November 20, 2014

Mandatory Spending Options (Other than those for health-related programs)
Option Title Savings, 2015–2024 (Billions of Dollars)
1 Change the Terms and Conditions for Federal Oil and Gas Leasing 5
2 Limit Enrollment in the Department of Agriculture Conservation Stewardship Program 6
3 Reduce Subsidies in the Crop Insurance Program 20
4 Reduce Subsidies to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac 8
5 Reduce or Eliminate Subsidized Loans for Undergraduate Students 12 to 39
6 Eliminate the Add-On to Pell Grants That Is Funded With Mandatory Spending 76
7 Eliminate Concurrent Receipt of Retirement Pay and Disability Compensation for Disabled Veterans 112
8 Reduce the Amounts of Federal Pensions 6
9 Tighten Eligibility and Determinations of Income for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program 10 to 40
10 Eliminate Subsidies for Certain Meals in the National School Lunch and School Breakfast Programs 10
11 Convert Multiple Assistance Programs for Lower-Income People Into Smaller Block Grants to States 397a
12 Eliminate Supplemental Security Income Benefits for Children 103a
13 Link Initial Social Security Benefits to Average Prices Instead of Average Earnings 53 to 87
14 Raise the Full Retirement Age for Social Security 35
15 Lengthen by Three Years the Computation Period for Social Security Benefits 45
16 Reduce Social Security Benefits for New Beneficiaries by 15 Percent 204
17 Eliminate Eligibility for Starting Social Security Disability Benefits at Age 62 or Later 11
18 Require Social Security Disability Insurance Applicants to Have Worked More in Recent Years 32
19 Narrow Eligibility for Veterans' Disability Compensation by Excluding Certain Disabilities Unrelated to Military Duties 20
20 Restrict VA's Individual Unemployability Benefits to Disabled Veterans Who Are Younger Than the Full Retirement Age for Social Security 16
21 Use an Alternative Measure of Inflation to Index Social Security and Other Mandatory Programs 182

Discretionary Spending Options (Other than those for health-related programs)
Option Title Savings, 2015–2024 (Billions of Dollars)
22 Cap Increases in Basic Pay for Military Service Members 24
23 Replace Some Military Personnel With Civilian Employees 20
24 Replace the Joint Strike Fighter Program With F-16s and F/A-18s 31
25 Stop Building Ford Class Aircraft Carriers 12
26 Reduce the Number of Ballistic Missile Submarines 15
27 Defer Development of a New Long-Range Bomber 26
28 Reduce Funding for International Affairs Programs 109
29 Eliminate Human Space Exploration Programs 77
30 Reduce Department of Energy Funding for Energy Technology Development 10
31 Eliminate Certain Forest Service Programs 5
32 Eliminate the International Trade Administration's Trade Promotion Activities 3
33 Limit Highway Funding to Expected Highway Revenues 82
34 Eliminate Grants to Large and Medium-Sized Airports 8
35 Eliminate Subsidies for Amtrak 14
36 Eliminate Capital Investment Grants for Transit Systems 15
37 Restrict Pell Grants to the Neediest Students 1 to 65a
38 Eliminate Federal Funding for National Community Service and Senior Community Service Employment Programs 12
39 Reduce Federal Funding for the Arts and Humanities 6
40 Increase Payments by Tenants in Federally Assisted Housing 19
41 Reduce the Annual Across-the-Board Adjustment for Federal Civilian Employees' Pay 54
42 Reduce the Size of the Federal Workforce Through Attrition 49
43 Impose Fees to Cover the Cost of Government Regulations and Charge for Services Provided to the Private Sector 21
44 Repeal the Davis-Bacon Act 12
45 Eliminate or Reduce Funding for Certain Grants to State and Local Governments 54

Revenue Options (Other than those related to health)
Option Title Savings, 2015–2024 (Billions of Dollars)
46 Increase Individual Income Tax Rates 91 to 689
47 Implement a New Minimum Tax on Adjusted Gross Income 66
48 Raise the Tax Rates on Long-Term Capital Gains and Dividends by 2 Percentage Points 53
49 Use an Alternative Measure of Inflation to Index Some Parameters of the Tax Code 150
50 Convert the Mortgage Interest Deduction to a 15 Percent Tax Credit 113
51 Eliminate the Deduction for State and Local Taxes 1,088
52 Curtail the Deduction for Charitable Giving 213
53 Limit the Value of Itemized Deductions 64 to 139
54 Include All Income That U.S. Citizens Earn Abroad in Taxable Income 96
55 Tax Social Security and Railroad Retirement Benefits in the Same Way That Distributions From Defined Benefit Pensions Are Taxed 412
56 Further Limit Annual Contributions to Retirement Plans 83
57 Eliminate the Tax Exemption for New Qualified Private Activity Bonds 30
58 Eliminate Certain Tax Preferences for Education Expenses 150
59 Lower the Investment Income Limit for the Earned Income Tax Credit and Extend That Limit to the Refundable Portion of the Child Tax Credit 6
60 Increase the Maximum Taxable Earnings for the Social Security Payroll Tax 672
61 Increase the Payroll Tax Rate for Medicare Hospital Insurance by 1 Percentage Point 800
62 Increase Taxes That Finance the Federal Share of the Unemployment Insurance System 10 to 14
63 Increase Corporate Income Tax Rates by 1 Percentage Point 102
64 Repeal the “LIFO” and “Lower of Cost or Market” Inventory Accounting Methods 115
65 Repeal Certain Tax Preferences for Extractive Industries 15 to 21
66 Extend the Period for Depreciating the Cost of Certain Investments 241
67 Repeal the Deduction for Domestic Production Activities 190
68 Repeal the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit 39
69 Modify the Rules for the Sourcing of Income From Exports 4
70 Increase Excise Taxes on Motor Fuels by 35 Cents and Index for Inflation 469
71 Increase All Taxes on Alcoholic Beverages to $16 per Proof Gallon 66

Health Options
Option Title Savings, 2015–2024 (Billions of Dollars)
72 Limit Medical Malpractice Torts 68a
73 Introduce Minimum Out-of-Pocket Requirements Under TRICARE for Life 28
74 Change the Cost-Sharing Rules for Medicare and Restrict Medigap Insurance 53 to 111
75 Increase Premiums for Parts B and D of Medicare 25 to 314
76 Require Manufacturers to Pay a Minimum Rebate on Drugs Covered Under Part D of Medicare for Low-Income Beneficiaries 103
77 Modify TRICARE Enrollment Fees and Cost Sharing for Working-Age Military Retirees 19 to 73a
78 Reduce or Constrain Funding for the National Institutes of Health 12 to 35
79 Increase the Excise Tax on Cigarettes by 50 Cents per Pack 35

Sources: Congressional Budget Office; staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation.

For options primarily affecting mandatory spending or revenues, savings sometimes would derive from changes in both. When that is the case, the savings shown include effects on both mandatory spending and revenues. For options primarily affecting discretionary spending, the savings shown are the decrease in discretionary outlays. That same approach applies for the savings shown for health options; most are mandatory spending options or revenue options, although 77 and 78 are discretionary spending options.

For most discretionary spending options, the decrease in outlays is presented relative to CBO’s baseline projections for individual components of discretionary spending, which incorporate the assumption that current appropriations continue in later years with adjustments for projected inflation. In total, the funding projected in the inflation-adjusted amounts is greater than the caps on discretionary funding. Some of the discretionary options related to defense (24, 25, 26, and 27) are measured relative to the Department of Defense’s (DoD’s) estimates of the costs for its plans rather than CBO’s baseline projections. The costs of DoD’s plans are greater than the caps on defense funding. To reduce deficits through changes in discretionary spending, lawmakers would need to reduce the statutory funding caps below the levels already established under current law or enact appropriations below those caps; the options shown could be used to accomplish either of those objectives.

a. Savings do not encompass all budgetary effects.