96-934 GOV
(33 p.)

Jennifer Suttle, Consultant in American National Government
Government Division

Updated December 2, 1996

Summary

Introduction

Formulation and Adoption of the Budget Resolution

Content of the Budget Resolution

Historical Information

Timing of Budget Resolutions

Amendments to Budget Resolutions

Number of Years Covered by Budget Resolutions

Reconciliation Instructions to Budget Resolutions

Appendix A: Budget Resolutions Adopted by Congress, FY1976-FY1997

Appendix B: Timing of Action on Adopted Budget Resolutions, FY1976-FY1997

Appendix C: Budget Resolutions Rejected by the House, FY1976-FY1997

Appendix D: Amendments to the 1974 Congressional Budget Act and Other Legislative Actions Affecting Budget Resolutions

Appendix E: Amendments to Budget Resolutions Considered in the House, FY1976-FY1997

Appendix F: Amendments to Budget Resolutions Considered in the Senate, FY1976-FY1997

SUMMARY

The Congressional Budget Act of 1974 (P.L. 93-344, 2 USC 601-688) sets forth a process under which Congress annually adopts a concurrent resolution that recommends the appropriate levels of revenue, spending, and the budget deficit or surplus each year for a 5-year period. This concurrent resolution is known as the budget resolution.

The budget resolution does not become law, but is an agreement between the House and Senate. It acts as an internal mechanism for guiding deliberations on revenue, spending, and other budget-related legislation.

This first and second sections of this report explain the process by which annual budget resolutions are adopted and outline their content. Appendices and tables to these sections 1) identify budget resolutions Congress adopted or rejected; 2) convey the timing of action on these budget resolutions; 3) identify the special rules providing for the consideration of all first budget resolutions (including those resolutions that were considered by Congress but on which no vote was taken); and 4) list the amendments to the 1974 Budget Act and other legislative actions affecting budget resolutions.

The third section of this report gives historical information on four aspects of budget resolutions: deadlines for budget resolutions, amendments to budget resolutions, the number of years covered by budget resolutions, and reconciliation instructions in budget resolutions. Appendices and tables to this section 1) convey the number of days before or after their deadline that action on the budget resolution was completed; 2) identify House amendments in the nature of a substitute to budget resolutions; 3) list amendments to budget resolutions considered by the House and Senate; 4) relate the number of years covered by budget resolutions; and 5) list budget resolutions and resulting reconciliation legislation.

INTRODUCTION

The Congressional Budget Act of 1974 (P.L. 93-344, 2 USC 601-688) sets forth a process under which Congress annually adopts a concurrent resolution that recommends the appropriate levels of revenue, spending, and the deficit each year for a 5-year period. This concurrent resolution, known as the budget resolution, was first used for FY1976.

Because the budget resolution is agreed to in the form of a concurrent resolution, it does not require presidential approval and it does not become law. It is instead an internal mechanism for guiding the House and Senate in their deliberations on budget policy; the budget resolution establishes a budget framework in which Congress considers separate revenue, spending, and other budget-related legislation.

The budget resolution often includes reconciliation directives. These directives provide for reconciliation legislation that, unlike the budget resolution, has the force of law. Reconciliation legislation changes permanent revenue and entitlement laws to produce the revenue and entitlement levels set in the budget resolution.

The first and second sections of this report explain the process by which annual budget resolutions are adopted and outline their content. Appendices and tables to these sections 1) identify budget resolutions Congress adopted or rejected; 2) convey the timing of action on these budget resolutions; 3) identify the special rules providing for the consideration of all first budget resolutions (including those resolutions that were considered by Congress but on which no vote was taken); and 4) list the amendments to the 1974 Budget Act and other legislative actions affecting budget resolutions.

The third section of this report gives historical information on four aspects of budget resolutions: deadlines for budget resolutions, amendments to budget resolutions, the number of years covered by budget resolutions, and reconciliation instructions in budget resolutions. Appendices and tables to this section 1) convey the number of days before or after their deadline that action on the budget resolution was completed; 2) identify House amendments in the nature of a substitute to budget resolutions; 3) list amendments to budget resolutions considered by the House and Senate; 4) relate the number of years covered by budget resolutions; and 5) list budget resolutions and resulting reconciliation legislation.

FORMULATION AND ADOPTION OF THE BUDGET RESOLUTION

Following the submission of the President's budget in January or February, Congress begins formulating its budget resolution. The Budget Act requires the adoption of the budget resolution in the spring, after which spending, revenue, and debt-limit legislation implementing budget resolution policies is considered.

The Budget Act originally established two annual budget resolutions. Congress was to adopt the second budget resolution by September 15, two weeks before the beginning of the fiscal year. The second budget resolution revised or reaffirmed the first budget resolution by taking into account budget and economic changes in the months since the first resolution.⁽¹⁾

The Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act (Title II of P.L. 99-177, 2 USC 900-922) eliminated the requirement for a second budget resolution beginning in FY1987. For several preceding years, FY1983-FY1986, Congress did not adopt a second budget resolution, but instead included a provision in the first budget resolution that made the spending and revenue totals in it binding automatically as of the beginning of the fiscal year. Second budget resolutions were adopted in seven of the 22 years covered by this report.

Although all adopted budget resolutions (both first and second) are identified in Appendices A and C, only first budget resolutions are considered in this report's analysis of budget resolutions and in subsequent tables and appendices. This allows greater continuity in the comparison of budget resolutions over time. First budget resolutions are analyzed because their formulation matches the formulation of the single annual budget resolution adopted under current practice. The formulation of second budget resolutions differed because they revised the first resolution in the context of current economic and budget conditions.

The Budget Act mandates that, in the course of formulating the budget resolution, the Budget Committee of each chamber hold hearings and receive testimony from appropriate individuals and agencies, including testimony on the Administration's budget from the Office of Management and Budget director, the chairman of the President's Council of Economic Advisers, and the Secretary of the Treasury. The Budget Act requires that the Budget Committees' reports on the budget resolution include a comparison of congressionally proposed budgetary levels and those estimated in the budget submitted by the President.

The Budget Act also directs congressional committees to submit "views and estimates" reports to the Budget Committee of each chamber within six weeks after the President submits a budget. These reports provide the Budget Committees with information on the budgetary plans and priorities of committees.

Finally, caucuses between party leaders and membership play a role in the development of a budget resolution that addresses party concerns and priorities, thereby facilitating passage.

The House and Senate Budget Committees are tasked with marking up and reporting the budget resolution. Section 300 of the Budget Act sets an April 1 reporting deadline for the budget resolution in the Senate; the House has no such deadline.

The budget resolution was designed to provide a framework to make budget decisions, leaving specific program determinations to appropriations committees and other committees with spending jurisdiction. In many instances, however, particular program changes are considered when formulating the budget resolution. Program assumptions are sometimes referred to in the reports of the Budget Committees or may be discussed during floor action. Although these program changes are not binding, committees may be strongly influenced by these recommendations when formulating appropriation or reconciliation legislation.

Floor consideration of the budget resolution differs in the House and Senate. In the House, the budget resolution is usually considered under the terms of a special rule (a House simple resolution). This special rule typically specifies what amendments may be considered. In recent years, the special rules providing for consideration of the budget resolution have made in order only a limited number of substitute amendments. Table 1 lists House resolutions that provided for the consideration of budget resolutions. ⁽²⁾

In the Senate, the terms of debate and the consideration of amendments are not structured by a special rule. Typically, a larger number of amendments is considered, consisting of substitute amendments as well as amendments that address specific issues.

The 1974 Budget Act currently calls for the final adoption of the annual budget resolution by April 15 for the fiscal year that begins October 1. ⁽³⁾ In practice, however, this deadline is seldom met.

Appendices A and B list and provide relevant dates for adopted budget resolutions. Appendix C provides information on budget resolutions that were rejected.

TABLE 1. Special Rules Providing for the Consideration of Budget Resolutions in the House, FY1976-FY1997

Fiscal year	Special rule	Budget resolution	Date special rule was adopted1	Vote
1976	no special rule	-	-	-
1977	no special rule	-	-	-
1978	H.Res. 515	H.Con.Res. 195	04-26-77	400-1
1979	no special rule	-	-	-
1980	no special rule	-	-	-
1981	H.Res. 642 H.Res. 6492	H.Con.Res. 307 H.Con.Res. 307	04-23-80 04-30-80	261-143 voice
1982	H.Res. 134	H.Con.Res. 115	04-30-81	328-76
1983	H.Res. 477 H.Res. 496	H.Con.Res. 345 H.Con.Res. 352	05-21-82 06-10-82	voice 339-72
1984	H.Res. 144 H.Res. 243	H.Con.Res. 91 H.Con.Res. 91 (conf. rept.)	03-22-83 06-23-83	230-187 voice
1985	H.Res. 476	H.Con.Res. 280	04-04-84	302-89
1986	H.Res. 177 H.Res. 253	H.Con.Res. 152 S.Con.Res. 32 (conf. rept.)	05-22-85 08-01-85	273-141 voice
1987	H.Res. 397 H.Res. 455	H.Con.Res. 296 H.Con.Res. 337	03-13-86 05-14-86	239-168 voice
1988	H.Res. 139 H.Res. 201	H.Con.Res. 93 H.Con.Res. 93 (conf. rept.)	04-08-87 06-23-87	241-168 voice
1989	H.Res. 410 H.Res. 461	H.Con.Res. 268 H.Con.Res. 268 (conf. rept.)	03-23-88 05-26-88	voice voice
1990	H.Res. 145	H.Con.Res. 106	05-03-89	voice
1991	H.Res. 382 H.Res. 488 H.Res. 4963	H.Con.Res. 310 H.Con.Res. 310 (conf. rept.) H.Con.Res. 310 (conf. rept.)	04-26-90 10-04-90 10-06-90	voice 339-94 285-105
1992	H.Res. 123 H.Res. 157	H.Con.Res. 121 H.Con.Res. 121 (conf. rept.)	04-16-91 05-22-91	392-9 257-164
1993	H.Res. 386 H.Res. 463	H.Con.Res. 287 H.Con.Res. 287 (conf. rept.)	03-04-92 05-21-92	239-183 253-160
1994	H.Res. 131 H.Res. 1334 H.Res. 145	H.Con.Res. 64 H.Con.Res. 64 H.Con.Res. 64 (conf. rept.)	03-17-93 03-18-93 03-31-93	voice 251-172 250-172
1995	H.Res. 384 H.Res. 418	H.Con.Res. 218 H.Con.Res. 218 (conf. rept.)	03-10-94 05-05-94	245-171 228-168
1996	H.Res. 149 H.Res. 175 H.Res. 309	H.Con.Res. 67 H.Con.Res. 67 (conf. rept.) H.Con.Res. 122	05-17-95 06-29-95 12-19-95	225-168 234-180 229-189
1997	H.Res. 435 H.Res. 450	H.Con.Res. 178 H.Con.Res. 178 (conf. rept.)	05-16-96 06-12-96	227-196 232-190

¹ No special rules providing for the consideration of budget resolutions in the House were rejected.

² Provided for technical corrections of H.Res. 642.

³ Provided for further consideration of the conference report on H.Con.Res. 310.

⁴ Provided for further consideration of H.Con.Res. 64.

CONTENT OF THE BUDGET RESOLUTION

As required by section 301 of the Budget Act, the budget resolution recommends the appropriate levels of revenue, spending, and the deficit each year for a multi-year period.⁽⁴⁾ More specifically, the Budget Act requires annual budget resolutions to contain:

• totals of new budget authority and budget outlays (to be provided by functional category and in aggregate terms)
• totals of direct loan obligations and primary loan guarantee commitments (to be provided by functional category and in aggregate terms)
• total federal revenues and the amount, if any, by which the aggregate level of federal revenues should be increased or decreased by bills and resolutions to be reported by the appropriate committees
• the surplus or deficit in the budget
• the public debt
• for the purposes of Senate enforcement procedures, revenue and outlay levels for social security trust funds (social security funds are not included in aggregate amounts in the budget resolution).

In addition to these mandates, section 301 of the Budget Act also outlines several other matters that may be included in the budget resolution. Perhaps the most important of these are reconciliation directives, which are discussed later in this report.

The annual budget resolution may also require a "deferred enrollment" procedure, under which all or certain bills providing new budget authority or new entitlement authority for the upcoming fiscal year cannot be enrolled until Congress has completed action on a reconciliation measure (or, prior to FY1987, a reconciliation measure or the second budget resolution). Budget resolutions for fiscal years 1981, 1982, 1983, and 1984 contained deferred enrollment provisions. The FY1983 budget resolution exempted legislation dealing with certain trust funds from its deferred enrollment provision. A deferred enrollment provision was struck from the House version of the FY1980 budget resolution by a House amendment.⁽⁵⁾

Appendix D contains major legislative changes in the formulation or content of budget resolutions.

HISTORICAL INFORMATION

Timing of Budget Resolutions

The House and Senate have found it difficult to meet the established deadline for final adoption of the budget resolution. As mentioned previously, the Budget Act originally required that the budget resolution be adopted by May 15, but this was changed to April 15 by the Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act of 1985. The FY1976 and FY1977 budget resolutions were in compliance with the original deadline. Only the FY1994 budget resolution has complied with the revised deadline of April 15.

Budget resolutions were adopted an average of 44 days after their deadlines from FY1976-FY1997. The FY1991 budget resolution had the latest adoption date, October 9, 1990. The earliest adoption date was for the FY1994 budget resolution, April 1, 1993. Figure 1 illustrates the number of days before or after their deadlines budget resolutions were adopted. Appendix B provides the dates on which Congress completed action on the budget resolution.

The Budget Act originally established two annual budget resolutions. Congress was to adopt the second budget resolution by September 15. The Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act eliminated the requirement for a second budget resolution beginning in FY1987 (2 USC 631).

FIGURE 1. Number of Days Before or After Deadline That Action on the Budget Resolution Was Completed

Amendments to Budget Resolutions

The House and Senate have different procedures governing the consideration of amendments to budget resolutions. The House typically adopts a special rule that specifies what amendments are in order. The House usually considers fewer amendments than the Senate, and the amendments the House does consider are often amendments in the nature of a substitute.

In recent years, the House Rules Committee has been especially disinclined to make in order amendments that are not substitutes. For example, in the past 10 fiscal years (from FY1988 to FY1997) the House considered 35 amendments to budget resolutions; only two were not substitutes. Of the 33 substitutes, all but one were rejected. Table 2 provides information on House amendments in the nature of a substitute to budget resolutions for the past 10 fiscal years.

The use of substitute amendments has been facilitated by language in special rules. The special rule providing for consideration of the FY1982 budget resolution first included language which allows for the consideration of additional substitutes after a substitute has been adopted. Since FY1985, this language has been included in all rules providing for the consideration of budget resolutions.

The House has considered approximately seven amendments per budget resolution adopted.⁽⁶⁾ The largest number of House amendments -- 45 -- was considered during action on the FY1980 budget resolution (H.Con.Res. 107, 96th Congress).⁽⁷⁾

The Senate has a less structured process for considering amendments. Senate amendments tend to include substitutes, amendments to specific provisions, and "sense of the Senate" amendments, which express the Senate's position on various issues, but have no binding effect. During the FY1997 budget process, the Senate considered 67 amendments to the budget resolution, higher than the Senate average of 21 amendments per annual budget resolution. The largest number of Senate amendments to a budget resolution -- 69 -- was considered during the FY1996 budget process.

See appendices E and F for the number of accepted, rejected, withdrawn, and out-of-order amendments to House and Senate budget resolution proposals.

TABLE 2. House Amendments in the Nature of a Substitute to Adopted
Budget Resolutions, FY1988-FY1997

Fiscal year	Budget resolution	Amendment sponsor	Vote	Disposition	Date
1988	H.Con.Res. 93	Gray (PA)	230-192	accepted	04-09-87
		Gray (PA)	27-394	rejected	04-09-87
		Dannemeyer	47-369	rejected	04-09-87
		Dymally	56-362	rejected	04-09-87
1989	H.Con.Res. 268	Dannemeyer	75-347	rejected	03-23-88
		Porter	64-354	rejected	03-23-88
		Penny	27-394	rejected	03-23-88
1990	H.Con.Res. 106	Dannemeyer	72-350	rejected	05-04-89
		Dellums	81-343	rejected	05-04-89
		Kasich	30-393	rejected	05-04-89
		Gephardt	49-373	rejected	05-04-89
1991	H.Con.Res. 310	Kasich	106-305	rejected	04-26-90
		Dannemeyer	48-354	rejected	04-26-90
		Dellums	90-334	rejected	05-01-90
1992	H.Con.Res. 121	Dannemeyer	79-332	rejected	04-17-91
		Kasich	114-303	rejected	04-17-91
		Gradison	89-335	rejected	04-17-91
1993	H.Con.Res. 287	Dannemeyer	60-344	rejected	03-04-92
		Gradison	42-370	rejected	03-04-92
		Towns	77-342	rejected	03-05-92
1994	H.Con.Res. 64	Kasich	135-295	rejected	03-18-93
		Solomon	20-409	rejected	03-18-93
		Mfume	87-335	rejected	03-18-93
1995	H.Con.Res. 218	Frank (MA)	105-313	rejected	03-10-94
		Solomon	73-342	rejected	03-10-94
		Mfume	81-326	rejected	03-11-94
		Kasich	165-243	rejected	03-11-94
1996	H.Con.Res. 67	Gephardt	100-325	rejected	05-18-95
		Neumann	89-342	rejected	05-18-95
		Payne (NJ)	56-367	rejected	05-18-95
1997	H.Con.Res. 178	Payne (NJ)	63-362	rejected	05-16-96
		Orton	130-295	rejected	05-16-96
		Sabo	117-304	rejected	05-16-96

Number of Years Covered by Budget Resolutions

Originally, the Budget Act mandated that budget resolutions cover only the upcoming fiscal year. A desire to use the budget resolution as a tool for budget planning prompted Congress to expand this time-frame to include the upcoming fiscal year as well as the two ensuing fiscal years. Congress used the authority granted in section 301(b)(4) of the Budget Act⁽⁸⁾ to adopt 3-year budget resolutions for FY1980 (second budget resolution)-FY1986. The practice of including three fiscal years was formalized by the Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act in 1985 (2 USC 632).

Although the three-year time period remains permanent law, the Budget Enforcement Act (BEA) of 1990 (codified as amended in scattered sections of 2 USC, 15 USC 1022, 31 USC 1105, 1341, 1342) temporarily extended to five fiscal years the period the budget resolution is required to cover. The BEA provision originally covered FY1991 through FY1995, but was extended to cover through FY1998 by the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993 (2 USC 901).

The recent focus on achieving a balanced budget has led Congress to further extend the period covered by an annual budget resolution. The FY1996 budget resolution set budget levels through FY2002. This change was an integral part of Congress' goal of balancing the budget in seven years. The FY1997 budget resolution also set budget levels through FY2002, covering a period of six fiscal years. Table 3 provides information regarding the number of years covered by budget resolutions.

Congress may also formulate budget resolutions which revise budget levels for the current year. Revisions to current year budget levels can be made pursuant to Section 304 (2 USC 635) of the Budget Act. Congress has adopted eight annual budget resolutions which revise current year budget levels, revising budget levels for fiscal years 1976, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1984, 1985, and 1991.

TABLE 3. Number of Years Covered by Adopted Budget Resolutions, FY1976-1997
Fiscal year	Budget resolution	Fiscal years covered	Current fiscal year revision	Number of years covered
1976	H.Con.Res. 218	1976	-	1
1977	S.Con.Res. 109	1976-1977	1976	2
1978	S.Con.Res. 19	1978	-	1
1979	H.Con.Res. 80	1979	-	1
1980	H.Con.Res. 107	1979-1980	1979	2
1981	H.Con.Res. 307	1980-1983	1980	4
1982	H.Con.Res. 115	1981-1984	1981	4
1983	S.Con.Res. 92	1982-1985	1982	4
1984	H.Con.Res. 91	1984-1986	-	3
1985	H.Con.Res. 280	1984-1987	1984	4
1986	S.Con.Res. 32	1985-1988	1985	4
1987	S.Con.Res. 120	1987-1989	-	3
1988	H.Con.Res. 93	1988-1990	-	3
1989	H.Con.Res. 268	1989-1991	-	3
1990	H.Con.Res. 106	1990-1992	-	3
1991	H.Con.Res. 310	1991-1995	-	5
1992	H.Con.Res. 121	1991-1996	1991	6
1993	H.Con.Res. 287	1993-1997	-	5
1994	H.Con.Res. 64	1994-1998	-	5
1995	H.Con.Res. 218	1995-1999	-	5
1996	H.Con.Res. 67	1996-2002	-	7
1997	H.Con.Res. 178	1997-2002	-	6

Reconciliation Instructions in Budget Resolutions

In most recent years, Congress has adopted a budget resolution recommending deficit reduction. Reconciliation is an optional procedure under section 310 (2 USC 641) of the Budget Act. In most years, it has been used to assist deficit-reduction efforts. Reconciliation instructions in the budget resolution provide for legislation enacting changes in permanent revenue and entitlement laws to produce the revenue and entitlement levels set by the budget resolution.⁽⁹⁾ Reconciliation was first used in calendar year 1980 for FY1981.

The first step in the reconciliation process is the adoption of a budget resolution containing reconciliation directives. These directives indicate the amount by which instructed committees should reduce spending (or increase revenues) for programs within their jurisdiction. Second, the instructed committees develop legislative recommendations to implement the directives. These recommendations are usually reported to the Budget Committee in each chamber where they are incorporated into an omnibus budget reconciliation measure.⁽¹⁰⁾

From FY1981-FY1997, reconciliation directives were included in the budget resolution for every fiscal year except 1985, 1989, 1992, 1993, and 1995. Each budget resolution that contained reconciliation instructions led to the enactment of legislation, except for FY1996. For FY1997, the budget resolution provided for as many as three pieces of reconciliation legislation. Ultimately, Congress decided to act on a single piece of reconciliation legislation, covering welfare. Table 4 lists the legislation that evolved from reconciliation instructions.

Fiscal year	Budget Resolution	Date resolution was adopted	Fiscal years covered by reconciliation instructions	Resultant legislation	Date law was enacted
1981	H.Con.Res. 307	06-12-80	1980-19811	Omnibus Reconciliation Act of 1980 (P.L. 96-499)	12-05-80
1982	H.Con.Res. 115	05-21-81	1981-19842	Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1981 (P.L. 97-35)	08-13-81
1983	H.Con.Res. 92	06-23-82	1983-1985	Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1982 (P.L. 97-253) Tax Equity and Fiscal Responsibility Act of 1982 (P.L. 97-248)	09-08-82 09-03-82
1984	H.Con.Res. 91	06-23-83	1984-1986	Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1983 (P.L. 98-270)	04-18-84
1986	S.Con.Res. 32	08-01-85	1986-1988	Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 (P.L. 99-272)	04-07-86
1987	S.Con.Res. 120	06-27-86	1987-1989	Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1986 (P.L. 99-509)	10-21-86
1988	S.Con.Res. 93	06-24-87	1988-1990	Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1987 (P.L. 100-203)	12-22-87
1990	H.Con.Res. 106	05-18-89	1990 (Senate) 1990-1991 (House)	Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1989 (P.L. 101-239)	12-19-89
1991	H.Con.Res. 310	10-09-90	1991-1995	Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1990 (P.L. 101-508)	11-05-90
1994	H.Con.Res. 64	04-01-93	1994-1998	Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993 (P.L. 103-66)	08-10-93
1996	H.Con.Res. 67	06-29-95	1996-2002	Balanced Budget Act of 1995	12-06-95 (vetoed)3
1997	H.Con.Res. 178	06-13-96	1997-2002	Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (P.L. 104-193)	08-22-96

¹ The House and Senate Appropriations Committees were instructed in the budget resolution to submit legislation (e.g., rescissions of previously-enacted appropriations) to reduce spending for FY1980.

² The Senate Appropriations Committee was instructed in the budget resolution to submit legislation to reduce spending for FY1981 (budget authority and outlays) and FY1982-FY1984 (outlays only).

³ The bill was vetoed on December 6, 1995.

Source: Congressional Research Service. Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Legislation: the Timing of Legislative Action, by Robert Keith and Edward Davis. Report No. 94-955 GOV, revised November 30, 1994, 15 pages, and House calendars, 103rd and 104th Congresses.

APPENDIX A. Budget Resolutions Adopted by Congress, FY1976-FY1997

Fiscal year	Congress	Type of budget resolution (if applicable)1	Measure adopted (companion measure)	Statutes-at-large citation2
1976	94th	first second	H.Con.Res. 218 (S.Con.Res. 32) H.Con.Res. 466 (S.Con.Res. 76)	89 Stat. 1197-1198 89 Stat. 1209-1210
1977	94th	first second third	S.Con.Res. 109 (H.Con.Res. 611) S.Con.Res. 139 (H.Con.Res. 728) S.Con.Res. 10 (H.Con.Res. 110)	90 Stat. 3029-3030 90 Stat. 3044-3045 91 Stat. 1666-1667
1978	95th	first second	S.Con.Res. 19 (H.Con.Res. 214) H.Con.Res. 341 (S.Con.Res. 43)	91 Stat. 1670-1673 91 Stat. 1683-1684
1979	95th	first second	S.Con.Res. 80 (H.Con.Res. 559) H.Con.Res. 683 (S.Con.Res. 104)	92 Stat. 3870-3872 92 Stat. 3878-3879
1980	96th	first second	H.Con.Res. 107 (S.Con.Res. 22) S.Con.Res. 53 (none)	93 Stat. 1413-1416 93 Stat. 1428-1433
1981	96th	first second	H.Con.Res. 307 (S.Con.Res. 86) H.Con.Res. 448 (S.Con.Res. 119)	94 Stat. 3655-3668 94 Stat. 3680-3688
1982	97th	first second	H.Con.Res. 115 (S.Con.Res. 19) S.Con.Res. 50 (H.Con.Res. 230)	95 Stat. 1743-1759 95 Stat. 1178
1983	97th	-	S.Con.Res. 92 (H.Con.Res. 352)	96 Stat. 2647-2661
1984	98th	-	H.Con.Res. 91 (S.Con.Res. 27)	97 Stat. 1501-1523
1985	98th	-	H.Con.Res. 280 (S.Con.Res. 106)	98 Stat. 3484-3498
1986	99th	-	S.Con.Res. 32 (H.Con.Res. 152)	99 Stat. 1941-1959
1987	99th	-	S.Con.Res. 120 (H.Con.Res. 337)	100 Stat. 4354-4370
1988	100th	-	H.Con.Res. 93 (S.Con.Res. 49)	101 Stat. 1986-2003
1989	100th	-	H.Con.Res. 268 (S.Con.Res. 113)	102 Stat. 4875-4886
1990	101st	-	H.Con.Res. 106 (S.Con.Res. 30)	103 Stat. 2540-2554
1991	101st	-	H.Con.Res. 310 (S.Con.Res. 110)	104 Stat. 5163-5181
1992	102nd	-	H.Con.Res. 121 (S.Con.Res. 29)	105 Stat. 2414-2433
1993	102nd	-	H.Con.Res. 287 (S.Con.Res. 106)	106 Stat. 5165
1994	103rd	-	H.Con.Res. 64 (S.Con.Res. 18)	107 Stat. 2508-2538
1995	103rd	-	H.Con.Res. 218 (S.Con.Res. 63)	not available
1996	104th	-	H.Con.Res. 67 (S.Con.Res. 13)	not available
1997	104th	-	H.Con.Res. 178 (S.Con.Res. 57)	not available

¹ "Type" refers to whether the budget resolution is the first, second, or third for the fiscal year.

² Although concurrent resolutions such as budget resolutions have no statutory authority, they are compiled in a special section of the Statutes-at-Large.

APPENDIX B. Timing of Action on Adopted Budget Resolutions, FY1976-FY1997¹

Fiscal year	Date House began consideration	Date Senate began consideration	House adoption	Senate adoption	Companion measure adoption (if applicable)	Conference report adoption2
1976	04-30-75	04-29-75	05-01-75	05-05-75	05-01-75	05-14-75
1977	04-27-76	04-08-76	04-29-76	04-12-76	04-29-76	05-13-76
1978	04-26-77	05-02-77	05-05-77	05-03-77	05-05-77	05-17-77
1979	05-04-78	04-24-78	05-10-78	04-26-78	05-10-78	05-17-78
1980	04-30-79	04-23-79	05-14-79	05-15-79	04-25-79	05-24-79
1981	04-23-80	05-05-80	05-07-80	05-12-80	-	06-12-80
1982	04-30-81	03-26-81	05-07-81	05-12-81	-	05-21-81
1983	05-21-82	05-14-82	06-10-82	05-21-82	06-10-82	06-23-82
1984	03-22-83	05-02-83	03-23-83	05-19-83	05-19-83	06-23-83
1985	04-04-84	05-18-84	04-05-84	05-18-84	-	10-01-84
1986	05-22-85	04-25-85	05-23-85	05-09-85	05-23-85	08-01-85
1987	05-14-86	04-21-86	05-15-86	05-01-86	05-15-86	06-27-86
1988	04-08-87	04-28-87	04-09-87	05-06-87	-	06-24-87
1989	03-23-88	04-11-88	03-23-88	04-14-88	-	06-06-88
1990	05-03-89	05-02-89	05-04-89	05-04-89	-	05-18-89
1991	04-25-90	06-14-90	05-01-90	06-14-90	-	10-09-90
1992	04-16-91	04-23-91	04-17-91	04-25-91	-	05-22-91
1993	03-04-92	04-07-92	03-05-92	04-10-92	-	05-21-92
1994	03-17-93	03-17-93	03-18-93	03-25-93	-	04-01-93
1995	03-10-94	03-22-94	03-11-94	03-25-94	-	05-12-94
1996	05-17-95	05-18-95	05-18-95	05-25-95	-	06-29-95
1997	05-15-96	05-15-96	05-16-96	05-23-96	-	06-13-96

¹ As stated previously, this appendix as well as following appendices contain first budget resolutions only. The calendar date is specified. The legislative date may differ.

² See Appendix A for resolution numbers.

APPENDIX C. Budget Resolutions Rejected by the House, FY1976-FY1997¹

Fiscal year	Congress	Budget resolution	Vote	Date
1978	95th	H.Con.Res. 195	84-320	04-27-77
1980	96th	H.Con.Res. 186	192-213	09-19-79
1983	97th	H.Con.Res. 345	159-265	05-27-82
1987	99th	H.Con.Res. 296	12-312	03-13-86
1991	101st	H.Con.Res. 310 (conference report)2	179-254	10-05-90
1996	104th	H.Con.Res. 122	0-412	12-19-95

¹ No budget resolutions were rejected by the Senate.

² Another conference report to H.Con.Res. 310 was agreed to on October 8, 1990 by a vote of 250-164.

APPENDIX D. Amendments to the 1974 Congressional Budget Act and Other Legislative Actions Affecting Budget Resolutions

Full Employment and Balanced Growth Act of 1978 ("Humphrey-Hawkins Act"; P.L. 95-523; 92 Stat. 1887-1908; relevant sections codified in 15 USC 1022, 1022a, 1022b, 1022c; October 27, 1978)

• Following the presentation of opening floor statements on the budget resolution, calls for a period of up to four hours for debate on economic goals and priorities.

Temporary Increase in the Public Debt Limit (P.L. 96-5; 93 Stat. 8; April 2, 1979)

• Mandated that Budget Committees and the President report budget resolutions for FY1981 and FY1982 that were in balance. Provision was repealed in 1982.

Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 (P.L. 99-272; 100 Stat. 82-391; 2 USC 636, 641; April 7, 1986)

• First enacted the Byrd Rule, which prohibits the inclusion of extraneous matter in reconciliation legislation, from April 7, 1986 to January 2, 1987.⁽¹¹⁾

Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act (Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985; Title II of P.L. 99-177; 99 Stat. 1038-1101; 2 USC 900-922; December 12, 1985)⁽¹²⁾

• Requires Congress to complete action on a budget resolution by April 15 of each year (deadline moved from May 15).
• Eliminates the requirement that Congress adopt a second budget resolution annually by September 15.
• Formalizes the practice of adopting a 3-year budget resolution (the figures for the second and third years are not binding).
• Calls for off-budget entities, except social security, to be included in the budget resolution and the President's budget.
• Formalizes the practice of including credit authority (direct and guaranteed loans) in the budget resolution.
• Mandates that neither House may consider a budget resolution, amendment to a budget resolution, or conference report on a budget resolution that recommends a deficit amount greater than the applicable maximum deficit amount established in the Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act.
• Excludes social security from budget totals, but includes social security for calculation of the maximum deficit. The budget resolution shows two deficits, one with social security, one without.
• (Affects House Ways and Means Committee and Senate Finance Committee) Committees subject to reconciliation instructions can shift up to 20% of deficit reduction between revenues increases and spending reductions.

Budget Enforcement Act of 1990 (BEA; Title XIII of the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1990; P.L. 101-508; 104 Stat. 1388-573 through 1388-630; codified in scattered sections of 2 USC, 15 USC 1022, 31 USC 1105, 1341, 1342; November 5, 1990)⁽¹³⁾

• Adds language to the Budget Act allowing the option to include pay-as-you- go procedures for the Senate and House in the budget resolution (Sections 301(b)(7) and 301(b)(8); 2 U.S.C. 632(b)(7) and (b)(8)).
• The Byrd Rule is incorporated as Section 303 of the Budget Act (2 USC 644). The rule bars extraneous matter from being included in any reconciliation legislation.
• Required that FY1991 through FY1995 budget resolutions cover five fiscal years.
• (Senate) Prohibits the consideration of a reported budget resolution calling for a reduction in social security surpluses.
• Changes deadline for submitting views and estimates reports from "on or before February 25 of each year" to "within 6 weeks after the President submits a budget". Also changes the deadline for the President's budget submission from "on or before the first Monday after January 3 of each year" to "on or after the first Monday in January but not later than the first Monday in February of each year."
• Adds language to the Budget Act allowing the option of including social security outlays and revenues in the budget resolution for purposes of Senate enforcement.

Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993 (P.L. 103-66; 107 Stat. 312-635; relevant section codified in 2 USC 901; August 10, 1993)

• Extends the BEA requirement that budget resolutions cover five fiscal years through FY1998.

Budget Resolution for FY1994 (H.Con.Res. 64; 103rd Congress; April 1, 1993) ⁽¹⁴⁾

• Includes a Senate pay-as-you-go enforcement mechanism. The consideration of any direct spending or revenue legislation that would increase the deficit 1) in the first fiscal year covered by the most recently adopted budget resolution, 2) in the 5-year period covered by the budget resolution or, 3) in the 5-year period following the period covered by the budget resolution will be subject to a point of order. This point of order could be waived by a three-fifths vote of the Senate. The enforcement mechanism will be in place through FY1998.

Budget Resolution for FY1995 (H.Con.Res. 218; 103rd Congress; May 12, 1994)

• Section 301(i) of the Budget Act prohibits the Senate from considering any reported budget resolution that would decrease the excess of social security revenues over social security outlays for any of the fiscal years covered by the resolution, subject to a three-fifths waiver requirement. This creates a so- called "fire wall" to protect social security balances. The budget resolution for FY1995 makes permanent a temporary modification found in the budget resolutions for FY1993 and FY1994, which applied Section 301(i) to a budget resolution at any stage of consideration.
• Prohibited the scoring of proceeds from asset sales in the budget process through the FY1998 budget cycle. Similar, temporary provisions were included in budget resolutions from FY1988-FY1994. This provision is repealed by the FY1997 budget resolution.
• Restates Senate pay-as-you-go enforcement system.

Budget Resolution for FY1996 (H.Con.Res. 67; 104th Congress; June 29, 1995)

• Extends pay-as-you-go point of order through FY2002.

Budget Resolution for FY1997 (H.Con.Res. 178; 104th Congress; June 16, 1996)

• Repeals the asset sale scoring prohibition put in place by the FY1995 budget resolution.

APPENDIX E. Amendments to Budget Resolutions Considered in the House, FY1976-FY1997

Fiscal year	House concurrent resolution number	Amendments1
		Accepted	Rejected	Total
1976	H.Con.Res. 218	3	3	6
1977	H.Con.Res. 611	2	14	16
1978	H.Con.Res. 195 H.Con.Res. 214	6 2	10 6	16 8
1979	H.Con.Res. 559	3	13	16
1980	H.Con.Res. 107	11	34	45
1981	H.Con.Res. 307	1	10	11
1982	H.Con.Res. 115	2	2	4
1983	H.Con.Res. 345 H.Con.Res. 352	11 1	27 1	38 2
1984	H.Con.Res. 91	-	-	-
1985	H.Con.Res. 280 H.Con.Res. 282	- -	7 -	7 -
1986	H.Con.Res. 152	1	6	7
1987	H.Con.Res. 296 H.Con.Res. 337	- -	- 3	- 3
1988	H.Con.Res. 92 H.Con.Res. 93 H.Con.Res. 95	- 1 -	- 3 -	- 4 -
1989	H.Con.Res. 268	-	3	3
1990	H.Con.Res. 106	1	4	5
1991	H.Con.Res. 310	-	3	3
1992	H.Con.Res. 121	1	3	4
1993	H.Con.Res. 287	-	3	3
1994	H.Con.Res. 64	-	3	3
1995	H.Con.Res. 218	-	4	4
1996	H.Con.Res. 67 H.Con.Res. 122	- -	3 -	3 -
1997	H.Con.Res. 178	-	3	3

¹ No amendments were withdrawn or ruled out of order.

APPENDIX F. Amendments to Budget Resolutions Considered in the Senate, FY1976-FY1997

Fiscal year	Senate concurrent resolution number	Amendments
		Accepted	Rejected	Withdrawn or out-of-order	Total
1976	S.Con.Res. 32	1	4	-	5
1977	S.Con.Res. 109	1	7	-	8
1978	S.Con.Res. 19	5	2	-	7
1979	S.Con.Res. 80	-	9	-	9
1980	S.Con.Res. 22 S.Con.Res. 23 S.Con.Res. 36	5 - 4	12 - 10	- - -	17 - 14
1981	S.Con.Res. 86	11	28	-	39
1982	S.Con.Res. 9 S.Con.Res. 19	4 2	31 17	1 -	36 19
1983	S.Con.Res. 92	9	28	-	37
1984	S.Con.Res. 27	7	24	-	31
1985	S.Con.Res. 106	-	-	-	-
1986	S.Con.Res. 32	14	23	-	37
1987	S.Con.Res. 120	15	5	2	22
1988	S.Con.Res. 48 S.Con.Res. 49 S.Con.Res. 50 S.Con.Res. 51	- 4 - -	- 9 - -	- 2 - -	- 15 - -
1989	S.Con.Res. 113	8	4	-	12
1990	S.Con.Res. 30	23	2	1	26
1991	S.Con.Res. 110	1	-	-	1
1992	S.Con.Res. 28 S.Con.Res. 29	- 7	- 5	- 3	- 15
1993	S.Con.Res. 106	15	3	3	21
1994	S.Con.Res. 18	22	28	-	50
1995	S.Con.Res. 63	26	9	4	39
1996	S.Con.Res. 13	26	34	9	69
1997	S.Con.Res. 57	41	22	4	67

1. A further revision, in the form of a third budget resolution, was adopted for FY1977.

2. In some years more than one budget resolution was considered by the House or Senate. This fact is reflected in the tables and appendices that cover "considered" budget resolutions.

3. The original deadline set by the 1974 Budget Act was May 15; the Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act moved the deadline for adoption of the budget resolution to April 15.

4. Although section 301 (2 USC 632) provides that budget resolutions shall cover three fiscal years, section 606 (2 USC 665e) temporarily requires that they cover five fiscal years (through FY1998).

5. See Congressional Record, v. 125, May 3, 1979, pp. 9677-9684.

6. This average, as well as the average number of Senate amendments, derives from all first budget resolutions considered on the House or Senate floor.

7. Thirty-eight amendments were considered to H.Con.Res. 352, a FY1983 budget resolution proposal rejected by the House. Many amendments to this concurrent resolution were considered en bloc and are not counted individually.

8. Section 301(b)(4) (2 USC 632 (b)(4)), sometimes referred to as the "elastic clause," provides that a budget resolution may "set forth such other matters, and require such other procedures, relating to the budget, as may be appropriate to carry out the purposes of this Act."

9. Reconciliation measures may also be used to adjust the public debt limit. The debt limit is addressed by reconciliation measures less often than permanent revenue and entitlement legislation.

10. For more information on reconciliation legislation see: Congressional Research Service. Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Legislation: the Timing of Legislative Action, by Robert Keith and Edward Davis. Report No. 94-955 GOV, revised November 30, 1994, 15 pages.

11. The Byrd Rule was extended to January 2, 1988 under the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1986 (P.L. 99-509; 100 Stat. 1874-2078; October 21, 1986) and to September 30, 1992 by a measure to increase the statutory limit on the public debt (P.L. 100-119; 101 Stat. 754-788; September 29, 1987) before the Budget Enforcement Act of 1990 incorporated the Byrd Rule into the Budget Act as section 313.

12. For more information on changes made by the Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act see: Congressional Research Service. Changes in the Congressional Budget Process Made by the 1985 Balanced Budget Act (P.L. 99-177), by Robert A. Keith. Report No. 86-713 GOV, May 23, 1986, 45 pages and Congressional Research Service. Explanation of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 -Public Law 99-177 (The Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act), by Allen Schick. Report No. 85-1130 GOV, December 1985, 21 pages.

13. See: Congressional Research Service. Budget Enforcement Act of 1990: Brief Summary, by Edward Davis and Robert Keith. Report No. 90-520 GOV, November 19,1990, 11 pages.

14. Although budget resolutions, which are agreed to in the form of a concurrent resolution, do not have the force of law, they can recommend budget process changes or create a point of order.