Budget of the United States Government 2018

The Budget of the United States Government 2018 titled "America First: A Budget Blueprint to Make America Great Again" is now available online from the Government Printing Office. President Trump recommends increasing defense spending by $54 billion while cutting the budgets of the following departments/agencies: State, EPA, Labor, Education, and Agriculture. He proposes to eliminate both the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities and decrease funding to agencies like the National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation which provide money for academic research. Public broadcasting and the arts would also face cuts as would popular domestic programs like home-heating subsidies and clean-water projects. The budget does not address mandatory entitlement programs like Social Security.

If you'd like to see a quick visual representation (graphs and charts) of  programs that would lose funding under President Trump's proposed budget, see Bloomberg's March 16, 2017 article "These 80 Programs Would Lose Federal Funding Under Trump’s Proposed Budget."
 

Impacts of Sequestration

With the threat of Sequestration cuts looming on March 1, many are wondering what the possible effects of Sequestration will be. The United States Senate Committee on Appropriations is conducting Sequestration hearings now and has made available letters from various government agencies discussing possible impacts. For more information, see The Impacts of Sequestration page.

Long-Term U.S. Budget Outlook

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has released The 2012 Long-Term Budget Outlook complete with a summary, supplemental data, and an infographic. The CBO predicts that the federal debt will reach approximately 70 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) by the end of 2012, "the highest percentage since shortly after World War II."  The report presents two possible scenarios (extended baseline and extended alternative fiscal scenario) about federal revenues and spending  and corresponding budgetary outcomes.

U.S. Budget Goes Mobile

The Government Printing Office (GPO) has developed a mobile version of the FY 2013 Budget of the U.S. Government that is supported on iOS 4.3 and above, Android 2.2 and above, and Blackberry OS v. 6.0 and above. To access the app on your mobile phone, go to http://m.gpo.gov/budget . 

The mobile app allows users to access the text and images of the main FY 2013 Budget. Links at the bottom also allow users to purchase a copy of the Budget from the GPO Online Bookstore or to access digital versions of previous Budget volumes through GPO's Federal Digital System (FDsys).

For more information see the featured article on FDLP Connection.

Analysis of the Budget Control Act of 2011

What impact will The Budget Control Act of 2011 have on the deficit? Estimates from the Congressional Budget Office created for the House and Senate are now available online. The estimates include discussions on the following topics : Discretionary Caps, Program Integrity Initiatives, the Social Security Administration, Health Care Fraud and Abuse Control, Changes in Direct Spending for Education Programs, Pell Grants, Student Loans,Other Provisions, and Overall Budgetary Impact of the Legislation.

On Aug. 2, 2011 President Obama signed into S. 365, The Budget Control Act of 2011, assigned as Public Law 112-25 (cite as Pub. L. No. 112-25, 140 Stat. 240 [28 pages]). The enrolled bill is available as a pdf at http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/BILLS-112s365enr/pdf/BILLS-112s365enr.pdf or in html at http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c112:S.365.enr: which also has links to previous versions of the bill.

Fiscal Year 2011 Budget of the United States Government & DOD Budget Proposal

The Budget of the United States Government Fiscal Year 2011 is now available. Budget documents are available as PDFs digitally signed to ensure authenticity.

The Department of Defense also released its 2011 budget proposal along with a summary containing charts. The summary ends with a chart showing the 2010 war funding supplemental request. Strategic defense reviews including the Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR), the Nuclear Posture Review (NPR), the Ballistic Missile Defense Review (BMDR), and the Space Posture Review (SPR) are also posted.

Economic Stimulus Plan Web Sites

If you are seeking information about the stimulus plans, in addition to the Obama Administration's Recovery.gov which helps Americans track spending from the $787 Billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, several federal and independent agencies have pertinent web sites:


IRS Information Related to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 highlights the following topics:

• COBRA: Health Insurance Continuation Subsidy


• Tax credit of up to $8,000 for first-time home buyers


• Tax credit of $400 or $800 for many taxpayers


• $250 payment to Social Security Recipients, Veterans and Railroad Retirees


• Deductions for state and local sales taxes for purchasing certain new 2009 vehicles


• Tips to avoid Recovery Rebate Credit confusion

FinancialStability.gov from the U.S. Department of the Treasury contains links about making housing affordable, the Consumer and Business Lending Initiative (TALF), the Capital Assistance Program (CAP), the Financial Stability Plan, fact sheets, and press releases and statements.

The fiscal year 2010 budget overview from the Office of Management and Budget describes the Obama Administration's fiscal policies and major budgetary initiatives.

State Economic Stimulus Plans from the National Conference of State Legislatures provides details about state-level stimulus plans for 16 states.

Stimulus Watch describes projects that are candidates for funding by federal grant programs once the stimulus bill passes. This site allows people with local knowledge about the proposed projects in their cities to find, discuss, and rate the projects.

Federal Budget News

According to economic updates in the Mid-Session Review, the Federal budget deficit is estimated at $205 billion in 2007, a reduction of $43 billion (18%) from last year. Additionally, higher than expected tax receipts have kept this estimate $39 billion lower than the February budget estimate.