1.3.2: Negotiated Agreement

Begin the annual budget process with negotiated agreement between the President and Congress on a joint budget resolution.

Other Information:

Begin the annual budget process with negotiated agreement between the President and Congress on a joint budget resolution. This would set in law each year the budget totals that are now supposed to be passed by the Congress in the form of a concurrent budget resolution. By making this process joint, requiring the President’s assent, the Congress would no longer be able to pass bills based on its totals and pretend that the President’s veto is politically meaningless--until the threat of a veto becomes real at the beginning of the fiscal year. Since the joint budget resolution conforms best to the constitutional structure, early negotiations between the branches would allow them to reach compromises over the budget’s major parameters, and then to move on to the many important details in appropriations, authorizations, and reconciliation bills. Should the expectation that an early negotiation produce agreement on budget totals not be realized, the Congress could still pass a concurrent resolution as a backup procedure.

Stakeholder(s):

• President of the United States


• Congress

Indicator(s):

Indicator:1

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