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CHAPTER ELEVEN: Budgeting

Review

1. The text states that "few fields in public administration have been the subject of more turmoil than budgeting" and goes on to say that this is because budgeting crystallizes conflicts in values over where public money should be spent. The process is political and extremely important because money often decides the importance and the significance of certain government programs. Are you surprised that budgeting is so contentious? Think back to chapter one's discussion of the Founders when the text described how conflict was intentionally built into the American system. Do you think the kind of debates inspired by budgets are a part of the kind of conflict that the Founders envisioned (conflict devised to make sure certain principles endured through struggle), or do you think it is part and parcel of the modern government bureaucracy that the Founders would not even recognize or want to have anything to do with? Why?


2. V.O. Key's fundamental question: "On what basis shall it be decided to allocate x dollars to activity A instead of activity B?" is at the core of budgeting in government. How do values and institutions influence the answers to this question? How does this question get politicized? How can the answers to such a question be determined? The Founders often made appeals to "the public good" to explain why they made the decisions they made. How do you see public officials explaining their budgetary decisions? Or do you see any type of explanation at all?


3. The year 1921 was a turning point in government budgetary procedure that gave increased power to the presidency as it divided traditional budget functions, functions that were mostly under congressional control formerly, into a system of divided executive and legislative supremacy. The President essentially was able to frame the debate because it was now part of the President's job to produce a budget (gaining leverage over the executive agencies and Congress). What do you think about this? Do you think this added power to the presidency is merited? Does it fit with the representative democratic ideals? If not, do you think there would be any way to reverse the trend of increased executive power?


4. Explain the differences between how the state and local governments budget and how the federal government budgets. Which system do you think is better and why? Do you think it would be possible for the federal government to adopt the budgeting strategies of the state and local governments or not? Why or why not?


5. Within congressional budgeting, there were traditionally two main processes: authorizations and appropriations. Describe the differences between the two processes and explain why one exerts more power than the other. Which do you think is more important and why? Do you think the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, which changed the process from how business was formerly done, changed the process for the better or not? Evaluate how Congress makes budget decisions in general. Do you think Congress has landed on the most effective method, or does another, better method come to mind?