Tom Guntert (Center Square)
Going into fiscal year 2024, the federal government had to borrow about $5 billion per day.
Congressional Budget Office said On Thursday, the federal budget deficit for the first 10 months of fiscal year 2024 (October through July) was $1.5 trillion.
The CBO said the $1.5 trillion deficit for the first 10 months of fiscal 2024 is $103 billion less than the deficit for the same period last year.
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The CBO projects the deficit will be $2 trillion in 2024. The deficit for fiscal year 2023 was $1.7 trillion, but the CBO said the difference between those years’ deficits could be due to “timing differences” in budgeting.
“As we approach the end of fiscal year 2024, while most Americans are focused on the momentum of the presidential election, behind the scenes the nation’s fiscal position continues to deteriorate,” Maya McGuineas, chair of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, said in a media release. “Total debt has exceeded $35 trillion, and today’s CBO projections estimate we will borrow an additional $242 billion in July, or $5 billion per day this fiscal year. We cannot leave our fiscal trajectory on autopilot. The risks are too great and the consequences too great to allow the national debt to continue to grow indefinitely.”
The Peter G. Peterson Foundation, founded by Peter Peterson, former Secretary of Commerce under President Richard Nixon, estimates that as of Aug. 8, the national debt was $35.8 trillion, or $104,193 for every American.
“Historically, our nation’s largest deficits have been caused by increased spending following major wars or national emergencies like the Great Depression,” the foundation states on its website. “Today, our deficits are driven primarily by predictable structural factors: an aging baby boom generation, rising health care costs, and a tax system that doesn’t generate enough money for the government to pay for what it promises to the public.”
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The think tank “Truth in Accounting” is debt If we include unfunded Social Security and Medicare promises, the figure is closer to $156.8 trillion.
Distributed with permission From Centre Square.
