Treasury: $1.1 Trillion Deficit in First Half of Fiscal Year

The United States borrowed $1.1 trillion in the first six months of fiscal year 2024, including $236 billion in March, according to the latest Monthly Treasury Statement from the Treasury Department.

In the past 12 months, the U.S. government borrowed $1.7 trillion – or $2.0 trillion excluding the effects of the overturned student debt cancellation. Read our analysis on this here.

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

We’re now halfway through the fiscal year, and today’s numbers from the Treasury remind us how much more work needs to be done. Borrowing more than a trillion dollars in just six months can hardly be viewed as sustainable and is much more likely a sign that something is deeply wrong.  

The national debt is on course to exceed its record share of the economy in four years, Social Security and Medicare are going insolvent within ten years, and we’re paying more on interest than on defense or Medicare. Further, today’s inflation news confirms that we aren’t quite yet out of the woods on rising prices. And with Congress back now, they are talking about cutting taxes and spending more. Are they even paying attention?  

With half a year behind us, now we look ahead to the next half and decide what path we want to take. Last year was proof that lawmakers can come together and produce real savings with the passage of the Fiscal Responsibility Act. What we need is the political muscle memory to continue making this a priority.

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