The United States Likely Posted a Deficit of $223 Billion in February
According to the latest edition of the "Monthly Budget Review" from the CBO (Congressional Budget Office), the United States likely posted a deficit of $223 billion in February. A $223 billion deficit in a single month would be a new record, slightly edging out the $221 billion deficit that the United States posted in February of 2010.
According to the CBO, the United States likely had receipts of $110 billion and outlays of $333 billion in February, which would create the 223 billion dollar deficit. This would compare to $108 billion in receipts and $328 billion in outlays in February of 2010.
For the first five months of the fiscal year (2011), the CBO estimates that the US government has incurred a budget deficit of $642 billion, which is actually down $10 billion from the same period last year. Outlays, the CBO estimates, were up $58 billion during the first five months of the 2011 fiscal year compared to the same period in 2010, while revenues were up $68 billion.
--
The CBO notes that spending for net interest on the federal debt (+4 billion), Medicare (+4 billion), the National Credit Union Administration (+3 billion), Social Security (+2 billion) and Veterans Affairs (+2 billion) were up in February 2011 compared to the year before, while spending on unemployment compensation and the Small Business Administration were both down.
Through the first five months of the 2011 fiscal year, personal income tax revenues (+26.6%) were up substantially over the year before, while corporate income taxes (-16.4%) and social insurance revenues (-4.7%) were both down.
Let's take a quick look at outlays through the first five months of the 2011 fiscal year and how they compare to 2010:
Defense-Military Spending, +3.1%
Social Security Benefits, +3.7%
Medicare, +2.9%
Medicaid, +6.3%
Unemployment Benefits, -19.8%
Other Activities, +11.2%
Net Interest on the Public Debt, +12.5%
TARP, -51.1%
Note: Other Activities includes things such as veterans' programs and food and nutrition assistance.
--
The United States federal government is expected to post a $1.65 trillion deficit in the 2011 fiscal year ($3.82 trillion in total expenditures, $2.17 trillion in total revenues).
Source: CBO.gov
Source: Davemanuel.com - US Deficit History
Filed under: The Economic Meltdown
