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Presidential Budget Requests - General article

The Budget and Accounting Act of 1921 requires the President of the United States to sumbit an annual budget to the United States Congress by the first Monday in February. The report covers all areas of the federal government and includes policy recommendations from the President. The budget is not legally binding and Congress does not have to use it for its own planning purposes. However, the budget is still considered one of the "President's most important policy tools."

Origins
During the first century of the United States' existence, the budget process for the executive branch was very decentralized, with most agencies simply submitting their budget requests straight to Congress, instead of throught the President (as things are done today).

Laws

 * Budget and Accounting Act of 1921 - requires the President to submit a consolidated federal budget to Congress each year

Content
The President's budget proposal is required to include these and additional elements:
 * estimated receipts, expenditures, and proposed appropriations for the next five fiscal years
 * actual receipts, expenditures, and appropriations for the previous year
 * information on the public debt
 * separate statements of amounts for specified appropriations accounts and trust funds
 * when practicable, information on costs and performance of federal programs and activities

Independent content
The President's budget proposal includes proposals for the funding of the legislative and judicial branches, but those two branches write their own estimates and proposals. The President includes these proposals in the overall budget proposal submitted without changing any of the content.

Some independent agencies and government-sponsored enterprises also write their own budget proposals that get submitted by the President to Congress unaltered. The list of such agencies includes the United States International Trade Commission, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, and the Federal National Mortgage Association.

Several other agencies are required by law to submit their budget proposals directly to Congress instead of to the President. Agencies following this procedure include the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board, the Securities and Exchange Commission, and the National Transportation Safety Board.

Procedure for getting the content
The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is responsible for much of the work of creating the president's budget. OMB issues instructions and guidelines to the different federal agencies telling them how and when to submit their draft budget requests. The agencies' budget requests are then reviewed by officials in OMB in order to ensure that they meet with the President's budgetary and policy goals.

Deadline
requires the President to submit a budget proposal to Congress on or after the first Monday in January, but no later than the first Monday in February.

Impact
The budget the President submits is a request only. However, some people consider "the power to formulate and submit the budget... a vital tool in the President’s direction of the executive branch and of national policy." The President's budget request can influence the decisions made by Congress; the degree of influence changes based on political and fiscal factors.

According to Walter J. Oleszek, a senior specialist in the legislative process at the Congressional Research Service, presidents can use their budget proposal to "spotlight their priorities, frame the budgetary debate, and require Congress to respond to their budgetary proposals."