Key budget office caught in crosshairs over Biden spending plan
By Aris Folley - 11/12/21 06:00 AM EST
Pressure is mounting on the chief agency tasked with scoring the budgetary impact of legislation, as the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) crunches the numbers for a sweeping $1.75 trillion social spending and climate package that Democrats are working quickly to pass.
The CBO score on a cornerstone of President Biden’s economic agenda will be a pivotal moment for lawmakers in the House and Senate.
If the score is above $1.75 trillion, it could give Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) and other centrists a reason to oppose the measure, and to push for additional cuts. Progressives have already seen their prized $3.5 trillion measure whittled in half.
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A vote next week in the House is also connected to the CBO’s work. Moderate House Democrats have said they want more “fiscal information” from CBO about the bill.
It’s all put a spotlight on the wonky work of an office Congress relies on for math on the potential economic effects of government policy.
With lawmakers on recess this week, the CBO has begun releasing cost estimates of certain sections of the bill, as Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) tries to set up a vote next week. Those estimates only account for a fraction of the overall “score” the CBO is expected to produce on the bill in the coming weeks.
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https://thehill.com/policy/finance/budget/581204-key-budget-office-caught-in-crosshairs-over-biden-spending-plan
