Summary
Timing of the President's Budget Submission to Congress: FY2010-FY2025
The President's budget is a statement of the President's policy priorities and a unified plan for the allocation of federal budgetary resources. Under Title 31, Section 1105, of the U.S. Code, the President must develop and submit a consolidated budget to Congress no later than the first Monday in February prior to the start of the upcoming fiscal year. In practice, the President has delegated to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) certain budgetary tasks and authorities necessary for developing the budget and submitting it to Congress.
The President sometimes fails to meet the statutory submission deadline, particularly during presidential transition years. There is no statutorily established consequence for missing this submission deadline; however, a late submission could delay other aspects of the budget process.
Composition of the Budget Submission
31 U.S.C. §1105
In recent decades the President's budget submission has included:
Budget Volume
President's budget message and other broad statements of policy
Appendix
Provides proposed appropriations language as well as detailed information about each budget account
Analytical Perspectives and Historical Tables
Complementary information to provide context for the President's budget request
February 26, 2009
February 28, 2017
April 28, 2021
Number of Days Late
Budget volumes
Appendix
Analytical Perspectives and Historical Tables
On time
Skinny budget
FY2025 FY2024 FY2023 FY2022 FY2021 FY2020 FY2019 FY2018 FY2017 FY2016 FY2015 FY2014 FY2013 FY2012 FY2011 FY2010
Obama
Trump
Biden
Presidential Transition Year Budgets
The transition from one presidential Administration to another raises special issues regarding the annual budget submission.
An outgoing President was obligated to submit a budget because the submission deadline was earlier in the year*
Example: The budget for FY1990 was submitted by outgoing President Ronald Reagan instead of the incoming President George H. W. Bush
Budget Enforcement Act of 1990
Changed the submission deadline to no later than the first Monday in February prior to the start of the upcoming fiscal year
Outgoing President has the option to leave the annual budget submission to his or her successor
All outgoing Presidents since 1990 have taken the option of leaving the budget submissionto the incoming President
Example: The budget for FY2022 was submitted by the incoming President Joe Biden instead of the outgoing President Donald Trump
Pre-1990 1990 Post-1990
"Skinny Budgets"
In advance of submitting a full budget to Congress, recent Presidents have opted, in the first year of their Administrations, to present preliminary, shorter budgets, sometimes called "skinny budgets."
In an Administration's first year, the full budget submission can be delayed due to the time needed to:
establish the new Administration's priorities, and
have key nominees confirmed.
In the meantime, these shorter documents typically contain:
preliminary budget requests, and
basic economic projections.
In the past, preliminary budget materials such as these have functioned as a preview of the complete President's budget to be submitted to Congress at a later date.
Sources: Pete Souza, Official portrait of President-elect Barack Obama, photograph, 2009, www.loc.gov/item/2010647151. Shealah Craighead, Official portrait of President Donald J. Trump, photograph, October 6, 2017, www.loc.gov/item/2017656484. David Lienemann, Official portrait of Vice President Joe Biden in his West Wing office at the White House, photograph, 2013, www.loc.gov/item/2017645542.
Information as of June 11, 2024. Prepared by Taylor N. Riccard, Analyst in Government Organization and Management; Mari Lee, Visual Information Specialist.
*For more information see CRS Report RS20752, Submission of the President's Budget in Transition Years; and CRS Report R47019, The Executive Budget Process: An Overview.