Economics for Strategic Decisions
U.S. Federal Budget Deficit
Introduction and History
The U.S. Federal Budget deficit is the fiscal year difference between what the United States Government takes in from taxes and other revenues, called receipts, and the amount of money the government spends, called outlays. The items included in the deficit are considered either on budget or off budget. Generally, on-budget outlays tend to exceed on-budget receipts, while off-budget receipts tend to exceed off-budget outlays. The United States public debt, commonly called the national debt, gross federal debt or U.S. government debt, grows as the U.S. Federal Budget remains in deficit and is the amount of money owed by the United States government to creditors who hold US securities like T-bills, notes and bonds. This does not include the money owed by states, corporations, or individuals, nor does it include the money owed to Social Security beneficiaries in the future. As of April 18th, 2006, the total U.S. government debt was $8.395724 trillion. The United States has had public debt since its inception. Debts incurred during the American Revolutionary War and under the Articles of Confederation led to the first yearly reported value of $75,463,476.52 on January 1, 1791. Over the following 45 years, the debt grew and then contracted to nearly zero in late 1834. On January 1, 1835, the national debt was only $33,733.05, but it quickly grew into the millions again. The first dramatic growth spurt ...