Budget Reconciliation Bills Since 1980
These resources will be available to paid subscribers only beginning March 1, 2026 (only $8/month or $50/year, and 20% off if you subscribe by January 31, 2026). (If you forget our substack address, you can always find us at TrillionsWeekly.com.)
THE RECONCILIATION BILL TITLES BELOW refer to the calendar year of enactment, not the fiscal year of the budget resolution that launched the reconciliation process. For example, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 was enacted pursuant to budget reconciliation instructions in the FY 2018 budget resolution. This occurs because budget resolutions focus on the upcoming fiscal year (the “budget year”), while bill titles refer to the calendar year of enactment. Occasionally, the reconciliation process is prolonged, and the years coincide, as with the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, which was launched in calendar 2021 with the FY 2022 budget resolution, but was not completed until August 16, 2022.
FROM DEFICIT REDUCTION TO DEFICIT INCREASING: From 1980 through 1997, reconciliation bills were generally enacted to achieve deficit reduction. Beginning in 2001, reconciliation bills have generally been used to fast-track filibuster-proof tax cuts and spending increases, with the result being higher deficits. The most recent reconciliation bill, OBBBA is estimated to increase deficits by more than $4 trillion over the next decade (including increased interest costs).
NOTE ON THE DEBT LIMIT AND RECONCILIATION: As reflected in the list below, reconciliation bills have been used 5 times to raise the statutory ceiling on the public debt: 1986, 1990, 1993, 1997, and 2025.
Following are all of the reconciliation bills enacted (and vetoed) under the provisions of the 1974 Congressional Budget Act, accompanied by hyperlinks to the reconciliation bill language AND budget resolution language instructing House and Senate Committees to report reconciliation provisions. Twenty-four reconciliation bills have been enacted under the Budget Act.
24. One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), PL 119-21 (2025)
§72001 (debt limit increase)
H.Con.Res. 14: Sections 2001-02
23. Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA), Pub. L. No. 117-169 (2022)
22. American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA), Pub. L. No. 117-2, 135 Stat. 4 (2021).
21. Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (TCJA), Pub. L. No. 115-97, 131 Stat. 2054 (2017).
[H.R. 3762, 114th Cong., (2016), vetoed.]
20. Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010, Pub. L. No. 111-152, 124 Stat. 1029 (2010).
19. College Cost Reduction and Access Act of 2007, Pub. L. No. 110-84, 121 Stat. 784 (2007).
18. Tax Increase Prevention and Reconciliation Act of 2005 (TIPRA), Pub. L. No. 109-222, 120 Stat. 345 (2006).
H.Con.Res. 95: Sections 201-02 (included instructions for two reconciliation bills)
17. Deficit Reduction Act of 2005, Pub. L. No. 109-171, 120 Stat. 4 (2006).
H.Con.Res.95: Sections 201-02 (included instructions for two reconciliation bills)
16. Jobs and Growth Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2003, Pub. L. No. 108-27, 117 Stat. 752 (2003).
15. Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 (EGTRRA), Pub. L. No. 107-16, 115 Stat. 38 (2001).
[H.R. 4810, 106th Cong., (2000), vetoed.]
[H.R. 2488, 106th Cong., (1999), vetoed.]
14. Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997, Pub. L. No. 105-34, 111 Stat. 788 (1997).
H.Con.Res.84: Section 104-05 (included instructions for two Reconciliation Bills)
13. Balanced Budget Act of 1997, Pub. L. No. 105-33, 111 Stat. 251 (1997).
§5701 (debt limit increase)
H.Con.Res.84: Section 104-05 (included instructions for two Reconciliation Bills)
12. Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996, Pub. L. No. 104-193, 110 Stat. 2105 (1996).
[H.R. 2491, 104th Cong., (1995), vetoed.]
11. Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993, Pub. L. No. 103-66, 107 Stat. 312 (1993).
§13411 (debt limit increase)
10. Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1990, Pub. L. No. 101-508, 104 Stat. 1388 (1990).
§11901 (debt limit increase)
9. Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1989, Pub. L. No. 101-239, 103 Stat. 2106 (1989).
8. Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1987, Pub. L. No. 100-203, 101 Stat. 1330, (1987).
7. Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1986, Pub. L. No. 99-509, 100 Stat. 1874 (1986).
§8201 (debt limit increase)
6. Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 (COBRA), P.L. 99-272, 100 Stat. 82 (1986).
5. Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1983, Pub. L. No. 98-270, 98 Stat. 157 (1984).
4. Tax Equity and Fiscal Responsibility Act of 1982 (TEFRA), Pub. L. No. 97-248, 96 Stat. 324 (1982).
S.Con.Res. 92: Section 2 (instructions for two Reconciliation Bills)
3. Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1982, Pub. L. No. 97-253, 96 Stat. 763 (1982).
S.Con.Res. 92: Section 2 (instructions for two Reconciliation Bills)
2. Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1981, Pub. L. No. 97-35, 95 Stat. 357-933 (1981).
1. Omnibus Reconciliation Act of 1980, Pub. L. No. 96-499, 94 Stat. 2599 (1980).