New Priorities Under Expenditure Limits

The panelists discussed how the federal budget is restricted by limited resources and the pressures of a global economy. The panelists focused on the question: “If the 1990 budget’s negotiated expenditure limits stick, how can future needs, which require expenditures, be meet?” The priority guideline for which programs could be revised or eliminated were explained. The two specific types of budget enforcement procedures were caps on discretionary spending for foreign aid, defense, and domestic discretionary programs, and pay-as-you-go requirements for tax cuts and entitlement increases. Representative Leon Panetta (D-California) said that meeting new budget priorities would be a matter of discipline in managing the United State’s resources. close