Talking About the Defense Budget, and More from CRS
The U.S. defense budget is comprised of several distinct components, including “base” and supplemental spending, nuclear weapons expenses, veterans benefits, and other defense-related costs.
When discussing “the defense budget,” it is therefore important to specify what is being described. Depending on what is included or excluded, “total” U.S. defense spending each year can vary by hundreds of millions of dollars.
This definitional question is neatly illustrated in a new graphic from the Congressional Research Service. See How People Talk About the FY2017 National Defense Budget.
Other new and updated publications from the Congressional Research Service include the following.
Defense Primer: The National Defense Budget Function (050), CRS In Focus, March 17, 2017
Defense Primer: DOD Contractors, CRS In Focus, February 10, 2017
Defense Primer: Procurement, CRS In Focus, February 10, 2017
Military Transition Assistance Program (TAP): An Overview, CRS In Focus, March 15, 2017
Supreme Court Appointment Process: Consideration by the Senate Judiciary Committee, updated March 17, 2017
Turkey: Background and U.S. Relations in Brief, updated March 17, 2017
Sanctuary Jurisdictions and Select Federal Grant Funding Issues: In Brief, March 16, 2017
The Decennial Census: Issues for 2020, March 16, 2017
A Survey of House and Senate Committee Rules on Subpoenas, updated March 16, 2017
Medicare Primer, updated March 16, 2017
Pending ACA Legal Challenges Face Uncertain Future, CRS Legal Sidebar, March 16, 2017
Statutory, Average, and Effective Marginal Tax Rates in the Federal Individual Income Tax: Background and Analysis, March 16, 2017
Should the U.S. Trade Deficit be Redefined?, CRS Insight, March 17, 2017
Moving On: TPP Signatories Meet in Chile, CRS Insight, March 16, 2017
Navy Lasers, Railgun, and Hypervelocity Projectile: Background and Issues for Congress, updated March 17, 2017
Navy Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense (BMD) Program: Background and Issues for Congress, updated March 17, 2017
Navy John Lewis (TAO-205) Class Oiler Shipbuilding Program: Background and Issues for Congress, updated March 17, 2017
Navy Ford (CVN-78) Class Aircraft Carrier Program: Background and Issues for Congress, updated March 16, 2017
Coordination among federal science agencies is essential to ensure government-wide alignment on R&D investment priorities. However, the federal R&D enterprise suffers from egregious siloization.
Don’t like the Chinese-backed EVs that are undercutting your market? Start with a well-designed statute to strengthen market oversight and competition while also providing American companies with support.
Cities and states are best positioned to design policies to accelerate clean energy, innovation, and economic development because they can design approaches that work in different social, political, and economic contexts.
Outcome-Based Contracting reframes procurement around the staged achievement of measurable mission outcomes rather than the delivery of predefined technical artifacts.