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Definitions

Official datasets use shorthand that most readers should not have to decode. This library covers money labels plus civic vocabulary for Congress, the Court, the presidency, and federal elections.

Budget concepts

Deficit, debt, discretionary, mandatory, obligations, and other vocabulary.

  • Discretionary spendingSpending Congress sets each year in appropriations bills.
  • Mandatory spendingSpending written into permanent law, such as Social Security and Medicare.
  • Net interestInterest the government pays on its debt, minus interest it earns.
  • Deficit or surplusWhen outlays exceed revenues (deficit) or fall short (surplus) in a fiscal year.
  • Debt held by the publicTreasury securities held outside the government itself.
  • Federal revenuesTaxes and other receipts the government collects in a fiscal year.
  • Federal outlaysMoney the government actually pays out in a fiscal year.
  • Award obligationsLegal commitments to spend on contracts, grants, loans, and similar awards.
  • IRS gross collectionsTaxes collected and attributed to a state by the IRS Data Book.
  • On-budget vs off-budgetOff-budget usually means Social Security (and sometimes Postal Service) accounts.
  • Federal fiscal yearRuns October 1 through September 30, labeled by the ending calendar year.

Treasury receipt types

How national receipts are grouped in the Monthly Treasury Statement.

  • Individual income taxesPersonal income tax receipts in the Monthly Treasury Statement.
  • Employment and general retirementMostly Social Security and Medicare payroll taxes.
  • Corporation income taxesCorporate income tax receipts.
  • Customs dutiesTariffs and duties on imports.
  • Excise taxesTaxes on specific goods such as fuel, alcohol, and tobacco.
  • Unemployment insuranceFederal unemployment tax receipts.
  • Miscellaneous receiptsFees, Fed remittances, and other non-tax receipts.
  • Estate and gift taxesTaxes on large estates and gifts.

CBO revenue lines

CBO revenue variable names in plain language.

  • Total federal revenuesAll federal tax and non-tax receipts combined.
  • On-budget revenuesRevenues counted in the regular (on-budget) totals.
  • Off-budget revenuesMostly Social Security payroll taxes credited off-budget.
  • Individual income taxesPersonal income tax withheld and paid with returns.
  • Corporate income taxesTaxes on corporate taxable profits.
  • Payroll taxesSocial Security, Medicare, and related employment taxes.
  • Social Security payroll taxesOASDI taxes that fund retirement, survivors, and disability benefits.
  • Medicare payroll taxesHospital Insurance (HI) payroll tax for Medicare Part A.
  • Unemployment insurance payroll taxesFederal unemployment taxes (FUTA) that support UI systems.
  • Other retirement payroll taxesSmaller retirement payroll lines outside core Social Security/Medicare.
  • Railroad retirement taxesPayroll taxes for the Railroad Retirement system.
  • Customs dutiesTariffs and duties on imported goods.
  • Federal Reserve remittancesProfits the Fed sends to Treasury after its own costs.
  • Excise taxesTaxes on specific goods or activities (fuel, alcohol, tobacco, aviation, and more).
  • Highway Trust Fund excise taxesFuel and related taxes that feed the Highway Trust Fund.
  • Gasoline excise taxFederal tax per gallon on gasoline.
  • Diesel excise taxFederal tax per gallon on diesel fuel.
  • Truck and trailer excise taxesTaxes on heavy trucks and trailers.
  • Heavy vehicle use taxAnnual federal tax on heavy highway vehicles.
  • Airport and Airway Trust Fund taxesAviation taxes that fund the Airport and Airway Trust Fund.
  • Domestic aviation taxesTaxes on domestic air travel and related activity.
  • International aviation taxesTaxes connected to international air travel.
  • Alcohol excise taxesFederal taxes on beer, wine, and spirits.
  • Tobacco excise taxesFederal taxes on cigarettes and other tobacco products.
  • Other excise taxesExcise lines not broken out elsewhere.
  • Stock buyback excise taxExcise tax on certain corporate stock repurchases.
  • Estate and gift taxesTaxes on large transfers of wealth by gift or at death.
  • Miscellaneous fees and receiptsFees and other non-tax receipts outside major tax lines.
  • Other revenues (subtotal)CBO subtotal for receipts outside the largest tax categories.

Agencies

Who is awarding or administering the dollars.

  • Department of Health and Human ServicesHealth programs including Medicare/Medicaid administration and public health.
  • Social Security AdministrationRuns Social Security benefit programs and related operations.
  • Department of DefenseMilitary personnel, operations, procurement, and related defense activities.
  • Department of Veterans AffairsVeterans’ health care, benefits, and related services.
  • Department of AgricultureFarm supports, nutrition programs, rural development, and related work.
  • Department of TransportationHighways, transit, aviation, rail, and related infrastructure.
  • Department of EducationStudent aid, K–12 grants, and related education programs.
  • Department of Housing and Urban DevelopmentHousing assistance, community development, and related programs.
  • Department of EnergyEnergy research, nuclear security, and related programs.
  • Department of Homeland SecurityBorder, immigration, disaster response, and domestic security agencies.
  • Environmental Protection AgencyEnvironmental regulation, grants, and related cleanup programs.
  • Department of CommerceCensus, NOAA, trade, and economic programs.
  • U.S. Agency for International DevelopmentU.S. foreign assistance and development programs.
  • General Services AdministrationFederal buildings, procurement shared services, and government-wide support.
  • Department of StateDiplomacy, embassies, and related international operations.
  • Department of the TreasuryTax administration, debt, and government-wide finance.
  • Department of JusticeFederal law enforcement, litigation, and justice grants.
  • Department of LaborEmployment, wage-and-hour, and job-training programs.
  • Department of the InteriorPublic lands, tribal programs, and natural resources.
  • NASACivil space exploration, science, and aeronautics.
  • National Science FoundationResearch grants across science and engineering.
  • Office of Personnel ManagementFederal employee benefits and personnel policy.

Treasury outlay lines

Large Monthly Treasury Statement accounts, including trust funds.

  • Centers for Medicare and Medicaid ServicesFederal health insurance programs for seniors, people with disabilities, and low-income Americans.
  • Social Security OASI Trust Fund (Off-Budget)Retirement and survivors benefits paid from Social Security’s main trust fund.
  • Interest on Treasury Debt Securities (Gross)Gross interest paid on Treasury securities before some offsets.
  • Interest on the Public DebtInterest cost associated with debt held by the public.
  • Medicare Supplementary Medical Insurance Trust FundHelps fund Medicare Part B and Part D.
  • Medicare Hospital Insurance Trust FundHelps fund Medicare Part A hospital insurance.
  • Department of Defense – Military ProgramsPentagon military personnel, operations, procurement, and related accounts.
  • Operation and MaintenanceDay-to-day operating costs, often within defense accounts.
  • Food and Nutrition ServiceUSDA nutrition programs such as SNAP and child nutrition.
  • Internal Revenue ServiceTax administration, including refunds that show up as large outlays.
  • Social Security Disability Insurance Trust Fund (Off-Budget)Disability benefits paid from Social Security’s DI trust fund.
  • Military PersonnelPay and related compensation for active-duty and reserve forces.
  • ProcurementBuying weapons, equipment, and related defense systems.
  • Research, Development, Test, and EvaluationDefense R&D and testing accounts.
  • Benefits ProgramsA Treasury rollup of major benefit payments.
  • Office of Federal Student AidPell Grants, student loans, and related Education aid.
  • Administration for Children and FamiliesHHS programs for children, families, and human services.
  • Federal Highway AdministrationHighway and related surface-transportation funding.
  • Federal Emergency Management AgencyDisaster response, recovery, and preparedness funding.
  • Public and Indian Housing ProgramsHUD housing assistance for public and tribal housing.
  • Employment and Training AdministrationLabor Department job-training and employment services.
  • Office of Elementary and Secondary EducationK–12 education grants, including Title I.
  • Unemployment Trust FundUnemployment insurance benefits financed through the trust fund.
  • Other Defense Civil ProgramsDefense-related civil accounts outside core military programs.
  • Undistributed Offsetting ReceiptsAccounting offsets that reduce reported totals, often shown as negative outlays.
  • Interest Received by Trust FundsInterest credited to federal trust funds, usually an offset.
  • Employer Share, Employee RetirementFederal employer contributions to employee retirement, often an offsetting entry.

Congress and the Floor

Watchlists, pipeline stages, cloture, roll calls, and related legislative terms.

  • Floor watchlistCurated major bills tracked on The Floor, not every bill in Congress.
  • Legislative pipelineStage path from introduction toward law or veto.
  • ClotureSenate vote to limit debate and move toward a final vote.
  • FilibusterSenate tactics that delay or block a vote by extending debate.
  • MarkupCommittee session that debates and amends a bill’s text.
  • Congressional committeePanel that reviews bills before floor action.
  • Enrolled billFinal text of a bill after both chambers agree, ready for the President.
  • Roll-call voteRecorded floor vote with each member’s position.
  • Yea and nayCommon yes/no answers on a roll-call vote.
  • VetoPresidential refusal to sign a bill into law.
  • SponsorMember who introduces a bill.

Supreme Court

Certiorari, merits, terms, opinions, and argument vocabulary.

  • CertiorariSupreme Court decision to take a case for full review.
  • Merits caseA case the Court takes for briefing, argument, and decision.
  • October TermThe Court’s annual term that begins each October.
  • Docket numberIdentifier for a Supreme Court case in a term.
  • OpinionWritten decision or separate writing in a case.
  • Oral argumentIn-person or remote argument before the justices.
  • SyllabusHeadnote summary that precedes many Court opinions.
  • Shadow docketInformal name for emergency or summary orders outside the main argued calendar.
  • HoldingThe legal rule the Court decides in a case.
  • RecusalWhen a justice does not participate in a case.

Presidency and the Desk

Executive orders, proclamations, memoranda, and Federal Register context.

  • Executive orderPresidential directive to the executive branch.
  • ProclamationPresidential announcement, often ceremonial or regulatory in form.
  • Presidential memorandumWritten presidential direction, often less formal than an EO.
  • Federal RegisterDaily journal of federal rules, notices, and presidential documents.
  • Desk watchlistCurated executive actions, not every FR document.
  • AdministrationA presidential term as an organizing shelf.
  • Veto messagePresidential explanation when returning a bill without signing it.
  • Signing statementPresidential commentary issued when signing a bill.

Elections and the Race

Cycles, FEC finance, primaries, and live versus certified tallies.

  • Election cycleTwo-year federal campaign period labeled by its election year.
  • FECFederal Election Commission, publisher of federal campaign finance data.
  • Field receiptsFundraising totals that can overlap across related committees.
  • Political committeeFEC-registered committee that raises or spends for federal elections.
  • civicAPI talliesUnofficial live election results feed used by Live map mode.
  • Primary electionParty (or top-two) contest that precedes the general election.
  • General electionNovember contest that fills the federal office.
  • Electoral voteState allocation that formally elects the President.
  • IncumbentOfficeholder running for reelection.