| Summary: | <p>Unlike the line-item budget, which lists total departmental appropriations by items for which will spend funds, a program budget displays a series of “mini-budgets,” which show the cost of each of the activities that departments perform. In the case of the water department, for example, a separate mini-budget would be established for water production and distribution, water system repair and maintenance and meter reading. Program budgeting enables to identify the total cost of each service and set spending levels and priorities accordingly. The downside to the program budget approach is that considerable time is required to establish and maintain the system. Also, programs tend to overlap, both between departments and within the same departments, which can make the collecting data difficult.</p>
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