Background & Basics

The following websites, documents, and print materials provide more information about the federal budget process as well as some of its history.

"Appropriations Resources Video on Congress.gov"
This is a blog post that provides links to videos on how to use congress.gov particularly those about appropriations.
Budget System and Concepts (2008) [PDF, 941 KB]
Issued by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), this is a section that is usually found within the budget materials themselves though search on "Budget System and Concepts" or "Budget System and Concepts and glossary" can yield digitized copies on the Internet.
Budget of the United States Government Series External
This is a collection of material related to the United States budget that includes digitized versions of current and older budget documents and supporting material.
A Citizen's Guide to the Federal Budget, 1995-2001
These digitized versions are part of the FRASER project of the St. Louis branch of the Federal Reserve. Overview of the budget, Its intent was to review in detail how the Government raised revenues and spent money, highlight such concepts as the deficit and debt, review the President’s proposals. This has now "Your Guide to America’s Finances" (link below).
Congressional Budget Process: An Explanation [PDF, 519 KB]
Produced by the Senate's Budget Committee in 1998, it provides an explanation of the budget process in the Senate, its history and evolution to today.(S. Prt 105-67)
Down the Rabbit Hole: The Congressional Budget Process
This webinar from the Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP) covers the Congressional budget process, how it is supposed to work, and how it actually functions in practice. Viewers will learn how Congress is supposed to fund the Government and how it often deviates from established procedures. They will also learn where to find legislative information related to the budget, appropriations, and authorizations.
The Executive Budget Process: An Overview
This is CRS report R47019 date September 5 2023.
A Glossary of Terms Used in the Federal Budget Process [PDF, 4.7MB]
This document was prepared by the GAO in 2005 (being updated as of 2022). It includes a legislative timeline, a glossary of terms, and other basic information.
How Our Laws are Made - Learn about the legislative process
This is a web-friendly presentation of "How Our Laws Are Made" (House Document 110-49); revised and updated by John V. Sullivan, Parliamentarian, United States House of Representatives, July 2007.
Introduction to Budget Authority
This is a 2023 CRS In Focus report (https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/IF/IF12105) that is a brief overview of budgetary authority.
Introduction to the Federal Budget Process
This is CRS report R46240 from January 10, 2023.
"A Short History of Government Taxing and Spending in the United States" External
This is a piece from the Tax Foundation that looks at the period of the 20th and 21st centuries.
The Social Security Trust Funds and the Budget
This is a CRS In Focus report from 2020 (IF11615) that is a brief overview of the budget and the trust funds.
U.S. Foreign Assistance: Budget Development and Execution
This is a CRS In Focus report from 2020 (IF11515) with basic information about foreign assistance.
Your Guide to America’s Finances (webinar)
This is a recording of a webinar from the FDLP Academy on April 30, 2020. The speaker was Linnea Powell, Program Analyst, Bureau of the Fiscal Service, U.S. Department of the Treasury

Budget Process Law Annotated by William G. Dauster
Call Number: KF6222 1991
ISBN: 016032002X
Published/Created: 1991-01-01
Available online from Hathi Trust External

Legislative Actions

How the the federal government budgets and who is responsible, has changed over time. Knowing what changed and when, may help those that are looking at previous budgets understand how things were at a given time and how the system changed. These happened was doing through the legislative process. So below are several pieces of legislation/laws pertaining to the overall operation of Congress as it relates to budget, but the main provisions can be found in Title 2 of the United States Code. The official time line for the process is set in 2 U.S.C. 631.

U.S. Constitution (Article I, section 9, clause 7) states
"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."
An Act making provision for the [payment of the] Debt of the United States (The Funding Act of 1790; 1 Stat. 138. 1st Congress, 2d Session, Ch. 34)
This was passed on August 4, 1790 as part of the Compromise of 1790.
An Act to define and establish the fiscal year of the Treasury of the United States. (Aug. 26, 1842, 5 Stat. 536)
This is the original Act that set the fiscal year as of July 1. Currently the budget cycle starts on October 1. The full text of this can be found in "The Statutes at Large and Treaties of the United States of America," in Volume 5 (24th-28th, 1835-1845) by clicking on the Title Page and then typing in 536 in Century of Lawmaking resource for the Statutes.
Budget and Accounting Act of 1921 (Pub.L. 67–13, 42 Stat. 20, enacted June 10, 1921)
This act gave the President overall responsibility for budget planning by requiring him to submit an annual, comprehensive budget proposal to the Congress. It also established the Bureau of the Budget.
Congressional Budget and Impoundment Act of 1974. (Pub.L. 93-344, 88 Stat. 297 [PDF, 7.4 MB])
Titles I- IX are collectively known as the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 (part of the overall Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974). Title II created the Congressional Budget Office, and this is the legislation that moved the fiscal year start from July to October. This act is the basic blueprint for budget procedures today with some modifications made since.
Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (99th Congress, S.1702, Pub.L. 99-177, title II, December 12, 1985, 99 Stat. 1038, 2 U.S.C. § 900 [PDF, 10.5 MB]) and Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Reaffirmation Act of 1987 (Pub.L. 100-119, title I, Sept. 29, 1987, 101 Stat. 754, 2 U.S.C. § 900) (both often known as Gramm-Rudman)
One of the first attempts at imposing binding constraints on federal spending; its spending caps have become part of every subsequent U.S. budget.
Budget Enforcement Act of 1990. (Pub.L. 101-508, [PDF, 95.3 MB] title XIII; 104 Stat. 1388-573; codified as amended in scattered sections of 2 U.S.C. & 15 U.S.C. § 1022) (title XIII of the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1990)
An effort to enforce the deficit reduction and revise the budget control process of the Federal Government. Created two new budget control processes: 1) a set of caps on annually-appropriated spending, and 2) a "pay-as-you-go" or "PAYGO" process for entitlements and taxes.

Federal Budget: Sources of Information

Background & Basics

Legislative Actions