BUDGET/NATIONAL DEBT/TREASURY: “The U.S. government ran a $108 billion budget deficit in August ahead of a late September deadline for Congress to raise the federal borrowing limit and authorize new spending to keep the government open.
Federal government outlays last month totaled $334 billion, exceeding $226 billion in total receipts, the Treasury Department said Wednesday [9-13-17]. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office had predicted a $109 billion deficit for August.
The monthly deficit was slightly higher than a $107 billion budget gap in August 2016. CBO attributed the slightly larger gap to lower remittances from the Federal Reserve, and a decline in income and payroll tax withholding.
During the first 11 months of the fiscal year, which ends Sept. 30, the budget deficit was $674 billion, about 9% larger than the same period last year. Revenues increased 2% during that time, but spending increased more, rising about 3%.
More broadly, declining government revenues and long-term costs associated with an aging population, including higher Social Security and Medicare spending, are expected to continue pushing up the deficit.
Federal debt recently crossed the $20 trillion threshold, after Congress voted to suspend the debt ceiling for three months and allow Treasury to once again borrow to pay for previously authorized spending. Lawmakers also struck a deal to fund the government through Dec. 8 to avoid a government shutdown next month.”
-Kate Davidson, “U.S. Had $108 Billion Budget Deficit in August, Treasury Says,” The Wall Street Journal online, Sept. 13, 2017 02:02pm