Finance

Home page

Finance

US Congressional estimate: $1.3T deficit for 2010

08 October 2010 09:12 (UTC +04:00)

Baku - APA-Economics. The federal deficit for the just-finished 2010 budget year was a little under $1.3 trillion, the Congressional Budget Office estimated Thursday, Associated Press reported.

The CBO puts the deficit about $125 billion below the $1.42 trillion record posted for 2009.

That means the government borrowed 37 cents out of every dollar it spent as tax revenues continued to lag while spending on food stamps and unemployment benefits went up as the economy slowly pulls out of the recession.

The CBO figures are based on preliminary data but should be very close to the Treasury Department’s official tally due in a week or so.

The report provides a fresh reminder of the government’s fiscal problems, a major issue in midterm elections less than a month away. It’s a slight improvement from prior CBO estimates.

The near-record deficits come as Democrats and Republicans are battling over extending Bush-era tax cuts. The chief difference between the combatents â€” about $700 billion over the coming decade â€” is whether to extend tax cuts for individuals making more than $200,000 and families making over $250,000. Both sides generally agree on extending $3.3 trillion in other Bush tax cuts.