The Budget Enforcement Act : implications for children and families

This analysis of the Budget Enforcement Act of 1990(BEA) and its implications for public financing of education and other children's services notes that voters want more and better education and related services, and at the same time want to pay less in taxes and balance budgets at every governmental level. The first section details recent changes in budget process rules. The 1995 budget resolution signals the intention of Congress to retool some BEA procedures to suit its new agenda. The second section looks at the effect changes in rules have had on legislative strategy and funding outcomes for children's programs. Relevant changes include dramatic lowering of the caps on discretionary spending; construction of fire walls between defense and non-defense discretionary spending;pay-as-you-go (PAYGO) spending to pay for tax cuts with cuts in appropriations; and restoration of fixed deficit targets to rein in automatic growth in mandatory spending. The third section shows how BEA rules can interact with current proposals under debate in Congress, and the final section suggests items for further discussion. The paper concludes by taking the position that advocates of children's causes should focus their efforts on influencing budget and program politics rather than trying to rewrite budget process rules.