Papers
View our recurring reports, which summarize and analyze the most important regular federal budget releases and reports.
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Request for Information: Strengthening the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule
On August 21, 2026 the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget's Senior Vice President and Senior Policy Director Marc Goldwein and Director of...
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Q&A: Gross Debt Versus Debt Held by the Public
On August 18, 2026, the gross national debt exceeded $40 trillion for the first time. This mark serves as an important reminder of the nation's...
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New Approaches to Social Security Benefit Taxation
Social Security’s retirement fund is on course to go insolvent in just six years; a few months later, Medicare’s Hospital Insurance (HI) trust fund is...
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Statement for the Record on The Future of Social Security
The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget submitted a statement for the record pertaining to the Senate Finance Committee hearing on "The Future...
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Intergovernmental Transfers (IGTs) Can Inflate Federal Medicaid Matching Funds
The Medicaid program provides health insurance to roughly 70 million lower-income Americans and is jointly financed by states and the federal...
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Analysis of the 2026 Medicare Trustees' Report
The Medicare and Social Security Trustees released their annual reports on the financial status of the trust funds, showing both face serious...
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Analysis of the 2026 Social Security Trustees' Report
The Social Security and Medicare Trustees released their annual reports today on the financial status of the programs. The Trustees find that these...
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No State Spared: Mapping the Impact of Social Security's Insolvency
Explore the Interactive Map Click on your state to see its estimated impact. Social Security’s retirement program provides benefits for 63 million...
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Appropriations 101
What are appropriations? How does Congress determine the total level of appropriations? How does Congress allocate appropriations? How are...
Comments on Department of Education's Proposed Changes to Gainful Employment
On May 20, 2026 the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget's Senior Vice President and Senior Policy Advisor, Marc Goldwein, submitted comments on...
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Debt Ceiling Q&A
The debt ceiling currently stands at $41.1 trillion, having been lifted to that level by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) signed into law on...
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The Case for a 3% of GDP Deficit Target
As the debt approaches record levels as a share of the economy, the United States government continues to run the highest peacetime deficits in the...