Budget Options
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Options for Reducing the Deficit, 2023 to 2032--Volume I: Larger Reductions
CBO issues a volume describing 17 policy options that would each reduce the federal budget deficit by more than $300 billion over the next 10 years or, in the case of Social Security options, have a comparably large effect in later decades.
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Options for Reducing the Deficit, 2023 to 2032--Volume II: Smaller Reductions
CBO issues a volume that contains short descriptions of 59 policy options that would each reduce the federal budget deficit by less than $300 billion over the next 10 years.
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Budgetary Effects of a Policy That Would Lower the Age of Eligibility for Medicare to 60
CBO and the staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation estimate that lowering the age of Medicare eligibility to 60 would increase federal budget deficits, change primary sources of health insurance, and increase the number of people insured.
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The Economic Effects of Waiting to Stabilize Federal Debt
CBO analyzes the economic effects of waiting to stabilize federal debt. The longer action is delayed, the larger the policy changes needed to stabilize debt. The timing and type of policy would determine its effects on different age and income groups.
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Budgeting for Federal Investment
This report examines approaches to budgeting that would distinguish expenditures for investment in physical capital, education, and research and development from other expenditures.
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Options for Reducing the Deficit: 2021 to 2030
CBO periodically issues a compendium of policy options and their effects on the federal budget. This document provides estimates of the budgetary savings from 83 options that would decrease federal spending or increase federal revenues.
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Options for Reducing the Deficit: 2019 to 2028
CBO periodically issues a volume of options—this year’s installment presents 121—that would decrease federal spending or increase federal revenues. CBO’s website allows users to filter options by topic, date, and other categories.
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A Premium Support System for Medicare: Updated Analysis of Illustrative Options
CBO presents new estimates of the budgetary effects of options for a premium support system for Medicare and examines the reasons for the changes in the estimates, including changes in law that have affected the Medicare program.
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Options for Reducing the Deficit: 2017 to 2026
CBO periodically issues a volume of options—this year’s installment presents 115—that would decrease federal spending or increase federal revenues over the next decade. The report is available both as a PDF and in a searchable format.
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Social Security Policy Options, 2015
CBO analyzes 36 policy options commonly proposed by policymakers and analysts. Most of them would improve Social Security’s long-term finances, but only a few would significantly postpone the combined trust funds’ exhaustion date.
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Child Nutrition Programs: Spending and Policy Options
Since 1990, real spending for child nutrition programs more than doubled—to $20 billion in 2014. CBO expects that increases in food prices and demographic changes will cause spending to rise further in the future.
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Federal Housing Assistance for Low-Income Households
CBO describes federal housing assistance to low-income households and how it has changed since 2000, provides information about the households that receive assistance, and assesses options for altering that assistance.
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Temporary Assistance for Needy Families: Spending and Policy Options
This report examines spending on TANF, how TANF compares to other low-income support programs, and the effects of TANF on employment. CBO also analyzes policy options that would change the program’s funding and requirements for states.
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Veterans' Disability Compensation: Trends and Policy Options
From 2000 to 2013, the number of veterans receiving VA disability payments rose by nearly 55 percent, and spending for those benefits almost tripled. How might changes in VA's disability compensation program affect the federal budget?
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Choices for Deficit Reduction: An Update
Federal debt is projected to rise significantly over the long term. What policy changes could reduce future deficits and thus lower the trajectory of federal debt? What criteria might be used to evaluate those policy changes?
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Health-Related Options for Reducing the Deficit: 2014 to 2023
This document is a reprint of Chapter 5 of CBO's publication Options for Reducing the Deficit: 2014 to 2023 (November 2013).
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Raising the Age of Eligibility for Medicare to 67: An Updated Estimate of the Budgetary Effects
CBO's new estimate of the net budgetary savings from adopting this policy is much lower than its earlier estimates for proposals to raise Medicare’s eligibility age. This report describes CBO’s new estimate and the reasons for the change.
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Testimony on Using the Chained CPI to Index Social Security, Other Federal Programs, and the Tax Code for Inflation
How does the chained consumer price index (CPI) differ from the traditional CPI and what would be the budgetary effects of using the chained CPI to make automatic adjustments in Social Security, other federal programs, and the tax code?
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Choices for Deficit Reduction
Are fiscal rules a useful tool for achieving budgetary goals? View the appendix of this report to learn more.
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Policy Options for the Social Security Disability Insurance Program
The Disability Insurance program provided benefits to 8.3 million disabled workers in 2011. By 2022, CBO projects, the program will provide benefits to over 10 million disabled workers and spending on benefits will exceed $190 billion.