Final figure to be released later this month
WASHINGTON — The U.S. government ran a budget deficit of just under $1 trillion in the just-closed fiscal year.
That’s according to the latest, almost official estimate by the Congressional Budget Office.
Last year’s deficit ran $779 billion, but this year’s came in at $984 billion, more than $200 billion higher despite very low unemployment and continuing economic growth.
Many mainstream economists have long taken the position that deficits and the nation’s $22 trillion national debt are unsustainable. CBO notes that deficits have been growing faster than the size of the economy for four years in a row, ending 2019 at 4.7% of gross domestic product.
But there’s no appetite in Washington to try politically painful medicine to deal with the deficit.
The Treasury Department will release final deficit figures mid-month.