The Senate Budget Committee drafts the annual budget resolution that sets the framework for federal spending and revenue. Working with the House Budget Committee, it establishes spending limits and revenue targets that guide other committees.
The committee's most powerful tool is the reconciliation process, which allows certain budget-related legislation to pass the Senate with a simple 51-vote majority instead of the usual 60 votes needed to overcome a filibuster. This has made reconciliation the vehicle for major policy changes, including the Affordable Care Act, the 2017 tax cuts, and the Inflation Reduction Act. The Budget Committee decides when and how reconciliation can be used.