Scientific Definition
Annual appropriations force agencies to spend before fiscal year-end or lose future budget baseline.
Plain-English Definition
Annual appropriations force agencies to spend before fiscal year-end or lose future budget baseline.
Feynman Explanation
September is the most expensive month in federal procurement.
Core Principle
Annual appropriations force agencies to spend before fiscal year-end or lose future budget baseline.
Mechanisms
Pending editorial review.
Annual appropriations force agencies to spend before fiscal year-end or lose future budget baseline.
Pending editorial review.
Pending editorial review.
Budget mechanics produce spending mechanics.
Pending editorial review.
Pending editorial review.
Inputs (Triggers)
Pending editorial review.
Outputs (Behaviors)
Pending editorial review.
Behavioral Signature
September is the most expensive month in federal procurement.
Examples
- Defense agencies obligating billions in the final weeks.
- Budget mechanics produce spending mechanics.
Pending editorial review.
Famous Experiments
Pending editorial review.
Design Principles
- Multi-year carryover authority. Outcome-based budgeting.
Measurement Approaches
Pending editorial review.
Evidence
Pending editorial review.
Pending editorial review.
The Perverse Incentive Lens™
How this behavior is exploited — and how to redesign around it.
- Multi-year carryover authority. Outcome-based budgeting.
Pending editorial review.
Pending editorial review.
Interactive Mini Network
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Knowledge Graph Neighbors
Auto-linked to the rest of the Human Behavior Taxonomy by family, domain, dimension, and shared keywords.
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