Senators’ need to take credit delays budget process, study finds

Why does Congress seem incapable of passing a budget resolution on time?

A Brookings Institution study released Wednesday says it’s because senators don’t have enough opportunities to take credit for their work.

The study of Senate rules and the budget found that senators have a decreasing number of opportunities to take credit for a job well done come election season. 

As a result, they jump at any opportunity to claim credit.

{mosads}And given that one of the biggest legislative opportunities comes with the budget, senators rush to the floor to offer amendments, often dragging out the process, the study adds.

“As Senators’ ability to offer amendments on other bills becomes more limited, we should expect them to respond by offering more amendments in the rare chances they are given to do so — like the budget resolution,” wrote Brookings fellow Molly Reynolds, who authored the study.

That dynamic, she added, is exacerbated by increasingly long “vote-a-rama” sessions on the budget, which can last hours and go deep into the night. The “vote-a-ramas” allow rapid-fire amendments to the budget, which are often introduced to force uncomfortable votes on hot-button issues.

Changes to that process, she concluded, could make it easier to move the budget forward.

Congress has failed to adopt a budget resolution nine times since 2011, including a five-year stretch from 2010 to 2014.