History of US Budget Laws

The history of US budget laws dates back to the 19th century when laws were formulated to control government expenditure. The Budget Laws came into being in 1974. But separate laws have been formulated for the Legislative and the Executive Branch.

Two Major Acts

Two major acts were :

• The Anti-deficiency Act- This act was propounded in 1870 to control the spending spree of the government. After bringing this law into effect the expenditures of the government has genuinely reduced.
• The Budget and Accounting Act of 1921- This act was passed to establish order in the legislative and the executive sections of the government.
• The Congressional Budget Act- This was passed and implemented in 1974 when the Congress realized that it was impossible to bring all the government machineries under one law. After the introduction of this law the Congress was empowered to take decisions and not depend on the President. Prior to this Act the Congress could only place suggestions and was not able to estimate their expenditures.

There is another reason behind the implementation of this act. There was a confusion with the authority of the President on allotment and spending of funds. The Congress in 1974 passed another bill known as the Congressional Budget and Impoundments Control Act to curb the budget plan of the President and control the impoundments. However, the acts have been altered rather amended many times in the history of Budget Laws.