The Budget Process

Overview

The House Committee on the Budget was established in 1974 by the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act. Along with the Senate Budget Committee, it is responsible for drafting Congress's annual budget plan and monitoring action on the budget for the federal government. Through this plan, called a "budget resolution," Congress sets targets for itself on the desired size of the federal budget and its composition. It is up to Congress to enforce these budget targets by enacting funding and tax legislation that stays within the congressional budget resolution. A budget resolution includes the total planned cost of federal programs, of revenues, and of the surplus or deficit. In addition, the budget resolution allows Congress to set forth its major priorities by choosing to focus resources among different budget functions such as education, transportation, and defense. Budget resolutions are agreed to annually, and cover the coming fiscal year and the next four years, or even more. Finally, the Budget Committee has jurisdiction over the operation of the Congressional Budget Office.

The Budget Committee is currently chaired by Representative Jim Nussle (R-Iowa). Representative John Spratt (D-South Carolina) serves as Ranking Member.

The Budget Committee is often confused with the Appropriations Committee and the Ways and Means Committee, both of which have different jurisdictions. The Appropriations Committee has legislative jurisdiction over appropriations bills, which provide funding for many government programs. The Ways and Means Committee (like the Finance Committee in the U.S. Senate) has legislative jurisdiction over taxes, Social Security, Medicare, and some other entitlements. While the budget resolution prepared by the Budget Committee sets out a broad blueprint of total levels of revenues and spending for the federal government as a whole, these and other Committees prepare the legislation that actually enacts specific tax and budget policies.

Download The Congressional Budget Process: An Explanation in PDF format (666 KB) to find out more about the Budget Committees and the budget process. Click here to see a compilation of budget laws.