Legislators and the public tend to underestimate the fiscal costs of emergency spending. Emergency supplemental bills, such as the Ukraine‐Israel foreign aid package, are often billed as one‐time, temporary costs. This framing obscures the tens of billions of dollars in interest costs generated by new deficit spending.
Downsizing Blog
Responding to Critiques of the Congressional Fiscal Commission
Since the House Budget Committee passed the Fiscal Commission Act out of committee in January, several critics have come out of the woodwork to argue against the bill. Criticism ranges from calling the commission process undemocratic, to claiming that Social Security and Medicare (or at least Part A) don’t contribute to the debt, to worrying about tax increases that might get passed under false pretenses, to calling the commission a death panel.
Below I list prominent critiques and their main charges, and defuse each argument in turn:
The CBO Budget and Economic Outlook: Debt Projected to Grow to Record Highs
The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) released its annual Budget and Economic Outlook, providing 11‐year fiscal projections for 2024 to 2034.
Six Reforms to Enhance Transparency and Fiscal Accountability Through the Congressional Budget Office
Curbing Federal Emergency Spending: New Study Release
The Solution to Soaring Debt
A Fail‐Safe Congressional Fiscal Commission to Fix Government Spending and Debt
Members of Congress say they want to be in the driver’s seat on correcting America’s rapidly deteriorating fiscal situation. Recent fiscal commission bills, such as the House Fiscal Commission Act [H.R.