The director of the Congressional Budget Office on Thursday pushed back against concerns that its analysts are taking too long to deliver farm bill cost estimates to the House and Senate Ag committees and said it wasn’t practical to add staff to deal with the legislation.
Public-private competition can lay the groundwork for changes inrevenue-estimating transparency practices, but Congress can set therules, and a Blue Ribbon Commission sponsored by a governmentagency, nonprofit group, or accounting or law firm might also beuseful. One thing is sure: Change in revenue-estimatingtransparency is needed at both the Treasury Department and theJoint Committee on Taxation.
It is important to demystify the revenue-estimating process: theoperational system of revenue-estimating bodies, the real-worldpractical system, and the institutional practices that shape theprocess. With a behind-the-scenes understanding, participants inthe debate can understand the forces that mold therevenue-estimating environment on Capitol Hill and then, armed witha clearer understanding of the environment, recommend warrantedimprovements.