CBO Estimates $1 Trillion Deficit for First Five Months of FY 2026

The United States borrowed $1.0 trillion in the first five months of Fiscal Year (FY) 2026, including $308 billion in February, according to the latest Monthly Budget Review from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO).

The following is a statement from Maya MacGuineas, president of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget: 

Another month of the fiscal year means another month of borrowing. The budget deficit has already totaled $1 trillion in the first five months of FY 2026, with $308 billion borrowed solely in the month of February, according to CBO. February was a big month for the budget, with CBO projecting we’ll see a $1.9 trillion deficit this year, debt on track to surpass its record by 2030, and interest payments on the debt on track to exceed $1 trillion this year and every year until surpassing $2 trillion by 2036. This cannot be sustainable.

Our fiscal problems will not solve themselves. We need policymakers to come together, agree to reduce deficits – a 3% deficit-to-GDP target would be a great start – and put our national debt on a downward sustainable path as a share of the economy. 

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For more information, please contact Matt Klucher, Assistant Director for Media Relations, at klucher@crfb.org.