Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018

Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018
U.S. Government · Public domain · source
Name	Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018
Enacted by	115th United States Congress
Signed into law	February 9, 2018
Public law	Public Law 115-123
Introduced in	United States Senate
Sponsor	Mitch McConnell (Majority Leader), Chuck Schumer (Minority Leader)
Committees	Senate Appropriations Committee, House Appropriations Committee
Affected laws	Budget Control Act of 2011, Social Security Act, Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017

Contents

Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018

The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 was a United States statute enacted in the 115th United States Congress that adjusted discretionary spending caps, suspended the debt limit, and altered payment rules for federal programs. It was negotiated by leaders in the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives and signed by President Donald Trump amid concurrent debates over the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, the 2018 midterm elections, and fiscal policy disputes between Republican Party and Democratic Party leaders.

Background

Congressional negotiations over spending following the Budget Control Act of 2011 and recurring continuing resolutions framed the context for the Act, with influence from policy makers such as Paul Ryan, Nancy Pelosi, Mitch McConnell, and Chuck Schumer. Constraints from sequestration established under the Budget Enforcement Act of 1990 and rulings by the United States Supreme Court in cases affecting entitlement programs shaped bargaining positions alongside pressures from constituencies in states like California, Texas, and Florida. Fiscal debates intersected with proposals from the Trump administration and responses from organizations including the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, the Bipartisan Policy Center, and the Cato Institute.

Negotiations began with bipartisan talks between Senate leaders Mitch McConnell and Chuck Schumer and involved key committee chairs such as Richard Shelby and Thad Cochran. The Act emerged as part of a package to avoid a government shutdown, following previous stopgap measures during the 2017–2018 funding cycle that involved votes in the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. Floor debates referenced precedent from the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993 and the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2017, and amendments were considered by members including Rand Paul, Bernie Sanders, Jerry Moran, and Susan Collins. The bill advanced through the Senate with bipartisan support and was transmitted to the House before being signed into law by Donald Trump on February 9, 2018.

Key provisions modified discretionary spending caps set by the Budget Control Act of 2011 and provided a two-year relief window for defense and non-defense spending, affecting accounts overseen by the United States Department of Defense and agencies such as the National Institutes of Health and the Department of Education. The Act suspended the federal debt limit until March 1, 2019, altering obligations managed by the United States Treasury Department and the Federal Reserve. It revised cost-sharing and payment rules for parts of the Social Security Act, including adjustments to Medicare and Medicaid payment mechanisms, and included provisions impacting veterans administered by the Department of Veterans Affairs. The text also contained measures related to disaster relief funding for states like Puerto Rico and Texas, and directed programmatic changes affecting agencies such as the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Homeland Security.

Analyses by the Congressional Budget Office and the Office of Management and Budget estimated that the Act increased discretionary spending relative to baseline projections, with implications for deficits measured in the Unified Budget and fiscal years 2018–2019. The suspension of the debt limit altered short-term debt issuance managed by the United States Department of the Treasury and interacted with revenue estimates influenced by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017. Fiscal watchdogs including the Government Accountability Office and advocacy groups like the Tax Policy Center and the Heritage Foundation issued divergent assessments of long-term deficit trajectories, while bond market participants including Federal Reserve System officials monitored effects on interest rates and Treasury yields.

Support for the Act came from leaders in the Republican Party and the Democratic Party who cited stability for defense and domestic programs, with endorsements from congressional leaders such as Paul Ryan and Nancy Pelosi and committee chairs such as Kay Bailey Hutchison allies. Opposition voiced by figures like Rand Paul and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez highlighted concerns over deficit expansion and policy priorities, while stakeholders including veterans' organizations, research institutions such as the American Enterprise Institute, and state governors from California, New York, and Florida weighed in on specific allocations. Media coverage spanned outlets including The New York Times, The Washington Post, and The Wall Street Journal, framing the Act within larger partisan debates ahead of the 2018 United States elections.

Implementation required coordination among executive branch agencies including the Office of Management and Budget, the Department of Defense, the Department of Health and Human Services, and the Social Security Administration to adjust appropriations and program rules. Subsequent actions by the 115th United States Congress and successors addressed remaining appropriations with legislation such as the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2019 and responses during the 116th United States Congress. Legal and policy outcomes influenced later budget negotiations, debt ceiling standoffs, and appropriations cycles, with follow-on scrutiny from entities including the Congressional Budget Office and the Government Accountability Office.