Cord Byrd: “Section 301 of the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 requires that on or before April 15 of each…”

“Section 301 of the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 requires that on or before April 15 of each year the Congress shall complete action on a concurrent resolution on the budget for the fiscal year beginning on October 1 of such year. The failure to meet this deadline, however, has no effect on points of order under the Congressional Budget Act. In fact, Congress has met the deadline only three times since enactment of the 1974 Budget Act; namely, for fiscal years 1976, 1977, and 1994. So, it is not unusual that Congress, at the April 15 deadline, has yet to complete action on the 1996 budget resolution. It does seem a little unusual that this year's budget resolution has not been reported by the Budget Committee of either House. Perhaps our friends on the Budget Committees are finding it somewhat more difficult to come forward with a budget resolution which will force Congress to make the difficult choices that will be necessary to achieve a balanced budget, than it was to sign the mostly empty pledges that were contained in the vacuous rhetoric of the so-called 'Contract With America.'”