# What This Budget Bill Actually Does

This bill is Congress's official spending plan for the federal government for 2021 and a preview of spending levels through 2030. Think of it like a family sitting down to say "here's how much money we're going to bring in, here's how much we're going to spend, and here's how much we'll need to borrow." The bill sets targets for total federal revenues (taxes and other income), total spending, and how much money the government will need to borrow to cover the gap between the two.

The numbers show the government expects to collect about $2.3 trillion in revenue in 2021 but plans to spend about $6.1 trillion, creating a deficit of roughly $3.8 trillion—meaning the government will need to borrow that money. The bill also projects that this pattern will continue through 2030, with deficits ranging from about $800 billion to $1.3 trillion per year. This directly affects you because government borrowing can influence interest rates on mortgages, car loans, and savings accounts, and these deficits add to the national debt that future generations will eventually need to address.

The bill also allocates spending across major government functions. For example, it sets defense spending at about $762 billion for 2021, international affairs at $85 billion, and science and technology at $38 billion. These numbers guide how Congress will divvy up money among different agencies and programs throughout the year. The bill essentially gives Congress permission to use a special budget process called "reconciliation," which allows them to pass certain spending and tax changes with fewer votes than normally required—this is often used for major legislation like tax cuts or healthcare changes.

Establishing the congressional budget for the United States Government for fiscal year 2021 and setting forth the appropriate budgetary levels for fiscal years 2022 through 2030.

Yarmuth, John A.

This concurrent resolution establishes the congressional budget for the federal government for FY2021, sets forth budgetary levels for FY2022-FY2030, and provides reconciliation instructions for legislation that increases the deficit. The resolution recommends levels and amounts for FY2021-FY2030 for <ul> <li> federal revenues, </li> <li> new budget authority, </li> <li> budget outlays, </li> <li> deficits, </li> <li> public debt, </li> <li> debt held by the public, and </li> <li> the major functional categories of spending. </li> </ul> It also recommends levels and amounts for Social Security and Postal Service discretionary administrative expenses for the purpose of budget enforcement in the Senate. The resolution includes reconciliation instructions that direct 12 House committees to submit changes in laws within their jurisdictions that will increase the deficit over FY2021-FY2030 by no more than an amount specified for each committee. The committees must submit the legislation to the House Budget Committee by February 16, 2021. (Under current law, reconciliation bills are considered by Congress using expedited legislative procedures that prevent a filibuster and restrict amendments in the Senate.) The resolution establishes reserve funds that allow the chair of the House Budget Committee to revise committee allocations, aggregates, and other budgetary levels to accommodate (1) reconciliation legislation that complies with the instructions in this resolution, and (2) deficit-neutral legislation. It also includes provisions that (1) exempt reconciliation legislation reported by the House Budget Committee under this resolution from the House pay-as-you-go (PAYGO) point of order, and (2) extend a limitation on advance appropriations in the House.