Final answer:
When legally enacted, a budget authorizes government spending for specific purposes. The federal budget includes both mandatory and discretionary spending, with discretionary spending requiring annual authorization and subject to political debate. Budgets are pivotal documents that plan for revenue and spending and can be influenced significantly by policy or unforeseen events.
Step-by-step explanation:
When enacted by law, a budget is the legal authorization for the government to make expenditures for specific purposes.
The federal budget is an essential tool for the government's management and budget planning. Its largest portion is mandatory spending, such as Social Security and Medicare, which continues without the need for annual approval by Congress. The other portion is discretionary spending, which includes military spending and welfare, and requires annual authorization. This spending is subject to political debate and adjustments based on projected program needs.
Overall, budgets depict how much revenue the government expects and how it plans to spend it, and can shift dramatically due to policy decisions or unexpected events. A keyword in this context is the veto, which allows a governor to reject specific items in a budget while approving the rest.