Budget

A budget is a statement of intended expenditures either intended as a general guide, or as a stated limit which may not be exceeded. Budgets may be microscopically analytical, or, while being comprehensive as to the elements of expenditure for any purpose and/or period, they may group the eventuating expenditures in major categories as, for example, those general ledger accounts pertaining to the Statement of Income and Expenses. In a broader sense a budget may be the financial plan that must be adhered to and takes a legal form in public administration.