Credit Subsidy Reestimates, 1983-1999

Nearly a decade has passed since the Federal Credit Reform Act required a new budgetary treatment of federal programs that offer direct loans or loan guarantees. Those programs must initially estimate the cost to the government of subsidizing that credit and periodically issue reestimates as financial conditions change. At the request of the Senate Committee on the Budget, this Congressional Budget Office CBO paper compiles and analyzes the cumulative reestimates made for credit programs since 1993. It examines trends in the size and direction of reestimates, looks for possible bias, and discusses ways to prepare and report reestimates more accurately.