U.S. General Accounting Office Supplement to Congressional Budget Office Background Paper on Reducing the Federal Budget: Strategies and Examples

Because GAO has issued reports relevant to many of the possible ways to reduce Federal spending and increase Federal revenues as identified by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), it considered that congressional purposes would be served by preparing a single document consolidating the CBO analyses with discussions of the GAO work bearing on the same issues. The report is organized in six sections with the CBO proposal presented first followed by the GAO supplementary discussion. Topics covered include savings that could be made through the consolidation of programs and the improvement of program administration; how outlays could be reduced by targeting benefit payments and subsidies on those persons and jurisdictions that are considered more needy; and activities which could be performed at the State or local level. Also examined are programs that could be cut back because they can no longer be afforded and savings that could be realized by reductions in tax expenditures and tighter enforcement of the existing law.