President Biden Signs H.R. 7032, the CBO Data Sharing Act Into Law

President Biden Signs H.R. 7032, the CBO Data Sharing Act Into Law

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, the President signed H.R. 7032, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) Data Sharing Act, into law. This bipartisan legislation, championed by Budget Committee Chairman Jodey Arrington (R-TX) and Ranking Member Brendan Boyle (D-PA), is the first-ever House Budget Committee bill to become law with unanimous support from Congress.

This legislation will expand the CBO's authority to request and receive data from executive branch agencies while safeguarding sensitive legislative information. In doing so, this legislation will strengthen the CBO's ability to provide Congress with critically important analyses, forecasts, and cost estimates, ensuring that lawmakers have a more fulsome and accurate understanding of the nation's long-term fiscal health in the legislative process.

With this law, Congress reaffirms its commitment to empower the CBO in its role of providing independent and nonpartisan budget and economic information to support the legislative process.

Chairman Arrington Statement on H.R. 7032:

House Budget Committee Chairman Jodey Arrington (R-TX) released the following statement on H.R. 7032, the CBO Data Sharing Act:

"Today serves as a reminder of what we can accomplish when we put the American people first. For the first time ever, a bipartisan House Budget Committee bill has unanimously passed both chambers and was signed into law.

The Congressional Budget Office is crucial to the success of policymaking and its responsibility to provide lawmakers accurate and timely information about the cost of legislation allows for better stewardship of tax dollars.

I am proud that the President signed this common-sense legislation into law and hope we can continue to push for bipartisan budget process reform legislation. This marks a critical step in the right direction to fix our broken budget process."

Representative Yakym Statement on H.R. 7032:

Budget Process Reform Task Force Chair Rudy Yakym (R-IN) released the following statement on H.R. 7032, the CBO Data Sharing Act:

"The CBO Data Sharing Act is a good first step towards making sure Congress has the most accurate data available so, in turn, we can make the most informed decisions about how Budget policy will affect the lives of Americans we represent.

As Chair of the House Budget Process Reform Task Force, I applaud Chairman Arrington and Ranking Member Boyle for their leadership, and am pleased that our shared commitment to finding commonsense, bipartisan solutions is now reflected in law."

Background:

The CBO Data Sharing Act ensures that the CBO can deliver accurate and timely budget and economic analyses to Congress, enabling informed decision-making on behalf of the American people. The Act achieves this through several key provisions:

Clarifies and Expands CBO Authority:

H.R. 7032 amends existing law to explicitly clarify and expand the CBO Director's authority to request and receive data from executive branch agencies. This authority strengthens the CBO's ability to provide Congress with accurate, nonpartisan analysis based on the most comprehensive and reliable information available.

Maintains Confidentiality:

By upholding the CBO Director's adherence to confidentiality, this law enhances the flow of vital information while maintaining rigorous legal privacy protections. Sensitive information will remain secure, as the bill upholds existing confidentiality laws, protecting the integrity of the data shared.

Safeguards Legislative Intent:

The law includes a critical provision that ensures the enhanced data acquisition authority granted to the CBO cannot be limited or modified by future legislation unless explicitly stated. This safeguard protects the intent of Congress in passing this legislation and ensures the CBO's expanded authority remains intact unless future changes are made in clear and unambiguous terms.

Implements New Reporting Requirement:

Under the new law, the CBO is now required to submit a report to the Budget Committees of the House and Senate within one year of enactment detailing the data requests made under this new authority and any challenges the CBO encountered in obtaining information. This transparency ensures accountability and provides Congress with insight into the implementation of this critical measure.

More from the House Budget Committee:

Read Chairman Arrington's statement on H.R. 7032 passing both chambers HERE.

Read how the House Budget Committee examined ways to improve the CBO HERE.

Read about how the House Budget Committee reported six CBO reform initiatives favorably to the House HERE.

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