#Budget Process

A halt in small business loans, lost tourism to national parks, and even a delay in the Alaskan crab season were among the costly effects of last month’s government shutdown, according to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).An OMB…

With the budget conference committee starting to meet this week, some political leaders seem to be thinking that the ideal “grand bargain” on the budget would be: Do nothing.Concord Coalition Executive Director Robert L. Bixby warns that this could become…

Treasury Secretary Jack Lew has warned lawmakers that the government could hit its debt ceiling in mid-October, earlier than many analysts had predicted.Congress has no choice but to eventually raise the debt limit so the government can pay its bills…

A bipartisan proposal introduced in the Senate would provide a more complete picture of the long-term impact of current fiscal policies, including their burden on younger Americans and future generations.Senators John Thune (R-S.D.) and Tim Kaine (D-Va.) introduced the Intergenerational…

The Obama Administration released its Mid-Session Review (MSR) of the budget on Monday. It would be nice to say that this update arrived just in time to clinch the deal on a fiscal sustainability plan, or even a plan to…

The Senate passed a sweeping immigration bill last week aided by a costly amendment that directs $46.3 billion more to be spent on border security than under current law. The Senate waived its budget rules to pass the legislation.The Congressional…

While the House and Senate have each passed their own budget resolutions for the coming fiscal year, Congress now needs to move the regular budget process forward through conference committee negotiations aimed at producing a compromise plan.Concord Coalition Co-Chair Sam…

Is the federal budget heading for unsustainable deficits or unsustainable surpluses? It all depends on the long-term assumptions. (more…)