Abstract
The Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act was passed 50 years ago to put the Congress on a more equal footing with the President. The law has controlled Presidential impoundments, but the budget process has gotten less timely. It has enabled the Congress to articulate a different fiscal path than the President, but the budget resolution has degenerated into a vehicle for political messaging. Its most significant results have been the use of reconciliation for major policy changes and the establishment and ascendency of the Congressional Budget Office as the main source of credible information on the federal budget.
Key Takeaways
- The Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act turned 50 in 2024. It has unquestionably, as intended, empowered the Congress relative to the President with respect to the budget.
- The law has effectively controlled impoundments and provided the Congress with more and better information on the budget and economy, but the budget process still lacks timeliness and the Congress has not made effective use of the process to set fiscal policy.
- The two most significant developments have been the ascendance of the reconciliation process, which has become an important way for Congressional majorities to get things done, and the Congressional Budget Office, which has become an influential voice in federal fiscal policy.
- Going forward, the key question is whether the budget resolution can become, as intended, an effective way for the Congress to exercise its independence and set overall budget priorities, or whether it will continue to simply serve as a political messaging device.