More Spending, Less Revenue, Bigger Problems. The federal budget process can be tricky to navigate. Learning the basics can help better inform audiences.
By Sydney Clark

Don’t let the federal budget topic area intimidate you — there are plenty of resources to help you. Journalists looking to learn more about the process should connect with groups, such as the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities and the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, which have “helpful primers on just what the real budget process entails,” said Caitlin Emma, a budget and appropriations reporter at Politico. Emma also recommends the Congressional Research Service, where you can search for explanations of specific terms and track House and Senate progress on the passage of annual spending bills. A must-follow entity is the Congressional Budget Office, which provides cost estimates on legislation. “They periodically release budget and economic projections, both short and long term, and those get a lot of play in the news whenever they’re released,” Emma said.

Money matters — so following and reporting on it is crucial. Renae Merle, a features editor at The Washington Post, urges journalists to ensure their audiences understand that “a lot of the stories that influence their everyday lives have a background in money.” Explain why a piece of legislation matters, the concerns people have about it and who should be held accountable for it are the ways reporters should approach budget stories, Merle said. Pay close attention to regulators and their actions. They get little attention and make many important decisions that affect people, she argued. “There’s just one line in a budget, and if nobody explains it to you or really takes the time to dig deep and find out why [certain] stuff was done, people will look over it and not understand why their lives are changing,” Merle said.

Speakers:
Caitlin Emma, Budget and Appropriations Reporter, Politico
Renae Merle, Features Editor, The Washington Post
Damian Paletta, Economics Editor, The Washington Post

This program, part of the Paul Miller Fellowship, was funded by the Walter and Karla Goldschmidt Foundation and other donations to the National Press Foundation, which is solely responsible for its content.

Transcript and resources: [ Ссылка ]
NPF website: [ Ссылка ]

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