Obligational Authority in the United States
Obligational Authority in the Federal Budget Process
Meaning of Obligational Authority in the congressional and executive budget processes (GAO source): The sum of (1) budget authority enacted for a given fiscal year, (2) unobligated balances of amounts that have not expired brought forward from prior years,
(3) amounts of offsetting collections to be credited and available to specific funds or accounts during that year, and (4) budget authority transferred from other funds or accounts. The balance of obligational authority is an amount carried over from one year to the next if the budget authority is available for obligation in the next fiscal year. Not all obligational authority that becomes available in a fiscal year is obligated and paid out in that same year. Balances are described as (1) obligated,
(2) unobligated, or (3) unexpended.
Guide to U.S. Federal Budget Obligational Authority (Budget Process)
- Obligational Authority
- Obligated Balance
- Unobligated Balance
- Unexpended Balance
Resources
See Also
- Federal Appropriations
- Entries about the United States Budget Process in the Encyclopedia (including Obligational Authority)
- Public Debt
Further Reading
- Legislatures and the budget process: the myth of fiscal control
(J Wehner, 2010)
- Reconcilable Differences?: Congress, the Budget Process, and the Deficit (JB Gilmour, 1990)
- Fiscal institutions and fiscal performance
(JM Poterba, J von Hagen, 2008)