Cyclopedia of Congressional Budget Law

Committee Allocation

Summary

A committee allocation is an amount of budget authority and outlays included in a concurrent resolution on the budget for a fiscal year that is provided to each committee of Congress having authority with jurisdiction over spending. These include the House and Senate Committees on Appropriations and authorizing committees. A committee allocation properly refers to the budget authority and outlays provided to the full committee under section 302(a) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974. Sometimes suballocations provided under section 302(b) (CBA) to Appropriations Subcommittees are referred to as such, even though it is not formally accurate. 
A committee’s allocation sets a limit over which a committee may not spend. Should they attempt to do so, and a breach would occur if legislation to be considered by Congress were enacted, it is subject to a point of order under section 302(f) (CBA). 

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GAO Glossary of Terms and Definition (September 2005)

Committee Allocation

The distribution of total proposed new budget authority and outlays, as set forth in the concurrent resolution on the budget, among the congressional committees according to their jurisdictions. The allocations are set forth in the joint explanatory statement of managers included in the conference report on the congressional budget resolution. House and Senate committees receive allocations of total new budget authority and total outlays. House committees also receive allocations of total entitlement authority, and Senate committees also receive allocations of Social Security outlays. Allocations are committee specific, but not program specific.
Under section 302(a) of the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 (2 U.S.C. § 633(a)), committee allocations are limits, not simply recommendations. (See also Allocation; Concurrent Resolution on the Budget; Entitlement Authority.)

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