Economic Policy

 For Thu, read LaPira, ch 11 plus short articles on voting rights and "the nuclear option."

Constitutional Provisions

All Bills for raising Revenue shall originate in the House of Representatives; but the Senate may propose or concur with amendments as on other Bills.”
— U.S. Constitution, Article I, section 7, clause 1

To raise and support Armies, but no Appropriation of Money to that Use shall be for a longer Term than two Years;

-- U.S. Constitution, Article I, section 8, clause 12

“No Money shall be drawn from the Treasury, but in Consequence of Appropriations made by Law; and a regular Statement and Account of the Receipts and Expenditures of all public Money shall be published from time to time.”
— U.S. Constitution, Article I, section 9, clause 7

What follows would baffle a Martian.

Authorization

• Reauthorization as a form of oversight (LaPira, ch. 12)
• Lapsed authorizations:

Appropriation

• Also a form of oversight -- with diminished capacity (LaPira ch. 9)

• Budget Authority
• Outlay
• Continuing resolutions

"The Budget Process" and key documents:

• The president's budget
• CBO reports

Revenue Bills and RECONCILIATION (Davidson 429-430)


Revenues -- Where the money comes from:

The tax system is more progressive than most people realize: 

 

Tax expenditures

Outlays -- Where the money goes:

Budget tables:  function, subfunction, agency

No, we cannot balance the budget by catching Social Security fraud: only 13 people aged 112 or older are getting checks.

Deficit

LATEST LONG-TERM PROJECTIONS

THE DEBT LIMIT

  What happens if the US government defaults on the federal debt?