Summary: The Federal Budget Process

The budget process begins the first month in February, when the President submits his proposal to Congress. The budget process is used to create the United States federal budget. The President 's proposed budget includes extensive supporting documentation to make the case for White House spending and saving priorities. The federal budget is divided into two categories mandatory and discretionary. There are five steps in the Federal Budget process. The first step beginning with the President submits a budget request to congress. Second the House and Senate pass budget resolutions, the third step the budget resolution, the fourth step the House and Senate vote on appropriations bill and reconcile differences. Lastly the fifth step is the President
Congress will then review the request and passes its own appropriation bill. Once the President signs the bills the country will have a budget for the new fiscal year. Congress then begins a process that can take months of reviewing the request after the President’s budget request has released. When the president’s budget request has been submitted and lawmakers have closely reviewed it, the House Committee on the Budget and Senate committee on the budget each will write a budget resolution. The appropriations committee in both the House and Senate will split into smaller Appropriations subcommittees. They will review the president’s budget request pertaining to the federal agencies under their specific jurisdictions. Once the subcommittees have reviewed the president’s request, it conducts hearing and poses questions to leaders of its associated federal agencies about the agencies
According to Knock Knoller from CBS News, The Debt raised $4.899 trillion during the two terms of the Bush presidency. It has now gone up $4.939 trillion since President Obama took office. Since the amount left over in the 1990’s, the federal budget has been deficit since fiscal year 2001. This adds to the already existing stock of outstanding federal debt. With everything considered, the relationship between the growth rate and the federal debt and overall rate of economic growth is critical to economic stability. As long as the output continues to grow rapidly the ratio of debt to gross domestic product will rise. The presidents proposed discretionary spending for fiscal year 2014 is as follows, 6% education, 6% government, 6% veterans benefits, 5% housing and community, 5% health, 3% international affairs, 3% energy and environment, 3% science, 3% transportation, 2% labor, 1% food and agricultural, and 57% military. Non-discretionary spending in fiscal year 2013 was as follows, 22% social security payments, 21% Medicare/Medicaid/SCHIP payments, 6% interest on the national debt, 15% other mandatory