CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE

STATUTORY TASKS ASSIGNED TO CBO

Listed in the order in which they appear in the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 (PL 93-344). Citations are to the US Code and, in parentheses, to section numbers of PL 93-344.

1) In general, provide information to the two Budget Committees on all matters within their jurisdictions, 2 USC 602 (a), (202 (a)).

2) On request, provide information to the appropriating and taxing committees, 2 USC 602(b), (202(b)).

3) On request of any other committee, provide information compiled under 1) and 2) plus "to the extent practicable", additional information which may be requested, 2 USC 602 (c) (1), (202 (c) (1)).

4) On request of a member, provide information compiled under 1) and 2) plus "to the extent available", additional information which may be requested, 2 USC 602 (c) (2), (202 (c) (2)).

5)

Perform the duties and functions formerly performed by the Joint Committee on Reduction of Federal Expenditures, 2 USC 602 (e), (202(e)), see also 31 USC 571.

6) Annually on or before April 1, furnish to the Budget Committees a report on fiscal policy for the next fiscal year, to include a discussion of alternative levels of revenues, budget authority, outlays and tax expenditures, plus alternative allocations among major programs and functional categories, all in the light of major national needs and the effect on "balanced growth and development of the United States", 2 USC 602 (f) (1), (202 (f) (1)).

7) From time to time, furnish the Budget Committees such further reports as "may be necessary or appropriate", 2 USC 602 (f) (2), (202(f) (2)).

8) Develop and maintain filing, coding and indexing systems for all information obtained by CBO from the Executive Branch or from other agencies of the Congress, 2 USC 603(b), (203(b)).

9) With respect to each committee bill providing new budget authority, furnish to the reporting committee for its consideration: (a) a comparison of the bill to the most recent concurrent resolution on the budget, (b) a 5-year projection of outlays associated with the bill, and (c) the amount of new

budget authority and resulting outlays provided by the bill for State and local governments, 31 USC 1329 (a) (1), (308(a) (1)).

10) With respect to each committee bill providing new or increased tax expenditures, furnish to the reporting committee for its consideration: (a) a report on how the bill will affect the levels of tax expenditures most recently detailed in a concurrent resolution on the budget, and (b) a 5-year projection of the tax expenditures resulting from the bill, 31 USC 1329 (a) (2), (308(a) (2)).

11)

Periodically, issue a scorekeeping report on the results of Congressional actions compared to the most recently adopted concurrent resolution on the budget, plus status reports on all bills providing a new budget authority or changing revenues or the public debt limit, plus up-to-date estimates of revenues and the public debt, 31 USC 1329 (b), (308 (b)).

12) Annually, "as soon as practicable after the beginning of each fiscal year", issue a 5-year projection of budget authority and outlays, revenues and tax expenditures, plus the projected surplus or deficit, year by year, 31 USC 1329 (c), (308 (c)).

13) Prepare "to the extent practicable", a 5-year cost estimate for carrying out any public bill or resolution reported by any committee (except the two appropriating committees), 31 USC 1353, (403).

14) Jointly study with OMB, but separately report, on the feasibility and advisability of year-ahead budgeting and appropriating, the report to be made by February 24, 1977, 31 USC 1020 note, (502(c)).

15) Cooperate with the Comptroller General in the development of standard fiscal terminology, 31 USC 1152 (a) (1), (801(a)), (Sec 202 (a)(1) of the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1970).

16) Cooperate with the Comptroller General in developing an inventory of fiscal information sources, providing assistance to Congress in obtaining information from those sources and furnishing, on request, assistance in appraising and analyzing information so obtained, 31 USC 1153(b), (801(a)), (Sec 203 (b) of the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1970.

17) With the Comptroller General, establish a central file or files "of the data and information required to carry out the purposes of this title", 31 USC 1153 (c), (801(a)), (Sec 203 (c) of the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1970).

18) Cooperate with OMB in providing useful federal fiscal information to State and local governments, 31 USC 1153(d), (801 (a)), Sec 203 (d) of the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1970).

OFFICE OF THE DIRECTOR

The Director of the Congressional Budget Office bears full responsibility for seeing that all the duties of the organization are performed effectively and in a manner most useful to the Congress, 201 (a) (1). The Deputy Director, whose position is also specified in the Act creating the Congressional Budget Office, 201 (a) (1), will assist the Director in the overall management of the organization and will act for the Director in her absence.

The principal document emerging from the Director's Office will be the Congressional Budget Office's Annual Report to the budget committees on budget alternatives, 202 (f) (1). Although all divisions of the CBO will contribute to the report, the Deputy Director has special responsibility for bringing this material together to produce the report.

The Director's Office will also be responsible for certain tasks that relate to either the maintenance of a high quality standard for the organization's products or involve subjects that cut across several divisions. For example, the Director's Office has assembled a twenty member Congressional Budget Office Council of Economic Advisors that will meet periodically throughout the year to critique work produced by the organization and give the organization the benefit of the advice of some of the country's leading economists. In a similar vein, within the year the Director's Office plans to establish a Congressional Budget Office Quality Control Committee composed of approximately ten expert consultants who will meet periodically to advise the Director in her efforts to maintain the high standards of CBO. Finally, periodically the Congressional Budget Office will contract for studies that do not fit into the policy areas of any single division. In these cases the supervision of the study will be carried out from the Director's Office. Such a study would be one on the impact of the impoundment provisions of the Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 on the budget and policies of states and localities.

Finally, periodically, the Director, Deputy Director and their assistants will be called upon to speak to academic and professional groups on the new budget process. To accommodate these engagements travel funds have been included in the budget.