Blogs

The Medicare and Social Security trustees warned again Monday that Congress must act soon to make the programs more sustainable.In their 2014 report, the trustees said they were most immediately concerned about Social Security’s Disability Insurance program, which under current…

The Senate was scheduled to vote on an $11 billion highway bill later today -- only days before the Department of Transportation (DOT) says it will be forced to begin delaying and cutting payments to state governments for transportation projects.The…

With hope gone for completing the regular budget process this year, Speaker John Boehner said last week that the House would wait until September to take up a continuing resolution that would keep the government open after the end of…

The House recently passed a short-sighted measure that would cut the 2015 enforcement budget for the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) by 25 percent.Republicans say they are punishing the IRS for its poor response to recent scandals. But this would amount…

Congress should find a responsible way to address treatment delays at VA facilities, but it seems increasingly clear that this will be an expensive undertaking.Sloan Gibson, acting secretary of Veterans Affairs, says his department needs $17.6 billion through Fiscal 2017…

Wednesday was the 40th anniversary of the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act, the law that created the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) and the modern budget process.The Bipartisan Policy Center marked the occasion last week with two panel discussions featuring…

The government made an estimated $105.7 billion in improper payments last year, including $62.2 billion for health care, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) says.Beryl Davis, a GAO official, discussed the problem before a House sub-committee last week. Officials from the…

Despite a strengthening economy, the administration’s Mid-Session Review budget projections show little change in the overall fiscal outlook.The report, released Friday, anticipates a deficit for the current fiscal year of $583 billion, down $66 billion from the administration’s March projection.…