Budget Vocab Flashcards
Budget
An estimate of appropriations for the federal government in one fiscal year
Deficit
A lack of money that arises when the federal government spends more than it makes
Expenditures
Money that the government spends
Revenues
Money that the government makes
Income Tax
The government takes a percentage of people’s income to raise money
Sixteenth Amendment
An amendment that allows Congress to impose Federal income tax
National Debt
Money borrowed by the federal government that needs to be payed back
Tax Expenditures
Exceptions to regular income tax policies due to specific taxpayer situations — for charities, churches, homeowners, etc.
Social Security Act
An act that provides funds to the elderly, providing money during retirement
Medicare
A program under social security that provides health insurance for the elderly
Incrementalism
The budgeting process of looking at the previous year’s budget to determine the budget of the current year, but often increasing the amount.
Uncontrollable Expenditures
Spending that the government is legally required to do because of existing programs like social security.
Entitlements
Eligibility rules that Congress writes for people receiving uncontrollable expenditures, like the retirement age
House Ways and Means Committee
House committee that determines taxation/writes tax codes
Senate Finance Committee
Senate Committee that oversees finance and budgetary concerns, but cannot control taxes
Office of Management and Budget (OMB)
A budget office in the executive branch that the president has little involvement in
Appropriations Committee
In both houses, the committee that decides government spending and appropriation policy
Budget Resolution
An agreement that needs to be made by both houses at the end of the fiscal year, sets the budget for next year.
Reconciliation
Adjustments to the budget including program authorization and tax adjustments, essentially fine-tuning budget before resolution.
Appropriations Bill
A bill created to fund programs and government projects, to be passed before the next fiscal year.
Continuing Resolution
When Congress isn’t able to pass a resolution, they pass this, which allows agencies to spend on the terms of last year’s budget in the meantime
Government Shutdown
When a budget isn’t able to be passed in time, the government shuts down because of a lack of funds, and employees are layed off
Omnibus Bill
A bill composed of many smaller bills, in the case of budget usually appropriations bills
