Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993

(noun)

The Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993 (or OBRA-93) was federal law that was enacted by the 103rd United States Congress and signed into law by President Bill Clinton. It has also been referred to, unofficially, as the Deficit Reduction Act of 1993. Part XIII, which dealt with taxes, is also called the Revenue Reconciliation Act of 1993.

Related Terms

Examples of Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993 in the following topics:

  • Clinton's Promise of Change

    • His promise of welfare reform in the 1992 presidential campaign and its subsequent enactment epitomized the New Democrat position, as did his 1992 promise of a middle-class tax cut and his 1993 expansion of the Earned Income Tax Credit for the working poor.
    • The New Democrats were focused heavily on improving the economy, and during Clinton's presidency, they were responsible for passing the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993.
    • This Act raised taxes on the wealthiest 1.2% of taxpayers while cutting taxes on 15 million low-income families.
    • It also made tax cuts available to 90% of small businesses.
    • Furthermore, it mandated that the budget be balanced over a number of years, through the implementation of spending restraints.

  • Clintonomics

    • In 1992, Bill Clinton was elected President of the United States, and during his presidency (1993 to 2001), he implemented several economic reforms.
    • Clinton signed the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993 into law.
    • Additionally, through the implementation of spending restraints, it mandated the budget be balanced over a number of years.
    • Congress ratified NAFTA late in 1993, and the result was the creation of the world’s largest common market in terms of population, including some 425 million people.
    • Increased tax revenue and budget cuts turned the annual national budget deficit from close to $290 billion in 1992 to a record budget surplus of over $230 billion in 2000.

  • The George H.W. Bush Administration

    • Bush's presidency from 1989 to 1993, he negotiated the end of the Cold War, struggled with a large federal deficit, and signed several new laws.
    • In October, after a brief government shutdown when Bush vetoed the budget Congress delivered, he and Congress reached a compromise with the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1990.
    • Bush signed a number of major laws in his presidency, including the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, which was one of the most pro-civil rights bills in decades.
    • Bush also signed the Immigration Act of 1990, which increased legal immigration to the United States by 40%.
    • The American economy has grown 54% since the adoption of NAFTA in 1993, with 25 million new jobs created; this has been seen by some as evidence of NAFTA being beneficial to the U.S.

  • The Role of the Federal Budget

    • The Federal Budget is the roadmap for how the national government plans to spend its money of the course of the upcoming year.
    • The Budget of the United States Government often begins as the president's proposal to the U.S.
    • These include the Government Accountability Office (GAO), Congressional Budget Office (CBO), the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), and the U.S.
    • If Congress fails to pass an annual budget, a series of appropriations bills must be passed as "stop gap" measures.
    • Congress may also combine all or some appropriations bills into an omnibus reconciliation bill.

  • Gridlock in Government

    • Reagan’s policies of cutting taxes and increasing defense spending in relation to the Cold War had exploded the federal budget deficit, making it three times larger in 1989 than when Reagan took office in 1980.
    • He began an effort to persuade the Democratic controlled Congress to act on the budget.
    • In October of 1990, there was a brief government shutdown when Bush vetoed the budget Congress delivered.
    • Near the end of the 101st Congress, the president and congressional members reached a compromise on a budget package with the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1990.
    • The Act increased the marginal tax rate and phased out exemptions for high-income taxpayers.

  • Budget Resolutions

    • Congress must create an annual budget resolution in response to the President's budget request according to the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 (also known as the Congressional Budget Act) .
    • The budget resolution establishes budget totals, allocations, entitlements, and sometimes includes reconciliation instructions to certain House or Senate committees.
    • April 15th is the target date for congressional adoption of the budget resolution set by the Congressional Budget Act.
    • The Congressional Budget Act also prohibits House and Senate floor consideration of appropriations measures for the upcoming fiscal year before the budget resolution is completed.
    • The Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 (Congressional Budget Act), created during the Nixon administration, established the current budget resolution process.

  • Employee Retirement Income Security Act

    • The Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 (COBRA) is an example of the type of protection ERISA provides.
    • The Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) was enacted on September 2, 1974.
    • Under ERISA, pension plans must provide for vesting of employees' pension benefits after a specified minimum number of years.
    • There have been several significant amendments to ERISA concerning health benefit plans two of which are the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 (COBRA) and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA).
    • Under the Pension Protection Act of 2006 (PPA), employer contributions made after 2006 to a defined contribution plan must become vested at 100% after three years or under a second sixth year gradual-vesting schedule Employee contributions are always 100% vested.

  • Sunset Laws

    • The Congressional Budget Act governs the role of Congress in the budget process.
    • Among other provisions, it affects Senate rules of debate during the budget reconciliation, not least by preventing the use of the filibuster against the budget resolutions.
    • The Byrd rule was adopted in 1985 and amended in 1990 to modify the Budget Act and is contained in section 313.
    • In the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001, the US Congress enacted a phase-out of the federal estate tax over the following 10 years, so that the tax would be completely repealed in 2010.
    • John Adams and his Federalist Party used a sunset provision in the Sedition Act of 1798 to ensure that the Sedition Act would cease once Adams was out of office.

  • The Healthcare Plan of 1993

    • Congress in September 1993.
    • The act listed funding to be allocated to the states for the administration of this plan, beginning at $13.5 billion in 1993 and reaching $38.3 billion in 2003.
    • The plan became more controversial due to the First Lady's participation in the secret proceedings of the Health Care Task Force, which led to litigation from the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons, and due to the Act's preponderance of red tape.
    • The outlook for the plan looked good in 1993; it had the support of a number of institutions like the American Medical Association and the Health Insurance Association of America.
    • As budget battles distracted the administration and the midterm elections of 1994 approached, Republicans began to recognize the strategic benefits of opposing reform.

  • The Obama Administration

    • Immediately following the bill's passage, the House voted in favor of a reconciliation measure to make significant changes and corrections to the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, which was passed by both houses with two minor alterations on March 25, 2010, and signed into law on March 30, 2010.
    • The goals of this Act (which came to be know as Obamacare) were to provide all Americans with access to affordable health insurance, to require that everyone in the United States had some form of health insurance, and to lower the costs of healthcare.
    • On December 22, 2010, Obama signed the Don't Ask, Don't Tell Repeal Act.
    • The "Don't ask, don't tell" policy of 1993 had prevented gay and lesbian people from serving openly in the United States Armed Forces, and repealing this policy had been a key campaign promise Obama had made during the 2008 presidential campaign.
    • Shortly thereafter, the Supreme Court also ruled that the Defense of Marriage Act of 1996 was unconstitutional, because it violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.