Comprehensive Budget Process Reform Act of 1992

Comprehensive Budget Process Reform Act of 1992 - Title I: Balanced Budget with Enforcement; Mandatory Consideration of President's Budget - Amends the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to revise the Federal and congressional budget processes by establishing a two-year budgeting and appropriations cycle and timetable, beginning in the 103d Congress. Defines the budget biennium as the two consecutive fiscal years beginning on October 1 of any odd-numbered year.

Title II: Biennial Budget - Devotes the first session of any Congress to the budget resolution and to appropriations decisions, retaining current deadlines in most cases. Changes relevant deadlines as follows to conform to the biennial scheme: (1) from April 1 to March 31 for the Senate Budget Committee's report on the concurrent resolution on the budget; (2) from June 15 to September 30 for completion of congressional action on reconciliation legislation; and (3) from June 30 to September 30 for completion of congressional action on appropriations bills. Adds the reporting dates for OMB to report on the surplus/deficit. Devotes each second session to authorization activity, subject to deadlines of: (1) May 15 for the submission of the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report to the Budget Committees; (2) OMB surplus/deficit reporting dates; and (3) the last day of the session for completion of congressional action on bills and resolutions authorizing new budget authority for the next biennium.

Changes from January 15 to February 15 of each year the date by which the CBO Director must submit to the Congress a report on authorizations. Requires the Director of the CBO to issue four-year projections of congressional budget action. (Current projections are on a five-year basis.)

Amends provisions relating to the reconciliation process to: (1) increase from 20 to 100 hours the time of debate permitted in the Senate with respect to reconciliation measures; and (2) make it out of order in both the House and the Senate to consider any reconciliation legislation changing any provision of law other than one relating to new budget or spending authority, revenues, or the public debt limit.

Revises the extent of projections to be included in CBO analyses of reported bills.

Conforms provisions governing the President's budget to the biennial framework.

Directs the heads of Federal executive agencies, the Comptroller General, and the Directors of the Congressional Budget Office, the Office of Technology Assessment, and the Congressional Research Service to provide studies, analyses, reports, and other documentation concerning program administration to assist the standing committees of the House and the Senate having jurisdiction over the programs in question.

Amends the Rules of the House of Representatives to conform to the biennial framework.

Title III: Unified Operating and Capital Budget - Amends Federal law to require that the budget the President submits to the Congress be a unified budget comprising an operating budget and a capital budget, each presented separately for total funds, Federal funds, and trust funds. Restricts the capital budget to the major activities, projects, and programs supporting the acquisition, construction, alteration, and rehabilitation of capital assets. Includes all other items in the operating budget.

Directs the Comptroller General to review and report to the Congress, as necessary, on the implementation of this Act.

Requires the following reports to the House Committee on Public Works and Transportation and the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works on capital activities and operating activities associated with: (1) roadways and bridges, airports and airway facilities, and mass transportation systems; (2) waste water treatment and related facilities; (3) water resource projects; and (4) public buildings.

Requires OMB to promulgate regulations requiring: (1) each department and agency to establish standards to compare the advantages and disadvantages of leasing versus purchasing any proposed real estate or equipment with a cost in excess of $10 million; and (2) the completion of such analysis before any purchase or lease is made.

Title IV: Sunset Authority - Subtitle A: Reauthorization of Government Programs - Requires each Government program to be reauthorized at least once during each sunset reauthorization cycle. (Sunset reauthorization cycle means the period of five Congresses beginning with the 103d Congress and with each sixth Congress following the 103d Congress.)

Sets forth the procedure in the House of Representatives and the Senate for the consideration of any legislation which authorizes new budget authority.

Exempts from the requirements of this Act specified items, such as interest on Federal debts, certain programs related to the administration of the Federal judiciary, and certain payments of refunds of internal revenue collections.

Expresses the sense of the Congress that all programs should be considered and reauthorized in program categories which constitute major areas of legislative policy. Provides for such reauthorizations.

Subtitle B: Program Inventory - Directs the Comptroller General and the Director of the Congressional Budget Office, in cooperation with the Director of the Congressional Research Service, to prepare an inventory of Federal programs.

Declares that the purpose of such program inventory is to advise and assist the Congress in carrying out reauthorization and reexamination requirements and to link such reauthorization and review process with the budget process.

Requires the Comptroller General to submit such program inventory to each House of Congress no late than January 1, 1993. Directs the congressional committees, the Congressional Budget Office, and the Congressional Research Service to review the program inventory and to suggest revisions. Requires that the program inventory be revised at the end of each session of the Congress and that such revisions be reported to each House.

Subtitle C: Program Reexamination - Requires each committee of the Senate and the House of Representatives to reexamine selected programs or groups of programs over which it has jurisdiction.

Sets forth procedures for such review and criteria for selection of program areas for evaluation.

Subtitle D: Tax Expenditures - Requires the Director of the Congressional Budget Office, after consultation with the Joint Committee on Taxation of the Congress, to prepare an inventory of tax expenditure provisions and to submit a report on such inventory to the Committee on Ways and Means of the House and the Senate Finance Committee by July 1, 1993.

Directs the House Committee on Ways and Means and the Senate Committee on Finance to prepare a reauthorization schedule for all tax provisions similar to the schedule set out for Federal programs in title I of this Act. Requires the Congress to take final action on the reauthorization schedule for tax provisions before the end of the 103d Congress.

Subtitle E: Miscellaneous - Sets forth miscellaneous provisions to carry out the purposes of this Act.

Directs the President, with the cooperation of the head of each appropriate agency, to submit to the Congress a Regulatory Duplication and Conflicts Report for all programs scheduled for reauthorization in the next Congress.

Requires specified congressional committees to report on a review of the procedures established under this Act by December 31, 1998, and every five years thereafter.

Authorizes appropriations through FY 2002.

Title V: Enhanced Rescission Authority - Amends the Impoundment Control Act of 1974 to grant the President line item veto rescission authority if he determines, within ten days of the date of enactment of a law, that such a rescission: (1) would help balance the Federal budget, reduce the Federal budget deficit, or reduce the public debt; (2) will not impair essential Government functions; and (3) will not harm the national interest. Requires the President to notify the Congress of such rescission by a special line item veto message. Requires a message for each item of rescission of budget authority. Makes such rescission effective unless the Congress enacts a resolution of disapproval.

Sets forth procedures for congressional review and disapproval of such messages.

Title VI: Performance-Based Budgeting - Amends Federal law to include in the Federal budget a performance standards and goals plan for the overall budget.

Directs the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to issue regulations requiring each Federal department and agency to establish such a plan for each major expenditure category of its budget. Requires OMB to review and adjust such plans and establish an overall performance standards and goals plan for the Federal Government.

Requires OMB by December 31 of each odd-numbered year, to report to the President and the Congress on all tax expenditures that reduced revenues by at least $2 billion.

Requires each bill or resolution which provides for the authorization of appropriations or for the appropriation of funds to specify performance standards and goals for such authorization or appropriation.

Title VII: Incremental-Based Budgeting - Requires the head of each department or agency to submit to OMB at least one budget that sets forth spending at least ten percent lower than the prior biennium's budget.

Requires the President, when OMB reports an estimated budget deficit, to recommend to the Congress specific changes in outlays or revenues to eliminate that deficit or recommend waiver of the requirement to eliminate such deficit.