REPORT UNCOVERS LIBERAL BIAS WITHIN CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
A newly released report is casting doubt on the political neutrality of the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), a government agency that’s supposed to provide impartial cost estimates on legislative proposals. The CBO, which was founded in 1974, claims to “provide objective, nonpartisan information to support the Congressional budget process and to help the Congress make effective budget and economic policy.” However, the findings from a conservative think tank suggest otherwise.
According to research from the Foundation for Government Accountability (FGA), the majority of the CBO’s staff are affiliated with the Democratic Party. Using voter registration data, the FGA found that 78.9% of CBO employees are registered Democrats. Only 12.5% are registered Republicans, while 8.6% identify as independents or have no party affiliation.
This partisan imbalance is even more pronounced in certain parts of the agency. For example, the Health Division—which is responsible for evaluating key programs like Medicare and Medicaid—has a workforce that is 93% Democratic, the report found.
The FGA also pointed out that even among employees registered as independents, many have made financial donations to Democratic candidates, suggesting that the true level of left-leaning ideology within the agency could be even greater than the raw registration numbers show.
Hayden Dublois, who serves as the FGA’s data and analytics director and co-authored the report, told the Daily Caller News Foundation: “The CBO loves to say they’re just doing math — but when that math is built on partisan bias and bad assumptions, it becomes political storytelling rather than hard science.”
The report also explains that this ideological slant may be a result of a “revolving-door-like relationship with both liberal members of Congress and left-leaning think tanks, where CBO’s analysts often gain their political experience before scoring the most important piece of legislation.”
Criticism of the CBO is reaching a boiling point as the office recently came under fire for its analysis of the Republican-backed One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which aims to implement parts of President Donald Trump’s agenda. On Wednesday, the CBO projected that the legislation could raise the federal deficit by $2.4 trillion and cause nearly 11 million people to lose health coverage due to changes in Medicaid.
Despite this, supporters of the bill, including many within Trump’s circle, argue that the measure would actually reduce the deficit by $1.4 trillion—calling into question the reliability of the CBO’s projections.
The FGA argues that lawmakers should not trust the CBO’s numbers, pointing to what they call a “disastrous track record” of inaccurate predictions regarding entitlement reforms. Speaking specifically about Medicaid projections, Dublois said: “CBO makes scary claims about how many people will lose Medicaid, but they leave out the truth: The vast majority of those counted are either enrolled in multiple states, already ineligible, have other health coverage, are illegal aliens, are able-bodied adults who can work but choose not to, or aren’t even enrolled in the program.”
“Here’s the bottom line: CBO is biased, and its numbers consistently miss the mark by embarrassing margins,” Dublois added. “Congress should be able to rely on its service agency to produce quality data. Instead, CBO has become another captive institution wrapped in non-partisan clothing.”
The FGA’s findings are expected to amplify calls for greater transparency and ideological balance within the CBO, especially as Congress continues to weigh high-stakes legislation that could reshape federal spending and entitlement programs.
COMMENTARY:
When it comes to managing the nation’s finances and projecting the cost of legislation, transparency and impartiality are essential. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) holds immense influence over how legislation is shaped, debated, and ultimately passed. That’s why any political bias within such an agency should not be hidden—it should be brought to light. If the staff behind the calculations lean overwhelmingly in one ideological direction, the public and lawmakers alike deserve to know it.
The CBO claims to be nonpartisan, yet recent findings show that nearly 80% of its employees are registered Democrats. That’s a glaring imbalance in a country where viewpoints are supposed to be diverse and representative. When one ideology dominates a supposedly neutral agency, it becomes difficult to believe that projections are being made with fairness and accuracy. This is especially problematic when these projections directly impact the lives of millions of Americans.
No agency that plays such a significant role in shaping economic and social policy should be allowed to operate behind a mask of neutrality if it’s driven by one-sided thinking. The data produced by the CBO has the power to sway public opinion, influence congressional votes, and shape national headlines. If that data is built on assumptions rooted in progressive ideology, then we’re not looking at raw analysis—we’re looking at narrative.
Transparency about who works at the CBO and what their political affiliations are would go a long way toward restoring public trust. Nobody is saying that people can’t have political beliefs. But if those beliefs are influencing government forecasts and budget projections, the American people have a right to know. Sunlight is the best disinfectant, and revealing internal biases is a step toward ensuring honest policymaking.
This is particularly true when the CBO repeatedly underestimates or exaggerates the effects of certain policies—especially conservative ones. Whether it’s health care reform or tax cuts, the pattern of errors seems to lean in one direction. That raises serious questions about the methods, assumptions, and models being used behind the scenes. These are not minor accounting mistakes; they are projections that can make or break legislation.
Imagine if a private-sector financial firm had this kind of bias in its forecasting. It would lose credibility instantly. The same standard should apply to government agencies. Yet the CBO continues to hold onto its “nonpartisan” label while operating with an overwhelmingly liberal staff. That’s not just misleading—it’s deceptive.
Making political donations to one side, having a revolving-door relationship with left-leaning think tanks, and hiring almost exclusively from one political background is not the behavior of a truly neutral office. It’s no wonder that their estimates often mirror the policy priorities of the Democratic Party. When that alignment is consistent, it signals more than coincidence—it signals intent.
Bias doesn’t always come in the form of lies. Sometimes, it shows up in what’s omitted, in the assumptions baked into models, or in the spin applied to a projection. If the CBO is going to produce numbers that shape national policy, then the American people need a full picture of who is behind those numbers and what ideological lens they may be using.
In a democracy, government institutions are supposed to serve the people, not push partisan narratives under the cover of objectivity. The CBO should not be exempt from scrutiny just because it handles “math.” Math can be manipulated just like words when built on biased premises. That’s why any imbalance in the agency should be exposed, and the process should be open to independent review.
Ultimately, budget transparency doesn’t just mean showing numbers—it means revealing the influences behind those numbers. Until the CBO can demonstrate true balance in its staffing and analysis, it should not be treated as the final authority on the cost of legislation. Accountability is the cornerstone of trust, and it’s time we start demanding both from the institutions that shape our future.
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