Treasury Confirms $39 Billion Deficit in January

The Treasury Department released its latest Monthly Treasury Statement today, confirming that the United States borrowed $39 billion in the month of January and $460 billion since the beginning of fiscal year 2023.

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

Today’s Treasury numbers confirm that, when it comes to unsustainable borrowing, our nation is quickly reverting to type. In just the first third of the fiscal year, we’ve already borrowed $460 billion, or $3.8 billion per day.

The President recently told the nation in primetime that his forthcoming budget “is going to cut the deficit by another $2 trillion.” We look forward to seeing such a proposal given the nearly $2 trillion in new borrowing approved by Congress and the Administration last year alone. If true, such a pivot is urgently needed.

However, any honest reflection on the state of our union must also include a concrete, actionable plan to address our major trust funds teetering on the edge of insolvency. Members of both parties cheered the exclusion of Social Security and Medicare from any changes. Here are the facts: such a “do-nothing” plan would see a typical couple retiring in 2035 receiving a $12,000 to $17,000 cut to their Social Security benefits, while payments to hospitals from Medicare will be cut by 10 percent if nothing is done to prevent insolvency by 2028. And the longer we wait, the more drastic the changes we will ultimately need to make.

If we truly want to address our fiscal situation – as we should – policymakers should put all their cards on the table, abandon their demagoguing, and come together for the good of the American people. That means everything – Social Security, Medicare, and tax revenue included – should be part of the conversation in putting our nation’s finances on a sustainable path.

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For more information, please contact Kim McIntyre, Director of Media Relations, at mcintyre@crfb.org.