Representatives Jeff Hurd (R-CO) and Blake Moore (R-UT) have introduced the Comprehensive Congressional Budget Act, a bill designed to change how Congress handles federal budgeting. The proposed legislation would require Congress to vote on the entire federal budget each year instead of only on the 12 appropriations bills, which currently address about one quarter of total government spending.
Currently, Congress manages discretionary spending through an annual appropriations process. However, this portion has decreased from 50% of all federal spending in 1974 to 26% as of 2025. Most government expenditures now fall under mandatory programs that operate automatically without yearly Congressional review or reauthorization.
Rep. Hurd stated, “Washington’s broken budget process is a big reason we keep piling up debt without ever having an honest debate about priorities. Congress budgets in pieces, hides the real costs, and then acts surprised by the results. This legislation forces Congress to do what the Constitution expects: look at the entire budget at once and take responsibility for every dollar we spend and every dollar we borrow. It’s a serious reform that strengthens Congress and restores accountability to the process.”
Rep. Moore added, “The Constitution grants Congress the power of the purse to allocate taxpayer dollars in the interests of the American people. Yet Congress has slowly surrendered this role to mandatory or ‘autopilot’ spending programs that account for almost 75% of the budget and are renewed without any Congressional oversight. This bill requires Congress to vote on the whole budget every year, rather than just one quarter, allowing greater accountability to the taxpayer for how their dollars are spent.”
Kurt Couchman, Senior Fellow for Fiscal Policy at Americans for Prosperity, commented on broader support: “Congress needs an effective regular order for budgeting. It’s important to update annual appropriations, but they are only one-quarter of spending, and for decades, an appropriations-only process has barely limped along. A bottom-up, holistic framework to weigh all spending and revenue priorities together would give Congress many more ways to solve problems. We are thrilled to support Representative Blake Moore’s Comprehensive Congressional Budget Act, a bill that would empower legislators to deliver much greater value for the American people.”
Under this new act:
– Appropriations committees in both chambers would still oversee discretionary funding.
– Committees with authority over direct spending or revenues must submit detailed line items and any proposed changes.
– The House Budget Committee would be responsible for compiling all submissions into a full budget package sent for a House floor vote.
– If no concurrent resolution is reached by April 15th each year, both House and Senate Budget Committees must report baseline levels.
These reforms aim to increase transparency and give lawmakers more input into federal finances by requiring votes on nearly all government expenditures annually.
