federally owned off-budget activities and spending into the budget's totals as soon as possible. The exclusion by statute of certain key governmental activities could cause the budget's total outlays and deficit for fiscal year 1981 to be understated by as much as $23 billion. This is a serious distortion of important budget totals used for congressional targets and ceilings. The 1967 President's Commission on Budget Concepts viewed as its most important recommendation its strong statement in favor of a single unified budget encompassing all Federal activities. The Commission was correct in emphasizing a comprehensive budget because the starting point in assessing the adequacy of any budget is its coverage. Failure to include all relevant activities mis- leads the public and possibly the Congress on the true magnitude of the Federal Government's spending, and permits the programs not included to escape the scrutiny and limitations of the full budget process. Accountability can be seriously weakened. Of particular concern is the Federal Financing Bank's (FFB) off-budget role in Federal credit assistance activity. We have consistently opposed the off-budget status of the FFB as well as other questionable budget practices which combine to produce an inadequate and incomplete picture of Federal credit assistance activity. The current relationship between Federal credit agencies and the FFB causes incentives for the inappropriate use of Federal credit assistance. Most notable among the questionable budget practices are the off-budget FFB acquisition of other Federal agencies' certificates of beneficial ownership (CBO's), various assets, and guaranteed loans. This latter practice could reach $10 billion for fiscal

What Is HeinOnline?

HeinOnline is a subscription-based resource containing thousands of academic and legal journals from inception; complete coverage of government documents such as U.S. Statutes at Large, U.S. Code, Federal Register, Code of Federal Regulations, U.S. Reports, and much more. Documents are image-based, fully searchable PDFs with the authority of print combined with the accessibility of a user-friendly and powerful database. For more information, request a quote or trial for your organization below.



Contact us for annual subscription options:

Contact Us

Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?

Log In

profiles profiles most