The Office of Management and Budget may sound unassuming, but the agency plays a vital role throughout the federal government. Presidents rely on this office to translate their ideas and desires into workable and funded policies.

To explain what the Office of Management and Budget does, the director’s role and the challenges it faces, The Conversation turned to Martha Coven and Bridget C.E. Dooling, chief executives of the federal budget and experts in federal regulations, all of whom have worked at OMB.

What does the Office of Management and Budget do?

The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is a small but powerful agency located within the Executive Office of the President. It serves as the central nervous system of the federal government, helping to implement the President's vision for federal policy and operations while performing its own legally mandated functions.

OMB's responsibilities include:

• Oversees all budget matters, from preparation of the President's annual budget request to Congress to implementation of spending laws passed by Congress. The office is also responsible for coordinating what happens when the government shuts down after funding runs out. In other words, it maintains control over the federal government's operating costs.

• Coordinate and review draft agency regulations and how the government collects, analyzes and discloses information for statistical and other purposes.

• Distributes nearly all draft executive orders and presidential memoranda to gather agency feedback.

• Reviews documents prepared by federal agencies prior to submission to Congress, including hearing testimony and proposals for new legislation and developing formal executive positions on draft legislation.

• Oversees administrative matters such as contracts, grant administration, and information technology policy for all departments of the federal government. This work includes initiatives across multiple agencies, such as ongoing efforts to improve the customer experience of government services.

OMB employs approximately 500 employees, nearly 90% of whom are civil servants. These employees are not tied to a specific presidential position, must be hired on the basis of merit, and are responsible for the day-to-day work of the government.

What is the role of its director?

The director of the Office of Management and Budget, a position that requires Senate confirmation, is unusual in that he serves both as a member of the president's Cabinet and as a senior White House staffer. Most Cabinet secretaries spend relatively little time in the White House. Their time is spent managing agencies and traveling around the country and even the globe.

The director, whose office is within walking distance of the White House in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, is a frequent presence in the West Wing, advising on a range of domestic, economic and national security matters, particularly from the perspective of how decisions are implemented. Affects the federal budget, regulations, or government operations.

Also, reporting to the President, the Director is responsible for managing the operations of OMB as an agency and providing leadership to its staff. The director also speaks frequently with other agency heads and members of Congress.

The OMB director has two Senate-confirmed deputies, as well as several others in leadership roles to help run the agency. Some of these positions were also confirmed by the Senate.

How important is OMB to the administration's plans?

OMB plays a critical role because the agency uniquely possesses the combination of authority, expertise, and relationships within government that are often necessary to translate major policy changes into action.

For example, reforms envisioned by President-elect Donald Trump's Department of Government Effectiveness (despite its name not being a government department) often require input from OMB's budget, oversight, or management teams to move forward.

Proposals to cut federal programs typically appear in the president's budget, which the Office of Management and Budget prepares each year for Congress. Proposals to eliminate or amend federal regulations must first be drafted and published by agencies, a process called a rulemaking process overseen by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). OMB has extensive experience in improving government efficiency, such as in federal contracting. Indeed, in his official statement announcing DOGE, Trump said the organization "will work in partnership with the White House and the Office of Management and Budget," acknowledging the central role that the Office of Management and Budget plays in realizing DOGE's ambitions.

While OMB staff provide the institutional memory, expertise, and analytical skills to help advise any administration, the agency does not work alone. Much of OMB's institutional strength comes from relationships with technical experts on a variety of topics across the federal government, who help identify potential problems and solutions.

We believe that leadership from the White House and OMB works best when it works closely with agency staff and leverages the expertise of federal agencies. In this way, it ensures that the President's priorities are implemented effectively and efficiently.

What is the biggest challenge facing OMB right now?

Coordinating the efforts of the US government, a $6.8 trillion enterprise, is not easy. Each administration has multiple centers of power, making it difficult for the director of the Office of Management and Budget to ensure that the law is applied consistently and the president's priorities are pursued throughout the federal government, despite often competing interests among agencies.

Directors also often say "no" to agency or White House staff ambitions because of the power of the executive branch, how much money can be spent, or whether there are the human resources to pursue those ambitions.

In a second Trump administration, however, OMB leadership may focus less on restraint and more on unilaterally asserting presidential power. Trump plans to renominate former OMB Director Russell Vought, a driving force behind controversial ideas such as withholding federal funds instead of using them as directed by Congress. Moreover, in the final months of Trump’s first term, Vought sought to make it easier for civil servants — including OMB’s own staff — to be fired for inappropriate “temperament” or other factors, by converting them to For Schedule F status, this would strip civil servants of their job protections.

If Vought serves as OMB director for a second time, if he is confirmed, and if he continues his work on Sequestration and Plan F, he will have strained relations with at least two core constituencies: members of Congress and civil servants.

The OMB director is also always involved in discussions about fiscal policy, where the challenge will be the steadily rising national debt, which is expected to surpass World War II-era records as a share of gross domestic product.

Additionally, Congress and Trump want to extend and potentially expand the massive, expensive tax cuts passed during his first term.

Although OMB does not play a leading role in planning how the federal government raises operating funds, the administrator must still defend any increases in deficits and debt to lawmakers and others unless Congress and the president can agree on deep spending cuts or revenue increases. .

This story is part of a series of profiles on cabinet and senior executive positions.