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What We Do
CBO's work offers diverse challenges, from quick-turnaround cost estimates critical to important legislation to in-depth studies of social and economic issues. The agency's publications are widely sought by others within the federal government, universities, libraries, think tanks, the press, other governments, and members of the public.
CBO's Budget and Economic Outlook, issued each January and updated each summer, serves as the starting point for the Congress's annual budget deliberations. Presenting 10-year projections of federal spending and revenues and a forecast of the economy, the Outlook provides lawmakers and others with a neutral baseline for assessing proposals.
Each February, the President submits a budget request to the Congress presenting the Administration's priorities. CBO analyzes the President's proposals and estimates their costs for the Congress. CBO also spells out hundreds of alternatives that the Congress can consider to address spending and revenues in the years ahead.
The Congress calls on CBO to estimate the cost of proposed legislation and to identify and evaluate legislative mandates on state, local, and tribal governments and the private sector. Those estimates can result in the passage or defeat of important programs.
The agency vests significant responsibilities in the hands of its analysts, who, as experts in their budgetary and public-policy specialties, interact directly with Congressional staff and often participate in national and international academic seminars and conferences on complex economic and budgetary issues.
CBO officials frequently appear on Capitol Hill to testify before Congressional committees seeking input into budget and policy decisions.
CBO regularly hosts delegations from foreign countries and U.S. universities coming to learn about the U.S. budget process and CBO's part in it.
Journalists, researchers, policy experts, Congressional staff, and ordinary citizens depend on the agency every day for its analyses and explanations of complex issues. CBO's publications are available through the agency's Web site and in print.