ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts covered in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book investigates whether and how bureaucratic centralization in the national and state budget processes affects information processing and institutional conflicts. It discusses the theoretical background of the so-called bounded rationality of decision makers under institutional settings. The book then explains bureaucratic centralization of the national and state budget processes in what is known as executive and Congressional budgeting systems. It also presents empirical evidence from decades of national and state budget data that bureaucratic centralization of the budget processes expedite information processing and reduce organizational conflicts. The book also measures bureaucratic centralization as the ratio of the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) employees to total Congressional employees. It then introduces many anecdotal cases to show how partisan divisions can nurture the best conditions where the CBO can successfully maintain its stance as a bipartisan and neutral information processor.
