Budget and Accounting Act of 1921 (CongressionalGlossary.com)

From the Congressional Glossary – Including Legislative and Budget Terms Budget and Accounting Act of 1921   Panel 1: The History of the 1921 and 1974 Budget Acts   The Budget and Accounting Act of 1921 (Pub.L. 67-13, 42 Stat. 20–27) required for the first time that the president submit to Congress each year a … Read more

President of the United States / State of the Union (CongressionalGlossary.com)

From the Congressional Glossary – Including Legislative and Budget Terms President of the United States / State of the Union  

Executive Branch (CongressionalGlossary.com)

From the Congressional Glossary – Including Legislative and Budget Terms Executive Branch   EXECUTIVE BRANCH – Cram for the Exam   The president is the head of the executive branch of the government, which includes many departments and agencies. The power of the Executive Branch is vested in the President of the United States, who … Read more

Legislative Branch Agencies / Architect of the Capitol / AOC / Legislative Branch Appropriations (CongressionalGlossary.com)

From the Congressional Glossary – Including Legislative and Budget Terms Legislative Branch Agencies / Architect of the Capitol / AOC To ensure that Congress has independent sources of information from the executive branch to support it in its legislative and oversight responsibilities, Congress formed several legislative branch agencies.   Stone Preservation on Capitol Hill   … Read more

Government Accountability Office / GAO / Comptroller General (CongressionalGlossary.com)

From the Congressional Glossary – Including Legislative and Budget Terms Government Accountability Office / GAO / Comptroller General The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) is an independent, nonpartisan legislative agency that works for Congress. Often called the “congressional watchdog,” GAO investigates how the federal government spends taxpayer dollars. The head of GAO, the Comptroller General … Read more

Congressional Budget Office / CBO (CongressionalGlossary.com)

From the Congressional Glossary – Including Legislative and Budget Terms Congressional Budget Office / CBO   Introduction to the Congressional Budget Office   The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) and Government Accountability Office (GAO) principally serve congressional committees with a variety of reports. The Congressional Budget Office assists Congress in understanding the economic and fiscal environment … Read more

Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 (CongressionalGlossary.com)

From the Congressional Glossary – Including Legislative and Budget Terms Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 The 1974 Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act (Pub.L. 93-344, 88 Stat. 297, July 12, 1974) 2 U.S.C. Chapter 17A, Congressional Budget and Fiscal Operations) requires the House and Senate each year to adopt a concurrent resolution … Read more

Impoundments (CongressionalGlossary.com)

From the Congressional Glossary – Including Legislative and Budget Terms Impoundments photo credit: oddsock Any action taken by the executive branch that delays or precludes the obligation or expenditure of budget authority appropriated by Congress. The Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 was enacted after frequent use of impoundments by President Richard Nixon. … Read more

Financial Statements (CongressionalGlossary.com)

From the Congressional Glossary – Including Legislative and Budget Terms Financial Statements photo credit: Metro Centric A document that describes an entity’s financial activity and status for a specified period. Under federal law and applicable accounting standards, the financial statements for a federal agency usually include a balance sheet, statement of net cost, statement of … Read more