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1 [1] (November 6, 2015)

handle is hein.crs/crsmthaafur0001 and id is 1 raw text is: CRS INSIGHT Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015: Adjustments to the Budget Control Act of 2011 November 6, 2015 (IN10389) Related Author C rant Dricssen Grant A. Driessen, Analyst in Public Finance (adriessenacrs c. gov, 7-7757) The Bipartisan Budget Agreement of 2015 (BBA 2015; PL 114-74) includes a number of provisions that alter the budget parameters established by the Budget Control Act of 2011 (BCA; P L 112-25). These measures (1) increase the discretionary spending caps for FY2016 and FY2017; (2) extend automatic direct spending reductions to FY2025; (3) establish non-binding targets for spending designated for Overseas Contingency Operations/Global War on Terrorism (OCO/GWOT) services; (4) change limits to budget authority adjustment for certain program integrity activities from FY2017 to FY2021; and (5) suspend the statutory debt limit until March 2017. Increase Defense and Non-Defense Discretionary Spending Caps in FY2016 and FY2017 The BCA restricts discretionary spending each year through FY2021 by establishing caps on both defense and non- defense budget authority. Title I, Section 101(a) of the BBA 2015 raises the caps on each type of discretionary spending by $25 billion in FY2016 and by $15 billion in FY2017, as indicated in Iabki. CBO estimates that this provision will indirectly increase outlays by $78.8 billion in the current budget window (FY2016-FY2025). Table 1. FY2016-2017 Discretionary Spending Caps Before and After BBA 2015 (in billions of dollars) Before BBA 2015 Enactment After BBA 2015 Enactment Fiscal Year FY2016 FY2017 FY2016 FY2017 Defense $523.091 $536.068 $548.091 $551.068 Non-Defense $493.491 $503.531 $518.091 $518.531 The discretionary spending caps established by the BCA were also raised for FY2014 and FY2015, through the Bipartisan Budget Agreement of 2013 (BBA 2013; P L 113-67). That legislation also raised the defense and non- defense caps by equivalent amounts: the increases in each cap were by $22 billion in FY2014 and by $9 billion in FY2015. Title I, Section 101(b) of the BBA 2015 subsequently instructs OMB to disregard the changes made to discretionary cap levels in its legislation when calculating and implementing direct spending reductions pursuant to the BCA, and