CBO Scores the Build Back Better Act
The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has released cost estimates for every title of the House-passed Build Back Better Act (H.R. 5376). Without interactions, the agency finds the Build Back Better Act would add nearly $160 billion to the deficit over ten years, including nearly $750 billion over five years.
Importantly, these estimates do not include potential interactions between committees, but they do include "non-scoreable" savings from IRS tax enforcement. CBO's figures are consistent but slightly lower than our recent estimate that the full legislation includes roughly $2.4 trillion of new spending and tax breaks through 2031 along with $2.2 trillion of offsets.
CBO's Estimate of the House's Build Back Better Act By Title
| Title | Budget Authority | Deficit Impact |
|---|---|---|
| Title I (Agriculture) | $82 billion | $77 billion |
| Title II (Education & Labor) | $455 billion | $454 billion |
| Title III (Energy & Commerce) | $299 billion | $281 billion |
| Title IV (Financial Services) | $156 billion | $151 billion |
| Title V (Homeland Security) | $2 billion | $1 billion |
| Title VI (Judiciary) | $116 billion | $115 billion |
| Title VII (Natural Resources) | $17 billion | $16 billion |
| Title VIII (Oversight & Reform) | $14 billion | $14 billion |
| Title IX (Science, Space, & Technology) | $9 billion | $9 billion |
| Title X (Small Business) | $5 billion | $5 billion |
| Title XI (Transportation & Infrastructure) | $39 billion | $36 billion |
| Title XII (Veterans Affairs) | $5 billion | $5 billion |
| Title XIII (Ways & Means) | -$997 billion | -$1,005 billion |
| Total | $202 billion | $160 billion |
Sources: Congressional Budget Office, Joint Committee on Taxation, and Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget. Numbers may not sum due to rounding.
Note: The estimate for the Ways and Means title includes $207 billion in non-scoreable revenue from IRS enforcement provisions aimed at reducing the tax gap.
The table above includes CBO's published scores for Title I (Agriculture), Title II (Education and Labor), Title III (Energy and Commerce) Title IV (Financial Services), Title V (Homeland Security), Title VI (Judiciary), Title VII (Natural Resources), Title VIII (Oversight and Reform), Title IX (Science, Space, and Technology), Title X (Small Business), Title XI (Transportation and Infrastructure), Title XII (Veterans Affairs), and Title XIII (Ways and Means). Together, these scores amount to roughly $202 billion of budget authority and $159 billion added to deficits over the next decade.
CBO has begun scoring the Senate Amendment to the Build Back Better Act. Thus far, the agency has published scores for Title I (Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry), Title III (Environment and Public Works), Title IV (Banking, Housing, and Urban Development), Title V (Homeland Security and Government Affairs), Title VIII (Commerce, Science, and Transportation, Title IX (Indian Affairs), Title X (Small Business and Entrepreneurship), and Title XI (Veterans' Affairs). Together, these scores amount to roughly $391 billion of budget authority and $368 billion added to deficits over the next decade.
CBO's Estimate of the Senate Amendment to the Build Back Better Act By Title
| Title | Budget Authority | Deficit Impact |
|---|---|---|
| Title I (Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry) | $95 billion | $90 billion |
| Title III (Environment and Public Works) | $73 billion | $64 billion |
| Title IV (Banking, Housing, and Urban Development) | $164 billion | $157 billion |
| Title V (Homeland Security and Government Affairs) | $11 billion | $11 billion |
| Title VIII (Commerce, Science, and Transportation) | $32 billion | $30 billion |
| Title IX (Indian Affairs) | $6 billion | $6 billion |
| Title X (Small Business and Entrepreneurship) | $5 billion | $5 billion |
| Title XI (Veterans' Affairs) | $5 billion | $5 billion |
| Total | $391 billion | $368 billion |
Source: Congressional Budget Office. Numbers may not sum due to rounding.
We will continue to provide timely, in-depth analyses as CBO continues releasing scores for the Build Back Better Act.
This analysis was last updated on 12//17/21 at 10:03 a.m.
Read more options and analyses on our Reconciliation Resources page.
