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Week 6 e-Activities 1

What is the Deficit?

Deficit: The amount by which the government’s total budget outlays exceeds its total receipts for a fiscal year. —US Senate Budget Committee

This year, FY 2014, the federal government in its budget estimated that the deficit will be $744 billion.

Recent US Federal Deficit Numbers

Obama Deficits FY 2015*: $577 billion FY 2014*: $744 billion FY 2013: $680 billion FY 2012: $1,087 billion FY 2011: $1,300 billion FY 2010: $1,294 billion

Bush Deficits FY 2009†: $1,413 billion FY 2008: $458 billion FY 2007: $161 billion FY 2006: $248 billion FY 2005: $318 billion for more years click here.

Although the federal deficit is the amount each year by which federal outlays in the federal budget exceed federal receipts, the gross federal debt increases each year by substantially more than the amount of the deficit each year. That is because a substantial amount of federal borrowing is not counted in the budget. See here.

Note:

* Federal Deficit is budgeted. † Some people have emailed to insist that the FY 2009 deficit should be assigned to Obama. Sorta.

Deficits and Debts

Click to view

But there’s more

The federal debt increases each year by more than the deficit. For FY 2013 the federal budget estimates that the federal debt will increase by about $1 trillion. That’s about $250 billion more than the official “deficit.” See Federal Debt.

But there’s more. There is the increase in debt from the “agency debt” of government-sponsored enterprises. And there is the implied deficit from unfunded liabilities like Social Security and Medicare. See chart of latest Long-term Budget Outlook from the Congressional Budget Office.

Now you are ready to explore. Click here for the basics on the national debt and deficits. Click here for a look at overall government spending; click here for a look at the federal budget by function. And there is no better place to get up to speed than Spending 101’s online course on Federal Debt.

Contact

Deficit Charts also: Spending Charts Revenue Charts Debt Charts

Federal

Recent US Federal Deficits

in billions

Click chart for briefing on Federal Deficit. For numbers and more click here.

in Percent GDP

Click chart for briefing on Federal Deficit. For numbers and more click here.The two charts show above show recent and budgeted deficits for the US federal government. On the left is a chart of the deficit in current dollars. On the right is a chart of the deficit as a percent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

US Federal Deficits in the 20th Century

Click chart for briefing on Federal Deficit. For numbers from 1900-2018 click here.

The two major peaks of the federal deficit in the 20th century occurred during World War I and World War II. Deficits increased steadily from the 1960s through the early 1990s, and then declined rapidly for the remainder of the 1990s. The federal deficit went over 10 percent of GDP in the aftermath of the financial crisis of 2008.

US Federal Deficits since the Founding

Click chart for briefing on Federal Deficit. For numbers from 1792-2018 click here.

The United States government did not always run a deficit. In the 19th century the federal government typically only ran deficits during wartime or during financial crises. The government ran a deficit of 2 percent of GDP at the end of the war of 1812, and through the decade after the Panic of 1837 and culminating in the US - Mexican War of 1846-48. It ran a deficit of over 7 percent of GDP in the Civil War; and ran a deficit in the depressed 1890s. In the 20th century the US ran a defict during World War I, the Great Depression, World War II, and in almost all years since 1960, during peace and war.

Week 6 e-Activities 2

Examine the 2012 U.S. Budget at http://www.gpoaccess.gov/usbudget/index.html. Be prepared to discuss.

Discussion Question 1

Identify and explain at least three property tax revenues that have suffered in the current environment.

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Based on the e-Activities, elaborate on at least three indications the U.S. Federal Deficit Chart and the 2012 U.S. Budget provide for predicting revenue levels

References

Discussion Question 2

Identify and describe two reasons why Irene Rubin (Stillman, Chapter 12) believes that budgets are political.

•Explain and take a position on at least two indications from the U.S. Federal Deficit Chart and the 2012 U.S. Budget used for determining the political nature of budgets

References