Budget systems' influence on fiscal and program outcomes

This volume illustrates the challenges and opportunities in developing an effective budget process. Budget structures have impacts across a series of dimensions, in which an effective budget process helps instill aggregate fiscal discipline, facilitate strategic prioritization of expenditures across sectors and programs, and encourage effective performance in the use of budgeted resources. Moreover, these outcomes must be concluded in a timely fashion, supported by an engaged public. Reforms to a budget system, however, must consider the system as a whole, given that efforts to advance one goal will impact the accomplishment of others. The focus of the book is on the U.S. federal budget process and how well it accomplishes these various budget goals. The U.S. budget relies on three budget systems ¿mandatory and discretionary spending and tax expenditures¿each based in separate congressional committees and relying on separate procedures. The book evaluates these budget processes, considering their individual characteristics and the institutions that support them, how effectively these budget processes achieve the normative goals of budgeting, and what opportunities exist for reform.