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Papers

View our recurring reports, which summarize and analyze the most important regular federal budget releases and reports.

Concept_Family With Baby
Aug 16, 2018 | Other Spending

Budgeting for the Next Generation: Does the Budget Process Prioritize Children?

Compared to other age groups, children have higher levels of poverty, less ability to provide for themselves, and greater potential to support future...
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Concept_Scale
Aug 8, 2018 | Budgets & Projections

CBO’s Alternative Long-Term Budget Scenarios

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) released alternative scenarios to its Long-Term Budget Outlook today. These scenarios show that if the recent...
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Concept_DC_Capitol Building Storm
Jul 12, 2018 | Budgets & Projections

Letter to the Veterans Affairs Conference Committee

Below is a letter from CRFB President Maya MacGuineas to the conferees appointed to negotiate between the House and Senate versions of the Veterans...
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Jul 12, 2018 | Budget Process

Leon Panetta's Testimony on Budget and Appropriations Process Reforms

On July 12, 2018, Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget Co-Chair Leon Panetta testified before the Joint Select Committee on Budget and...
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Jun 27, 2018 | Budget Process

The Better Budget Process Initiative: Recommendations for the JSC

The Joint Select Committee on Budget and Appropriations Process Reform (JSC) has the opportunity to make important improvements to the budget process...
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Concept_Capitol Building_Money
Jun 26, 2018 | Budgets & Projections

CBO's 2018 Long-Term Budget Outlook

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) released its 2018 Long-Term Budget Outlook today, reiterating the budget’s unsustainable long-term trajectory....
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Health Care_Paperwork
Jun 7, 2018 | Health Care

Analysis of the 2018 Medicare Trustees' Report

The Medicare Trustees have released their 2018 report on the financial status of Medicare. The report shows that Medicare spending will increase...
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Concept_Family_Reading
Jun 7, 2018 | Other Spending

Budgeting for the Next Generation: How Do Kids Fare?

When it comes to fiscal policy, it is increasingly clear that children are not a high priority. Recent tax cuts and spending increases have burdened...
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Social Security_Card
Jun 5, 2018 | Social Security

Analysis of the 2018 Social Security Trustees’ Report

The Trustees for Social Security released their annual report today. As they have for many years, their projections show that the Social Security...
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Concept_DC_Capitol Building
May 30, 2018 | Budget Process

Appropriations 101

What are appropriations? Appropriations are annual decisions made by Congress about how the federal government spends some of its money. In general...
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May 30, 2018 | Economics

Can America Sustain the Recent Economic Boost?

Key Takeaways: The good news is that the economy is doing well; however, this is unlikely to turn into sustained growth at the same rate. Short-...
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Concept_DC_White House
May 24, 2018 | Budgets & Projections

CBO’s Analysis of the President’s FY 2019 Budget

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) released its estimate of the President’s Fiscal Year (FY) 2019 budget using its own assumptions to evaluate the...
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Maya MacGuineas
May 24, 2018 | Budget Process

Maya MacGuineas's Testimony on Budget Resolution Reforms

On May 24, 2018, Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget president Maya MacGuineas testified before the Joint Select Committee on Budget and...
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Health Care_Money
May 16, 2018 | Health Care

American Health Care: Health Spending and the Federal Budget

The United States spends more on health care than any other country in the world, and a large share of that spending comes from the federal...
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Concept_DC_Capitol Building
May 10, 2018 | Budget Process

Chartbook: Playing By the (Budget) Rules

Below is a Chartbook that corresponds to the paper "Playing By the (Budget) Rules: Understanding and Preventing Budget Gimmicks"  
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Concept_calculator
Apr 30, 2018 | Budgets & Projections

Chartbook: America's Budget Outlook

Below is a chartbook on America's deteriorating budget outlook.   Update (5/15/18): We clarified the footnote on slide 9 to more clearly...
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Apr 12, 2018 | Budget Process

Letter to Members of Congress on Statutory Budget Deadline

The statutory deadline for a budget is April 15 and no budget is in sight. Instead, members of the House of Representatives are voting on a balanced...
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Concept_Capitol Building_Money
Apr 9, 2018 | Budgets & Projections

Analysis of CBO’s April 2018 Budget and Economic Outlook

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) released its ten-year budget and economic outlook today, showing that recent legislation has made an already...
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Concept_Stock Market_Recession
Mar 29, 2018 | Budgets & Projections

Chartbook: America's Deteriorating Budget Outlook

An updated version of this chartbook is available here Below is a chartbook on America's deteriorating budget outlook.  
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Other Spending_Infrastructure_Crane
Mar 27, 2018 | Other Spending

Pro-Growth Infrastructure Needs Concrete Pay-Fors

Policymakers in Washington have turned their attention to infrastructure, with members of both parties putting forward their own competing proposals...
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