After hitting the debt limit on March 19, the Treasury Department under Secretary Jack Lew is now employing its toolset of “extraordinary measures” to continue deficit spending without legally breaching the debt limit. It will provide about $260 billion in borrowing capacity, which should last beyond at least Labor Day, …
At $642 billion, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) reports, the 2013 deficit will be lower by $200 billion than previously forecast. In February, the CBO projected a deficit of spending over revenue of $845 billion, but a large and temporary boost in revenues is pushing that figure down. Like the …
Congress and the White House have been focused for much of this year on the federal budget—rightfully so, given perennial deficits and unsustainable levels of U.S. debt. However, federal spending accounts for only a portion of the burden placed on Americans by the government. Regulations impose huge additional costs, hindering …
Reports that the federal government will put a little bit of money toward the massive federal debt for the first time in six years make for an interesting tidbit, but Washington’s spending and debt problem is only getting bigger. The Wall Street Journal reports, “The Treasury Department said that it …
The Highway Trust Fund (HTF), which funds most surface interstate transportation programs, from roads to bridges, faces insolvency in a few short years. In a House Budget Hearing today, one witness—Robert Poole of the Reason Foundation—offered lawmakers a near-term solution akin to what The Heritage Foundation has proposed: Recommit HTF …
As Obamacare’s Medicaid expansion is being debated in the states, many myths are being perpetuated by its advocates. Here, Heritage provides the research to debunk such myths: 1. Myth: Expanding Medicaid is “free money” for the states. Reality: The expansion adds an estimated $638 billion in new government spending from …
Last week, the President declared April 2013 National Financial Capability Month in an effort to encourage Americans to budget responsibly. This is a commendable goal. However, with the President’s budget more than two months late, it’s worth considering how the President is managing the nation’s finances: He grew the national …
In the ongoing debate over deficit reduction, President Obama and his colleagues in the House and Senate incessantly call for tax increases as if our budget problems persisted because of taxes being too low. If only the federal government could usurp more of taxpayers’ hard earned money, the line of …
