Congress enacts the Congressional Budget Act, creating the reconciliation process

Congress enacted the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, establishing the modern federal budget process and creating the budget reconciliation procedure for the first time. The law created the House and Senate Budget Committees, the Congressional Budget Office, and a structured annual timeline requiring Congress to adopt a concurrent budget resolution each spring. The reconciliation provision allowed Congress to direct committees to change spending and revenue levels to comply with the budget resolution, bypassing the Senate filibuster for fiscal legislation.