S 181 — A bill to require agencies submit zero-based budgets.

Summary

Requires federal agencies to submit zero-based budgets every six years covering the next five fiscal years to the Office of Management and Budget and Congressional budget committees.
Defines zero-based budgets as a systematic analysis requiring managers to examine current operations and costs, consider alternative approaches, and rank programs by importance.
Requires most agencies (except the Department of Defense and National Nuclear Security Administration) to recommend program cuts equal to at least 2 percent of their previous year's discretionary spending.

AI-generated plain-language summary of the bill text — neutral, and may be imperfect. See the full text below for the exact wording.

Sponsor (1)

Sen. Risch, James E. (R-ID)

6 cosponsors

Money behind the sponsor

Top reported contributors to James E. Risch’s campaign committee (2024 cycle) — who funds the bill’s sponsor, not a claim about this bill. Data from FEC.

ALPHA SERVICES LLC $10,000
1ST FINANCIAL BANK USA $6,600
CIVIC SERVICE INC. $6,600
SINCLAIR COMPANIES $6,600
SOROBAN CAPITAL PARTNERS LP $6,600

Organizations whose employees gave the most — itemized individual contributions grouped by the donor’s reported employer (FEC Schedule A). Full finance for James E. Risch → · Outside spending →

Actions (2)

Jan 22, 2025 Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. · senate
Jan 22, 2025 Introduced in Senate

More bills on these subjects (8)

Other bills that carry the most legislative subjects in common with this one (topical discovery — distinct from the procedural related bills above).

Similar bills (6)

Bills with similar text or summary — includes reintroductions across Congresses. Ranked by semantic similarity of the bill text (computed locally); a neutral discovery aid, not a claim the bills are duplicates.

Text versions (1)

Introduced in Senate · Jan 22, 2025

Only one text version is on file, so there’s no earlier version to compare against yet.

Full text

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

January 22, 2025

Mr. Risch (for himself, Mr. Crapo, Mr. Ricketts, Mr. Cruz, Mr. Sheehy, Mr. Scott of Florida, and Ms. Lummis) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs

A BILL

To require agencies submit zero-based budgets.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. ZERO-BASED BUDGETS.

(a) Definition.—In this Act:

(1) Agency.—The term “agency” has the meaning given the term in section 551 of title 5, United States Code.

(2) Zero-based budget.—The term “zero-based budget” means a systematic budget analysis in support of decision making in which managers—

(A) examine current objectives, operations, and costs;

(B) consider alternative ways of carrying out a program or activity; and

(C) rank different programs or activities by order of importance to the organization.

(b) Zero-Based Budgets.—Every sixth year, each agency shall submit to the Director of the Office of Management and Budget and the Committee on the Budget of the Senate and the Committee on the Budget of the House of Representatives a zero-based budget for the next fiscal year and each of the 4 ensuing fiscal years.

(c) Recommendations.—In addition to the zero-based budget required under subsection (b), each agency, except the Department of Defense and the National Nuclear Security Administration shall submit recommendations for which programs Congress should cut or reduce appropriations in an amount that equals not less than a 2-percent reduction from the previous year appropriation in discretionary spending. <all>

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