Blog
Welcome to our blog – The Bottom Line, where you’ll find up-to-date commentary and analysis on the most important news in the fiscal world. Below is a list of our blog posts.
As Social Security Turns 90, It's Racing Towards Insolvency
Social Security turns 90 today – but its retirement program is on course to be insolvent by age 97 – according to new estimates from the program’s...
New York Times Article Does More to Perpetuate Myths than to Dispel Them
With Social Security’s 90 th birthday approaching, The New York Times (NYT) published an article this week alleging “ 6 myths about it that won’t go...
Offsetting ACA Enhanced Subsidy Extensions
9/26/25: Updated to reflect new CBO estimate of the cost of enhanced ACA subsidies. With early marketplace premium estimates rolling out, there is...
12-Month Rolling Deficit is $1.9 Trillion in July 2025
The federal government borrowed $1.9 trillion over the past year – August 2024 to July 2025 – based on estimates from the Congressional Budget Office...
Tariffs Are Generating Meaningful New Revenue
On August 7, the Trump Administration finalized a new set of “reciprocal tariff rates” that generally range from 10 to 41 percent. Assuming they...
Maya MacGuineas on Fox Business' "Mornings With Maria"
Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget president Maya MacGuineas recently appeared on Fox Business' "Mornings With Maria" to discuss CBO...
It's Time for "Super PAYGO"
“Pay-As-You-Go” or PAYGO rules and laws require offsets for new tax cuts and mandatory spending so they do not add to the debt. 1 Too often these...
10 Things to Look Out For After the 2025 Reconciliation Law
Earlier this month, the President signed the 2025 reconciliation law – also known as the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” (OBBBA). The law extended and...
CMS Takes on Medicare Fraud
In a recent LA Times op-ed, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz and Deputy Administrator Kimberly Brandt...
Appropriations Watch: FY 2025
Note: For the latest fiscal year, click here . Updated 7/31/25: On July 24, President Trump signed a recissions package which rescinds $9 billion in...
Maya MacGuineas on MSNBC's "Ana Cabrera Reports"
Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget president Maya MacGuineas recently appeared on MSNBC's "Ana Cabrera Reports" to discuss the latest...
Retirees Face an $18,100 Benefit Cut in 7 Years
The Social Security and Medicare trust funds are only a little more than seven years from insolvency, based on projections from the programs’ own...