Order Code RL31880
Congressional Budget Office:
Appointment and Tenure of the
Director and Deputy Director
Updated November 26, 2008
Robert Keith
Specialist in American National Government
Government and Finance Division
Mary Frances Bley
Information Research Specialist
Knowledge Services Group

Congressional Budget Office:
Appointment and Tenure of the Director
and Deputy Director
Summary
The requirements regarding the appointment and tenure of the CBO director,
which are simple and straightforward, are set forth in Section 201(a) of the 1974
Congressional Budget Act, as amended, and codified at 2 U.S.C. 601(a). The
Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate
jointly appoint the director after considering recommendations received from the
House and Senate Budget Committees. The Budget Committee chairs inform the
congressional leaders of their recommendations by letter. The appointment usually
is announced in the Congressional Record.
Section 201(a) requires that the selection be made “without regard to political
affiliation and solely on the basis of his fitness to perform his duties.” Media reports
over the years indicate that the CBO director is selected under informal practices in
which the House and Senate Budget Committees alternate in recommending a
nominee to the Speaker and President pro tempore of the Senate. These reports also
indicate that the Speaker and President pro tempore have adhered to the Budget
Committees’ recommendations in making past selections. To the extent that these
practices are informal, there may be disagreement with regard to their operation in
the future selection of a CBO director.
The director is appointed to a four-year term that begins on January 3 of the year
that precedes the year in which a presidential election is held. If a director is
appointed to fill a vacancy prior to the expiration of a term, then that person serves
only for the unexpired portion of that term. There is no limit on the number of times
that a director may be reappointed to another term. Section 201(a) also authorizes
a CBO director to continue to serve past the expiration of his term until a successor
is appointed. A CBO director may be removed by either House by resolution.
Section 201(a) also provides that the director shall appoint a deputy director.
The deputy director serves during the term of the director that appointed the deputy
director (and until his or her successor is appointed), but may be removed by the
director at any time. The deputy director serves as the acting director if the director
resigns, is incapacitated, or is otherwise absent.
Seven persons have served as CBO director — Alice Rivlin, Rudolph Penner,
Robert Reischauer, June O’Neill, Dan Crippen, Douglas Holtz-Eakin, and Peter R.
Orszag. The most recent director, Peter R. Orszag, was appointed on January 18,
2007, and resigned on November 25, 2008. Eleven persons have served as deputy
director; five of them also served as the acting director (for periods amounting in
total to about three years). The current deputy director, Robert A. Sunshine, was
appointed to the position in August 2007; he began serving as acting director upon
Peter Orszag’s resignation.
This report will be updated as developments warrant.

Contents
Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Appointment Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Record of Appointments and Tenure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Alice M. Rivlin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Rudolph G. Penner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Robert D. Reischauer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
June Ellenoff O’Neill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Dan L. Crippen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Douglas Holtz-Eakin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Peter R. Orszag . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Appendix. Establishment of the Congressional Budget Office Under Section 201(a)
of the 1974 Congressional Budget Act . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
List of Tables
Table 1. Terms of the Director of the Congressional Budget Office . . . . . . . . . . 7

Congressional Budget Office:
Appointment and Tenure of the Director
and Deputy Director
Background
The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) was established by Title II of the
Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 (P.L. 93-344; July 12,
1974; 2 U.S.C. 601-603). The organization officially came into existence on
February 24, 1975, upon the appointment of the first director, Alice Rivlin.1
CBO’s mission is to support the House and Senate in the federal budget process
by providing budgetary analysis and information in an objective and nonpartisan
manner.2 Specific duties are placed on CBO by various provisions in law,
particularly Titles II, III, and IV of the 1974 Congressional Budget Act, as amended.
CBO prepares annual reports on the economic and budget outlook and on the
President’s budget proposals, and provides cost estimates of legislation, scorekeeping
reports, assessments of unfunded mandates, and products and testimony relating to
other budgetary matters.
In addition to statutory duties, CBO is subject to directives included in annual
budget resolutions. The FY2009 budget resolution (S.Con.Res. 70, 110th Congress),
for example, imposes a requirement that the CBO director prepare estimates of the
deficit impact of certain legislation in support of a point-of-order procedure in the
Senate against legislation increasing the deficit over the long term.3
For FY2008, CBO received an annual appropriation of $37.399 million, an
amount expected to support a staff of about 235 full-time-equivalent (FTE) positions.
1 A detailed discussion of the appointment of Alice Rivlin as CBO director and the
establishment of the agency is presented in: Schick, Allen, Congress and Money;
Budgeting, Spending and Taxing
, The Urban Institute (Washington: 1980); see Chapter V
(“The Budget’s New Analysts”), pp. 131-165.
2 For more information on the mission, organization, and policies of CBO, see the agency’s
website at [http://www.cbo.gov] In addition, the House Budget Committee held an
oversight hearing on CBO during the 107th Congress: Congressional Budget Office Role
and Performance: Enhancing Accuracy, Reliability, and Responsiveness in Budget and
Economic Estimates
(May 2, 2002).
3 See Section 311 (Senate Point Of Order Against Legislation Increasing Long-Term
Deficits), pp. 33-34, in the conference report to accompany the FY2009 budget resolution,
S.Con.Res. 70 (H.Rept. 110-659, May 20, 2008).

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For FY2009, CBO requested an appropriation of $42.740 million, but continuing
appropriations at the FY2008 level were provided through March 6, 2009 by the
Consolidated Security, Disaster Assistance, and Continuing Appropriations Act,
2009 (P.L. 110-329).4
Seven persons so far have served as CBO director — Alice Rivlin, Rudolph
Penner, Robert Reischauer, June O’Neill, Dan Crippen, Douglas Holtz-Eakin, and
Peter R. Orszag. The most recent director, Peter R. Orszag, was appointed on
January 18, 2007, and resigned on November 25, 2008. Eleven persons have served
as deputy director; five of them also served as the acting director (for periods
amounting in total to about three years). The current deputy director, Robert A.
Sunshine, was appointed to the position in August 2007; he began serving as acting
director upon Peter Orszag’s resignation.
Appointment Process
The requirements regarding the appointment and tenure of the CBO director,
which are simple and straightforward, are set forth in Section 201(a) of the 1974
Congressional Budget Act, as amended, and codified at 2 U.S.C. 601(a) (see the
Appendix). The Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro
tempore of the Senate jointly appoint the director after considering recommendations
received from the House and Senate Budget Committees. The Budget Committee
chairs inform the congressional leaders of their recommendations by letter. The
appointment usually is announced in the Congressional Record.5
Section 201(a) requires that the selection be made “without regard to political
affiliation and solely on the basis of his fitness to perform his duties.” Media reports
over the years indicate that the CBO director is selected under informal practices in
which the House and Senate Budget Committees alternate in recommending a
nominee to the Speaker and President pro tempore of the Senate. These reports also
indicate that the Speaker and President pro tempore have adhered to the Budget
Committees’ recommendations in making past selections. To the extent that these
practices are informal, there may be disagreement with regard to their operation in
the future selection of a CBO director.6
4 See CBO Director Orszag’s testimony, Appropriation Request for Fiscal Year 2009, March
12, 2008, on the CBO website at
[http://www.cbo.gov/ftpdocs/90xx/doc9044/03-12-CBO-FY2009.pdf]. Also, see Office of
Management and Budget, Budget of the United States Government, Fiscal Year 2009,
Appendix
, February 4, 2008, p. 26-27.
5 For example, see the announcement regarding the appointment of Dan Crippen in the
Congressional Record of February 4, 1999, on p. H422; the appointment of Douglas Holtz-
Eakin in the Congressional Record of February 5, 2003, on p. H313; and the appointment
of Peter R. Orszag in the Congressional Record of January 18, 2007, on p. S731, and
January 19, on p. H764.
6 CQ Today, “Democrats to Name New CBO Director,” by David Clarke, November 25,
2008. Further discussions of informal selection practices may be found in: (1) “Amid
Criticism, CBO Director O’Neill Forgoes Second Term,” by David Baumann, National
(continued...)

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The director is appointed to a four-year term that begins on January 3 of the year
that precedes the year in which a presidential election is held. If a director is
appointed to fill a vacancy prior to the expiration of a term, then that person serves
only for the unexpired portion of that term. There is no limit on the number of times
that a director may be reappointed to another term. Section 201(a) also authorizes
a CBO director to continue to serve past the expiration of his term until a successor
is appointed.
A CBO director may be removed by either House by resolution.
Section 201(a) also provides that the director shall appoint a deputy director.
The deputy director serves during the term of the director that appointed the deputy
director (and until his or her successor is appointed), but may be removed by the
director at any time. The deputy director serves as the acting director if the director
resigns, is incapacitated, or is otherwise absent.
Compensation for the director and the deputy director originally was set at Level
III and Level IV of the Executive Schedule (5 U.S.C. 5314), respectively. (For 2008,
the annual salary for Level III is $158,500 and the annual salary for Level IV is
$149,000.)7 In order to increase pay for the director and deputy director, the
Consolidated Appropriations Act for FY2000 changed the compensation of the
director to the lower of the highest annual rate of compensation of any officer of the
House or Senate, and changed the compensation of the deputy director to $1,000 less
than the annual rate of pay received by the director.8
Record of Appointments and Tenure
Seven persons have served as director of CBO during the nine terms beginning
in 1975 (see Table 1):
Alice M. Rivlin. Alice Rivlin served two terms as CBO director, from 1975-
1983. Prior to serving as CBO director, she served as assistant secretary for planning
6 (...continued)
Journal’s Congress Daily, October 28, 1998; (2) “Domenici Recommends Dan Crippen As
New Congressional Budget Office Director,” by Bud Newman, BNA’s Daily Report for
Executives
, January 14, 1999; (3) “Crippen Will Be New CBO Director,” by Ethan
Wallison, Roll Call, January 14, 1999; (4) “White House Economist Selected to Replace
Crippen at CBO,” by Andrew Taylor, CQ Monitor, January 9, 2003; (5) “Bush Economist
Holtz-Eakin Nominated by Nussle to Become New CBO Director,” by Bud Newman,
BNA’s Daily Report for Executives, January 10, 2003; and (6) “Peter Orszag Selected to
Head CBO; Formal Appointment Seen In January,” by Jonathan Nicholson, BNA’s Daily
Report for Executives
, December 13, 2006.
7 Rates of federal pay are provided at the website of the Office of Personnel Management
at [http://www.opm.gov]
8 See Section 224 of H.R. 3425 (113 Stat. 1501A-299), as enacted into law by cross-
reference in Section 1000(a)(4) of P.L. 106-113 (113 Stat. 1501-1537; November 29, 1999).
The provisions were incorporated into Section 201 of the 1974 Congressional Budget Act
as Section 5(A) and (B).

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and evaluation with the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, and as a
senior fellow with the Brookings Institution.
Rudolph G. Penner. Rudolph Penner served as CBO director for one term,
from 1983-1987. Previously, he served as chief economist at the Office of
Management and Budget under President Gerald Ford and as director of tax policy
studies with the American Enterprise Institute.
Robert D. Reischauer. Robert Reischauer served two terms as CBO
director, from 1989-1995 (he was not appointed until about halfway into the first
four-year term). Mr. Reischauer previously served as CBO deputy director (under
Alice Rivlin) and as a senior vice president of the Urban Institute.
June Ellenoff O’Neill. June O’Neill served as CBO director for one term,
covering 1995-1999. Before her appointment as CBO director, she headed the
Center for the Study of Business and Government at Baruch College and was an
adjunct scholar at the American Enterprise Institute.
Dan L. Crippen. Dan Crippen served as CBO director for one term, covering
1999-2003. Prior to his appointment, he served as chief counsel and economic policy
adviser to Senate Majority Leader Howard Baker, domestic policy adviser to
President Ronald Reagan, and, more recently, as a member of the law firm,
Washington Counsel.
Douglas Holtz-Eakin. Douglas Holtz-Eakin served as CBO director for one
term (leaving a little more than a year before the term’s completion). Prior to
beginning his term, he served as chief economist for the Council of Economic
Advisers. While director, he was on leave from Syracuse University, where he held
the position of Trustee Professor of Economics at the Maxwell School.
Peter R. Orszag. Peter Orszag began his service as CBO director on January
18, 2007, shortly after his four-year term began. He resigned on November 25, 2008
(a little more than two years before the term’s completion). Mr. Orszag previously
was the Joseph A. Pechman senior fellow and deputy director of Economic Studies
at the Brookings Institution, and before that held positions with the President’s
Council of Economic Advisers and National Economic Council.
Eleven persons have served as deputy director of CBO — (1) Robert Reischauer
(in two instances); (2) Robert A. Levine; (3) Raymond Scheppach; (4) Eric A.
Hanushek; (5) Edward Gramlich; (6) Robert Hartman; (7) James Blum; (8) Barry
Anderson; (9) Elizabeth Robinson; (10) Donald B. Marron; and (11) Robert A.
Sunshine, the current deputy director. The position was vacant on two occasions.
Five different deputy directors served as acting director, as discussed below.
As Table 1 shows, the gap between the beginning of a term and the appointment
of the director has varied considerably. Peter Orszag was appointed 15 days after the
beginning of his term; Alice Rivlin, June O’Neill, Dan Crippen, and Douglas Holtz-
Eakin were appointed (or reappointed) within one to three months of the beginning
of their terms. Rudolph Penner, however, was not appointed until nearly seven
months after his term had begun (and did not assume his office until more than a

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month later). Finally, Robert Reischauer began his first term more than two years
after it had started.
As a consequence of these appointment gaps, incumbent directors have
remained in office for weeks or months after their term has expired or CBO has
operated with an acting director. Alice Rivlin stayed in office for nearly eight months
(until August 31, 1983) before her successor, Rudolph Penner, took over. Rudolph
Penner remained in office for about four months (until April 28, 1987), but left long
before a new director was appointed; Edward Gramlich, and then James Blum,
served successively as acting director for a period of nearly two years.
Robert Reischauer stayed on as director for almost two months (until February
28, 1995) before he was succeeded. June O’Neill stayed in office nearly a month
after her term ended (until January 29, 1999), but left about a week before her
successor was appointed; James Blum served as acting director during the interim.
Finally, Barry Anderson served as acting director from the time that Dan Crippen left
office, on January 3, 2003, until Douglas Holtz-Eakin was appointed to succeed him
on February 5, about a month later.
Similarly, appointment gaps may occur when a director resigns before his or her
term is completed. As indicated previously, Douglas Holtz-Eakin resigned on
December 29, 2005, a little more than a year before the completion of his term (on
January 3, 2007). The deputy director, Donald B. Marron, began serving as acting
director at that time; he continued in that capacity until the appointment of Peter
Orszag just over a year later.
Peter Orszag resigned on November 25, 2008 (a little more than two years
before the term’s completion); President-elect Barack Obama announced that day that
he intended to nominate him to the position of Director of the Office of Management
and Budget. On the same day, Robert A. Sunshine, the current deputy director, also
began serving as the acting director.9
At the conclusion of a CBO director’s term, the practice of the Senate has been
for the chairman and ranking member of the Budget Committee to introduce a simple
resolution commending the director for his or her service, which the Senate then
adopts by unanimous consent. On December 20, 2005, for example, the Senate
adopted S.Res. 341, regarding the service of Douglas Holtz-Eakin as director (the
9 Congressional Budget Office, CBO Director Orszag Resigns; Sunshine Becomes Acting
D i r e c t o r
, p r e s s a d v i s o r y , a v a i l a b l e o n t h e C B O W e b s i t e a t
[https://www.cbo.gov/communications/advisory/2008-11-25-director.shtml]. See also
BNA’s Daily Report for Executives, “President-Elect Vows Spending Reform During
Rollout of Key OMB Appointments,” by Michael Bologna and Jonathan Nicholson,
November 26, 2008.

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text of the measure is provided in Box 1).10 In the House, the chairman of the Budget
Committee inserted a commendation into the Congressional Record.11
The Senate agreed to a similar resolution commending James Blum for his
service as deputy director.12
Box 1. Text of S.Res. 341, 109th Congress,
Commending Douglas Holtz-Eakin
(Adopted by the Senate on December 20, 2005)
Commending Dr. Douglas Holtz-Eakin for his dedicated, faithful, and outstanding
service to his country and to the Senate.
Whereas Dr. Douglas Holtz-Eakin has served as the sixth Director of the
Congressional Budget Office since February 4, 2003 and will end his service
on December 29, 2005;
Whereas during his tenure as Director, he has continued to encourage the highest
standards of analytical excellence within the staff of the Congressional
Budget Office while maintaining the independent and nonpartisan character
of the organization;
Whereas during his tenure as Director, he has expanded and improved the
accessibility of the Congressional Budget Office’s work products to the
Congress and the public;
Whereas he has expanded and enhanced the agency’s macroeconomic analyses of
the range of negative and positive feedbacks on the economy and budget from
fiscal policy changes; and
Whereas he has earned the respect and esteem of the United States Senate: Now,
therefore, be it
Resolved, That the Senate of the United States commends Dr. Douglas Holtz-
Eakin for his dedicated, faithful, and outstanding service to his country
and to the Senate.
10 For Senate action on S.Res. 341 (109th Cong.), see the Congressional Record, December
20, 2005, pp. S14194-S14195. For additional examples of commendation resolutions, see
(1) S.Res. 81, 104th Congress, commending Robert Reischauer (Congressional Record,
February 27, 1995, p. S3223); (2) S.Res. 39, 106th Congress, commending June O’Neill
(Congressional Record, February 12, 1999, p. S1651); and (3) S.Res. 15, 108th Congress,
commending Dan Crippen (Congressional Record, January 9, 2003, p. S175).
11 See the remarks of Representative Jim Nussle, “Tribute to CBO Director, Dr. Douglas J.
Holtz-Eakin, in the Congressional Record of December 19, 2005, p. E2623.
12 See S.Res. 40, 106th Congress (Congressional Record, February 12, 1999, pp. S1651-52).

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Table 1. Terms of the Director of the Congressional Budget Office
Date of
Date Appointment Announced in
Effective Date of
Term
Director
Appointment
Congressional Record
Appointment
January 3, 1975-January 3, 1979
Alice M. Rivlin
February 24, 1975
February 25, 1975 (page 4151)
February 24, 1975
January 3, 1979-January 3, 1983
Alice M. Rivlin
March 28, 1979
[none]
March 28, 1979
January 3, 1983-January 3, 1987
Rudolph G. Penner
July 20, 1983
July 21, 1983 (page 20285)
September 1, 1983
January 3, 1987-January 3, 1991
Robert D. Reischauera
February 28, 1989
March 2, 1989 (page 3218)
March 6, 1989
January 3, 1991-January 3, 1995
Robert D. Reischauer
November 27, 1991
November 26, 1991 (page 35842)
November 27, 1991
January 3, 1995-January 3, 1999
June Ellenoff O’Neill
February 22, 1995
February 22, 1995 (page S2984);
March 1, 1995
February 28, 1995 (page H2373)
January 3, 1999-January 3, 2003
Dan L. Crippenb
February 3, 1999
February 4, 1999 (page H422)
February 3, 1999
January 3, 2003-January 3, 2007
Douglas Holtz-Eakinc
February 5, 2003
February 5, 2003 (page H313)
February 5, 2003
January 3, 2007-January 3, 2011
Peter R. Orszagd
January 18, 2007
January 18, 2007 (page S731);
January 18, 2005
January 19, 2007 (page H764)
Source: Congressional Budget Office and the Congressional Record, various years.
a. Deputy Directors Edward Gramlich and James Blum served successively as acting director between April 28, 1987, when Rudolph Penner left office, and March 6, 1989, when
Robert Reischauer’s appointment took effect.
b. Deputy Director James Blum served as acting director between January 29, 1999, when June O’Neill left office, and February 3, 1999, when Dan Crippen’s appointment took effect.
c. Deputy Director Barry Anderson served as acting director between January 3, 2003, when Dan Crippen left office, and February 5, 2003, when Douglas Holtz-Eakin’s appointment
took effect.
d. Deputy Director Donald Marron served as acting director between December 29, 2005, when Director Holtz-Eakin left office, and January 18, 2007, when Peter R. Orszag’s
appointment took effect. Deputy Director Robert A. Sunshine began serving as acting director on November 25, 2008, when Peter Orszag left office.

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Appendix. Establishment of the Congressional
Budget Office Under Section 201(a) of the 1974
Congressional Budget Act
(2 U.S.C. 601(a))
(a) In General. —
(1) There is established an office of the Congress to be known as the
Congressional Budget Office (hereinafter in this chapter referred to as the
“Office”). The Office shall be headed by a Director; and there shall be a
Deputy Director who shall perform such duties as may be assigned to him by
the Director and, during the absence or incapacity of the Director or during
a vacancy in that office, shall act as Director.
(2) The Director shall be appointed by the Speaker of the House of
Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate after considering
recommendations received from the Committees on the Budget of the House
and the Senate, without regard to political affiliation and solely on the basis
of his fitness to perform his duties. The Deputy Director shall be appointed
by the Director.
(3) The term of office of the Director shall be 4 years and shall expire
on January 3 of the year preceding each Presidential election. Any individual
appointed as Director to fill a vacancy prior to the expiration of a term shall
serve only for the unexpired portion of that term. An individual serving as
Director at the expiration of a term may continue to serve until his successor
is appointed. Any Deputy Director shall serve until the expiration of the term
of office of the Director who appointed him (and until his successor is
appointed), unless sooner removed by the Director.
(4) The Director may be removed by either House by resolution.
(5)(A) The Director shall receive compensation at an annual rate of pay
that is equal to the lower of —
(I) the highest annual rate of compensation of any officer of the
Senate; or
(ii) the highest annual rate of compensation of any officer of the
House of Representatives.
(B) The Deputy Director shall receive compensation at an annual rate of
pay that is $1,000 less than the annual rate of pay received by the Director,
as determined under subparagraph (A).