INCREASING BASELINE UPDATES ACT

On 2024-12-11, Representative Brendan F. Boyle (D-PA-2) delivered a floor speech titled "INCREASING BASELINE UPDATES ACT" in the House. The speech addressed taxes and also covered defense, trade policy. It referenced legislation including HR9716, HR7032, S1549.

INCREASING BASELINE UPDATES ACT

Congressional Record, Volume 170 Issue 184 (Wednesday, December 11, 2024) [Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 184 (Wednesday, December 11, 2024)] [House] [Pages H6825-H6827] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] INCREASING BASELINE UPDATES ACT Mr. MOORE of Utah. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 9716) to amend the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 to require the Congressional Budget Office to provide baseline updates, and for other purposes. The Clerk read the title of the bill. The text of the bill is as follows: H.R. 9716 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``Increasing Baseline Updates Act''. SEC. 2. CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE UPDATES TO BASELINE. Section 202(e) of the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 (2 U.S.C. 602(e)) is amended by adding at the end the following: ``(4)(A) The Director shall, to the extent practicable, submit to the Committees on the Budget of the House of Representatives and the Senate at least two updates to the baseline submitted under paragraph (1). At least one of the updates shall include economic data used by the Director to calculate such update. ``(B) Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to limit the Director from providing any other update to the baseline during such year.''. SEC. 3. ANNUAL TECHNICAL BUDGET DATA SUBMISSION BY THE PRESIDENT. Section 1106 of title 31, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: ``(d) On or before February 1 of each calendar year, the President shall submit to Congress technical budget data for the fiscal year beginning in the ensuing calendar year, which shall include up-to-date estimates for current year and prior year data and credit reestimates for the current year (as included in the Federal credit supplement of such budget).''. The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from Utah (Mr. Moore) and the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Boyle) each will control 20 minutes. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Utah. {time} 1245 General Leave Mr. MOORE of Utah. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 9716. The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from Utah? There was no objection. Mr. MOORE of Utah. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I rise today in support of my bill, the Increasing Baseline Updates Act. I thank the gentleman from New York (Mr. Suozzi) for co-leading this effort. The Increasing Baseline Updates Act would require CBO to produce at least two baseline updates per year, including at least one with economic data. Currently, under the Budget Act, CBO is required to publish its baseline before February 15 of each year, but a specific number of baseline updates is not statutorily required. As a result, in recent years, CBO has not published updates to the baseline later in the calendar year. The last time CBO published a baseline update after July was in 2020, and the Office has not published three baseline updates in a calendar year since 2019. By requiring these two additional baseline updates each year, the Increasing Baseline Updates Act will ensure Congress has updated information on the most relevant budget and economic figures to better inform the appropriations process and other legislative proposals we consider later in any given calendar year. The bill also ensures CBO will receive the relevant technical data from the executive branch by February 1 of each year so CBO can complete their baseline in a timely manner. I was proud that this bill unanimously passed the Budget Committee this past September, with the help of the ranking member from Pennsylvania. During the 118th Congress, the Budget Committee has been laser focused on sounding the alarm about the threat posed to our Nation by the debt and deficit crisis in which we find ourselves. This has included bipartisan efforts with our Democratic colleagues on reforms to bolster improper payment accountability, improve the budget process, and shore up our long-term fiscal solvency. Critical to our efforts to rein in the Federal debt and deficit is providing oversight of CBO to ensure this office is providing Congress the most accurate and timely information possible to inform legislative efforts. There is a sincere desire in a bipartisan way to get after the fiscal state of this Nation, and we have seen several proposals emerge. Not all of them have passed, but a lot of them have been worked on together with my Democratic colleagues on the Budget Committee to accomplish things to improve this process. That is what the Increasing Baseline Updates Act aims to accomplish. We know we have a lot more work to do. We are $36 trillion in debt, and we had a staggering $1.8 trillion deficit last fiscal year. We are paying more just to service the debt than on our national defense for the first time. It is unacceptable, and we must reverse our debt culture. Madam Speaker, I look forward to working with my colleagues in the new Congress on efforts to grow the economy, cut spending, and eliminate waste, fraud, and abuse in the Federal Government. The Increasing Baseline Updates Act is a commonsense reform solidifying a total of three baseline updates per year to provide Congress with a better and more up-to-date sense of fiscal and economic developments, while paving the way for a return to regular order. I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support this legislation, and I reserve the balance of my time. Mr. BOYLE of Pennsylvania. Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 9716, the Increasing Baseline Updates Act, a bipartisan measure to ensure Congress has the accurate and timely information we need to govern responsibly. This bill is fairly straightforward. It requires that the Congressional Budget [[Page H6826]] Office, or CBO, to provide at least two updates to its annual budget baseline each year, with one update including the underlying economic data. It also ensures the President submits technical budget data to Congress by February 1, giving the CBO the tools it needs to fulfill its critical role. CBO's baseline projections are the foundation for evaluating proposed policies. They are the measuring stick for determining how legislation will impact our budget and economy. Regular updates ensure we aren't working with outdated information. Let me emphasize something else. The CBO is nonpartisan. Its mission is not Democratic nor Republican. It is simply to provide Congress with unbiased, fact-based analysis. For decades--indeed, 50 years, to be exact--it has done an outstanding job, consistently delivering reliable and transparent baseline updates. However, we cannot ignore the fact that some on the other side of the aisle are working to undermine this institution. Madam Speaker, the numbers don't lie. We may not like CBO reports from time to time, but the numbers are the numbers. Instead of facing these facts, some, instead, would rather attack the messenger. That is wrong, and we can't let that happen. CBO's credibility and independence are essential. It must be able to continue to operate free from political interference. Now, this bill highlights what we can achieve when we work together. On the Budget Committee this year, working alongside my friend, Chairman Arrington, we have had unprecedented support from the minority party to make sure we could achieve bipartisan reforms. This bill is further evidence of that. Through real bipartisan collaboration, we found a solution. That is why every single member of the Budget Committee, all 32 of us, voted to advance the gentleman from Utah's bill. I thank my colleague, Mr. Moore, for introducing this bill. I, again, thank my Republican colleagues. Especially Messrs. Arrington, Estes, and Norman, for working with us, and I thank my Democrat colleague, Congressman Tom Suozzi, for his contributions to this effort. I urge all of my colleagues to support H.R. 9716, and I reserve the balance of my time. Mr. MOORE of Utah. Madam Speaker, I include in the Record letters and statements of support from various organizations and individuals as part of H.R. 9716. These include the Economic Policy Innovation Center and National Taxpayers Union Foundation. Economic Policy Innovation Center, December 10, 2024. Hon. Jodey Arrington, Chairman, Committee on the Budget, House of Representatives, Washington, DC. Hon. Brendan Boyle, Ranking Member, Committee on the Budget, House of Representatives, Washington, DC. Chairman Arrington and Ranking Member Boyle: The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) and the Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT) serve Congress by providing non-partisan analysis. To accomplish this mission, it is essential that Congress and the public have faith in the methodology by which the CBO and the JCT produce their estimates and reports. An important way to improve trust in the Congressional scorekeepers is by increasing transparency through more frequent updates to the baseline and regular releases of economic data. H.R. 9716, the Increasing Baseline Updates Act, introduced by Congressman Blake Moore (R-UT-01) would improve the CBO's ability to access data from the Executive Branch. It would also ensure Congress has updated information to use when legislating. The bill requires the CBO to submit to Congress at least two updates to the budget and economic baseline each year. The bill further stipulates that the President must submit technical data necessary for the CBO's estimates to Congress ``on or before February 1 of each calendar year.'' The federal budget process must evolve to confront the serious fiscal challenges of t

Referenced legislation: S1549, HR7032, HR9716