The Budget and Accounting Act of 1921 (P.L. 67-13; 42 Stat. 20-27) established for the first time the requirement that the President annually submit a budget proposal to Congress. The President's budget proposal, or the Budget of the United States Government as it is referred to in Section 1105(a) of the U.S. Code , consists of estimates of spending, revenues, borrowing, and debt; policy and legislative recommendations; detailed estimates of the financial operations of federal agencies and programs; and other information supporting the President's recommendations. Initially, the 1921 act required the President to include budget information for the upcoming fiscal year, as well as for the most recently completed and current fiscal years. Under the 1921 act, the deadline for submission was set as "the first day of each regular session" of Congress. Budgets during the Administrations of Presidents Harding, Coolidge, and Hoover were submitted in December; during the Administrations of President Franklin D. Roosevelt and subsequent Presidents, budgets were submitted in January or February. The deadline was changed in 1950, 1985, and 1990, but always required that the budget be submitted either in January or February. Under current law (31 U.S.C. §1105(a)), the President is required to submit the annual budget on or after the first Monday in January, but no later than the first Monday in February. For nearly half a century after the 1921 act took effect, Presidents submitted their annual budgets to Congress toward the beginning of the session but were not required to update the budget submissions later in the session. As the federal budget became larger, more complex, and more dynamic, Congress felt a greater need for more extensive and updated budgetary information from the President. This view was expressed by the House Rules Committee in its report on the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1970 (P.L. 91-510; 84 Stat. 1140): Very often, as the appropriations process moves forward, conditions relating to the President's budget change. Frequently, Members are not fully informed about such changes and what effect they will have on the total Budget. No official Executive pronouncements are made subsequent to the Budget submission; no supplementary budgetary information is presented; no firm foundation except the January Budget is available in the Congress. This inexact, imprecise, and haphazard system must be substantially improved if the Congress is to analyze effectively the President's program and, with any degree of accuracy, forecast the expenditure and revenue levels of the National Government. The Legislative Reorganization Act of 1970 made several changes in the federal budget process in response to Congress's request for more budgetary information from the President, chiefly by requiring that the President's budget cover not just the upcoming fiscal year but also the four ensuing fiscal years. In addition, Section 221(b) of the act requires the President to submit to Congress an update of the budget in the middle of the legislative session. The requirement, which was first effective in 1972, is codified at 31 U.S.C. §1106 (see this report's Appendix for the current text of the statutory requirement). The update is commonly referred to as the mid-session r eview (or MSR), but sometimes is referred to as the supplemental summary of the b udget . The most current mid-session review (FY2017) is available at https://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/budget/MSR . Congress and the President have made two changes since 1972 pertinent to the requirement for a mid-session review. First, in conjunction with a change in the start of the fiscal year from July 1 to October 1, made by the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 (CBA, P.L. 93-344 ; 88 Stat. 299-300), the deadline for submission of the mid-session review was changed from June 1 to July 15. The CBA also provided for a transition quarter "commencing July 1, 1976, and ending on September 30, 1976" for which the President was required to prepare, as soon as practicable, budget estimates "in such formal detail as he may determine." The second change pertained to the budget enforcement procedures established on a temporary basis by the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (BBEDCA). Under Section 241 of BBEDCA, the President was required, in the preparation of the annual budget, to adhere to statutory deficit targets that w ere enforced by sequestration. Section 242 of BBEDCA extended the same constraint to the preparation of the mid-session review. The restriction expired at the end of FY1995, along with the deficit targets themselves. Under 31 U.S.C. §1106, the mid-session review must include, in part (A) substantial changes in or reappraisals of estimates of expenditures and receipts; (B) substantial obligations imposed on the budget after its submission; (C) current information on matters referred to in section 1105(a)(8) and (9)(B) and (C) of this title; and (D) additional information the President decides is advisable to provide Congress with complete and current information about the budget and current estimates of the functions, obligations, requirements, and financial condition of the United States Government. The content and structure of the mid-session review has varied by President. Generally, Presidents have included both required and optional elements such as (1) technical re-estimates of expenditures and receipts, (2) updates to economic assumptions and forecasts, (3) changes to the estimated condition of the Treasury, (4) revised versions of select the summary tables from the original budget request, and (5) discussion of the potential effects of enacted and proposed appropriations. It is not uncommon for legislative or economic changes to occur close to the deadline for submission of the mid-session review. In such cases, the President may be unable to provide a detailed review of the effects they may have on the estimates included in the President's original budget submission. The President's mid-session review may include changes to the amount of budget authority requested in the original budget submission. Any such changes must be accompanied by a statement of the potential effects of those changes and "supporting information as practicable." The mid-session review may also include discussion of the potential effects of pending budgetary reforms or other legislative proposals that have not been enacted. Finally, the mid-session review may include other legislative proposals or administration initiatives. For example, President George W. Bush's FY2003 mid-session review included a chapter discussing the President's management agenda and other government-wide management initiatives, including several E-Government reforms. President Barack Obama's FY2013 mid-session review included a section discussing the effects of several enacted and proposed initiatives intended to create jobs and economic growth, such as the Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment Act ( P.L. 111-147 ; 124 Stat. 71). Since the first year the mid-session review was required (FY1973), each President has submitted at least one mid-session review on time and at least one late. Controversy has occasionally surfaced regarding the timing of its submission to Congress. On more than one occasion, some Members of Congress have suggested that the President has timed submission of the mid-session review in order to gain a political or legislative advantage over Congress. Table 1 provides information on the timing of submission of the mid-session review for FY1973-FY2017. The 45-year period identified in Table 1 covers all or part of the Administrations of eight Presidents, including the last three years of the Nixon Administration; the full terms of the Ford, Carter, Reagan, George H. W. Bush, Clinton, and George W. Bush Administrations; and the eight years of the Obama Administration. During this period, the mid-session review was submitted, on average, 7.80 calendar days late. For FY1973, FY1974, and FY1975, the deadline for submission of the mid-session review was June 1. The Congressional Budget Act of 1974 (CBA), enacted on July 12, 1974, changed the deadline for submission of the mid-session review from June 1 to July 15. In addition, Section 502 of CBA established a transition period "commencing July 1, 1976, and ending on September 30, 1976" for which the President was required to prepare, as soon as practicable, budget estimates "in such form and detail as he may determine." Since the first year the mid-session review was required it was submitted, on average, 8 calendar days late. In 23 of the 45 years, the mid-session review was submitted after the deadline, with delays ranging from 1 to 52 calendar days. When the mid-session review was late, it was delayed, on average, three weeks (20.96 calendar days). In 22 of the 45 years, the mid-session review was submitted on or before the deadline. Seven of the 22 timely submissions were made on the deadline. In 11 instances, the mid-session review was submitted fewer than 10 days before the deadline. In the remaining four instances, the mid-session review was submitted at least two weeks before the deadline. For FY1978, FY2000, and FY2001, the mid-session review was submitted in late June—16, 17, and 19 calendar days ahead of the deadline, respectively. For FY1999, it was submitted on May 26, 1998—50 calendar days before the deadline. Figure 1 shows the number of days the mid-session review was submitted before or after the deadline for each year from FY1973-FY2017. The submission of the mid-session review was delayed for more than three weeks on nine occasions: FY1985, FY1986, FY1987, and FY1988 under the Reagan Administration; FY1994 and FY1998 under the Clinton Administration; FY2002 under the George W. Bush Administration; and FY2010 and FY2012 under the Obama Administration.