#Discretionary Spending

Today’s update from the CBO provides a sobering reality check on campaign calls for major spending increases or big tax cuts. The alarming budget outlook during a period of sustained economic growth and low unemployment reflects the continuing failure of…

The Concord Coalition said today that a tax and spending package set to be voted on in the House of Representatives is a stunning display of fiscal irresponsibility. The bill, HR 1865, would reduce revenues by more than $400…

In football terms, it was fourth and long… very long. The chances of passing appropriation bills to fund government agencies for the current fiscal year, which began on October 1st, were slim. So this week Congress did what they have…

This event summary was written with the Information Technology & Innovation Foundation. On September 12, 2019, the Concord Coalition joined with the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) to hold an expert panel discussion in the Rayburn House Office Building upon…

With growing threats from climate change and natural disasters, some lawmakers in both parties are discussing needed changes in how Washington budgets -- or to be more precise, fails to budget -- for disaster-related costs. “Planning for emergencies is not…

On the heels of its new budget plan with high economic growth projections that have been widely questioned, the Trump administration last week released a report that makes clear these projections rest on a dubious assumption: “full implementation” of the…

The Taxpayer Advocate Service (TAS) sends an annual report to Congress that flags problems with the federal government’s tax collection efforts. The latest such report from the agency makes for particularly depressing reading. On top of the usual problems discussed…

Elected officials in both parties have expressed interest for years in boosting federal investment in the nation’s crumbling infrastructure. So, too, have business leaders and many economists who say that such a commitment would support stronger economic growth and is…