It's officially called the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, but to most people it's known simply as the Super Committee.
Consisting of only 12 Members of Congress, the Super Committee is divided evenly between the House and Senate, and between Democrats and Republicans.
Their job — to find a way to save at least $1.2 trillion in the federal budget over the next decade. The Super Committee's recommendation could include program cuts, tax increases and changes to entitlement programs.
The establishment of the Super Committee and its deadlines were included in the Budget Control Act approved by Congress earlier this year.
October 14: Committees in Congress will submit recommendations to the Super Committee on where they could identify potential savings.
November 23: The Super Committee submits its recommendations to Congress. Only seven of the 12 votes are needed to approve a recommendation.
December 23: Congress is required to vote on the Super Committee recommendation by this date.
If the bipartisan committee fails to produce a bill, or Congress is unable to enact the committee's recommendations, automatic cuts would be triggered beginning in 2013 shared equally between domestic discretionary and defense programs. Social Security, Medicaid, veterans' benefits, and other essential programs would be exempt. Medicare cuts would be limited to 2 percent and impact providers only, with no cuts for Medicare beneficiaries.
If the automatic cuts are triggered there would be a total loss of more than $2.1 trillion entirely from domestic discretionary and defense programs. This scenario should serve as a powerful incentive for the bipartisan committee to forge an agreement that puts entitlement and tax reform on the table, but if the Committee fails to find common ground, Congress would likely have to revisit the entire deal sometime between January 2012 and January 2013, when the automatic cuts would take effect.