How CBO Determines Whether to Classify an Activity as Governmental When Estimating Its Budgetary Effects

CBO considers acquiring housing for military personnel via long-term contracts with private-sector developers to be a governmental activity, and that amounts expended by such public-private ventures should be recorded in the federal budget as outlays at the time they occur.

CBO considers acquiring housing for military personnel via long-term contracts with private-sector developers to be a governmental activity and that amounts expended by such public-private ventures should be recorded in the federal budget as outlays at the time they occur.

In CBO's view, the National Center for the Advancement of Aerospace's cash flows should be treated as federal spending because it would work to achieve a governmental purpose and would be subject to a significant degree of federal control.

Because federal funds would be used to develop and construct facilities leased by federal agencies, CBO believes that the full cost of long-term commitments that obligate the government to make payments in future years should be recorded in the budget as direct spending.

CBO continues to treat the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation as a nongovernmental organization because—in our judgement—the extent of governmental control over the foundation would not be large enough to justify treating the foundation's activities as governmental and thus accounting for its cashflows in the federal budget.

Because raising capital for national security technologies development projects would serve a governmental purpose and be under a significant degree of federal control, CBO considers the cash flows for those purposes to be governmental.

In CBO's view, investments by private entities to improve military lodging facilities should be treated as governmental expenditures because most of the income for the project would be paid from appropriated funds such as per diem payments to service members.

Because governmental funds would be used to develop and construct facilities located on federal land or used by the federal government, CBO believes that full cost of long-term commitments that obligate the government to make payments in future years should be recorded in the budget as direct spending.

CBO expects that some projects would effectively be governmental because they would be located on federal land and thus subject to NASA's control and because NASA, or other federal agencies, would be major users of the services supported by those facilities. Thus, in CBO's view, developing and constructing facilities in that manner are governmental transactions and their costs should be recorded in the budget.

CBO expects that some projects would effectively be governmental because they would be located on federal land and thus subject to NASA's control and because NASA, or other federal agencies, would be major users of the services supported by those facilities. Thus, in CBO's view, developing and constructing facilities in that manner are governmental transactions and their costs should be recorded in the budget.

In CBO's view, in keeping with guidance in the 1967 Report of the President's Commission on Budget Concepts, the cash flows from administrative assessments on copyright license users by the Copyright Office and subsequent spending to support a mechanical licensing collective should be recorded in the federal budget.

CBO considers third-party financing on behalf of the federal government for government activities to be similar to an agency using federal borrowing authority to improve its physical infrastructure and treats the costs of such transactions as direct spending. As such, the full cost of such long-term commitments that obligate the government to make payments in future years should be recorded in the budget upfront.

In CBO's view, in keeping with guidance in the 1967 Report of the President's Commission on Budget Concepts, the cash flows from administrative assessments on copyright license users by the Copyright Office and subsequent spending to support a mechanical licensing collective should be recorded in the federal budget.

In keeping with guidance in a 1967 report of the President's Commission on Budget Concepts, CBO records the costs and income of jointly owned and operated activities in the federal budget. In CBO's view, although the bill specifies that facilities would be financed by the private sector, cash flows stemming from transactions related to those facilities should be classified as federal spending.

Would establish an entity to administer a mechanical licensing collective for the use of certain digital musical works. The entity would be authorized to assess a mandatory fee to users of such works to cover the administrative costs of the collective.

Would authorize a referendum on establishing a new marketing board for such products. See also: H.R. 985, Concrete Masonry Products Research, Education, and Promotion Act of 2015.

Would create a nonfederal entity—the American Air Navigation Services Corporation—to take responsibility for the control of air traffic from the Federal Aviation Administration. See also: H.R. 4441, Aviation Innovation, Reform, and Reauthorization Act of 2016.

Would authorize an cooperative agreement to establish a backup for the Global Position System.

Addressed the budgetary treatment of certain power transmission projects with some federal involvement.

Would establish the BLM Foundation.

Established a legal framework for the federal government to oversee the fiscal and budgetary affairs of certain U.S. territories. It established a federally appointed control board for Puerto Rico.

Authorized a lease project on a VA medical complex for the purpose of providing housing and other services to homeless veterans.

Would authorize nonfederal partners to contribute funds for certain water projects in the state of Washington.

Discussed the budgetary treatment of infrastructure banks. See page 15.

Would authorize 27 long-term leases for the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Discussed the treatment of infrastructure banks.

Would establish an organization to conduct research related to the oilheat industry, funded with mandatory assessments on industry participants.

Discusses how the entities should be treated in the budget after they were placed into federal conservatorship.

Would establish a federal renewable energy standard. See pages 14-15.

Would create a Carbon Storage Research Corporation. See page 8.

Discussed the budgetary treatment of various approaches for instituting major changes in the U.S. system for health insurance.

Would authorize federal financial aid to support the ongoing operations of U.S. automobile manufacturers.

Would establish the Climate Change Credit Corporation and a system to control the emission of greenhouse gases.

Would create the Nationwide Mortgage Licensing System and Registry.

Would increase the amount the Department of Defense could spend on leased housing for military personnel stationed overseas. See pages 20-22. See also: S. 2766, National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2007 (pages 19-22).

Created the Federal Housing Finance Agency.

Discussed the budgetary treatment of a national Electric Reliability Organization. See pages 15-16.

Discussed the budgetary treatment of the Universal Service Fund.

Would expand the Department of Defense’s authority for projects to improve and operate housing for military personnel. See also: S. 1390, National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010 (pages 17-18); H.R. 5122, National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2007 (pages 23-25); H.R. 4200, National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2005 (pages 17-22); and S. 2400, National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2005 (pages 23-24).

Would authorize the use of public-private partnerships and related agreements for the development and renovation of federal properties. See also: H.R. 2548 Federal Property Asset Management Reform Act of 2003.

Discussed the treatment of the proposal to lease those planes. See also: Estimated Cost of Two Alternatives to the Air Force’s Proposal to Lease 100 Boeing 767 Aircraft.

Established the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board.

Would create the Public Regulatory Organization.

Created the National Railroad Retirement Investment Trust.

Created the National Recording Preservation Foundation.

Discussed the treatment of various proposals to require workers or employers to make payments into such accounts.

Discussed the budgetary treatment of the Clinton Administration’s legislative proposal to create a universal entitlement to health insurance. See also: The Budgetary Treatment of an Individual Mandate to Buy Health Insurance.