Ioannis Kanlis

Agenda Setting: Many federal agencies and organizational units

try to have their inquiries deemed amendable to be included in the
final budget proposal. The final draft is being submitted by the
President to the Congress by the first Monday in February. Following
that, the House and Senate budget committees hold hearings or
take into account their own views and estimates reports from
subcommittees to examine and maybe change priorities and
assumptions made by the President.
Formulation: Agencies organizational units formulate the initial
executive budget based upon estimates and projections provided by
OMB, Department of Treasury and Council of Economic Advisers.
OMB is playing the key role in the whole procedure though. It issues
policy directions and provides planning guidance and detailed
instructions to the agencies. It also performs reviews, calculate
effect on budget formulation processes and make passback
decisions. The final component in this procedure is the President
who is responsible for formulating and transmitting the final draft of
budget request to Congress. Finally lawmakers in Congress
formulate a budget resolution according to their own committees
and offices reports and hearings.
Legitimation: First, budget is legitimated through the legislative
process in Congress. In other words, the House and Senate Budget
Committees and subcommittees are working intensively to adopt a
budget resolution on time. Congress also uses the reconciliation
legislation to enforce its budget plan in the resolution. Once the
regulating and legislative procedure finalizes the resolution on the
budget, still the budget doesnt become a law. It needs to be signed
by the President to start being implemented.
Implementation: OMB is responsible for apportioning all the
appropriated portions of the Budget to the executive branch
agencies. Agencies allocate those funds in order to achieve their
goals in accordance with multiple fiscal statutes and appropriations
like the Antideficiency Act. In case of impounding funds by the
President, OMB, agency or federal official due to refusal of execution
an appropriate law, Congress and Comptroller might intervene to
resolve the dispute.
Evaluation: Individual agencies perform a first level evaluation and
auditing of budget execution. In addition, a series of federal laws are
aimed at controlling financial management, like the Chief financial
officers Act and Inspector General Act. Congress is also a key
component since it enforces Acts like GPRA to improve
congressional spending decisions and also exercises oversight
through legislative process, formal hearings and investigations. OMB

also keeps reviewing and monitoring agencies effort to attain their

objectives. Finally GAO issued internal control standards in order to
provide a framework for auditing, fraud prevention and internal
control management.