Pres. Trump Intends to Release 2018 Budget in Mid-March

President Donald Trump’s administration is aiming to release a fiscal 2018 budget outline on March 14, a White House official confirmed Sunday to CQ.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said it is the White House’s “intention” to release the outline, also called a “skinny” budget, on that date.

That date is not set in stone and could change. Mick Mulvaney, the new director of the Office of Management and Budget, has only just gotten to work in the White House budget office. He was confirmed and sworn into office on Feb. 16.

No target date has been set for releasing the full budget, the official said.

Some congressional aides and budget experts had earlier expressed doubts about whether the Trump administration would have time to craft a budget overview, depending on when the Senate confirmed an OMB director.

Mr. Mulvaney, previously a Republican congressman from South Carolina, was confirmed later than many had anticipated.

Mr. Mulvaney told Congress in a questionnaire Jan. 9 that his top priorities included releasing a budget blueprint in February and the full budget by April.

Previous presidents in their first year typically have released a budget outline in late February and the full budget in April or May.

When then-President Barack Obama first took office in 2009, he issued his 134-page overview of the fiscal 2010 budget on Feb. 26, 2009 — two days after addressing a joint session of Congress. The document contained updated budget numbers from the previous year and proposals to stimulate the economy.

Mr. Trump is scheduled to address a joint session of Congress on Feb. 28.