WASHINGTON (AP) — A new government report says the budget deficit hit $1.3 trillion in the just-completed fiscal year, matching last year’s flood of red ink but showing slight improvement over the record set two years ago.
The Congressional Budget Office analysis is in line with previous estimates but offers yet another reminder of the government’s precarious fiscal position — just as a congressional “supercommittee” is working to produce at least $1.2 trillion in deficit savings over the coming decade.
The biggest-ever deficit of $1.4 trillion was registered in 2009 as the country struggled through a recession and was in the midst of the Wall Street bailout.
The Treasury Department will issue the government’s official deficit tally later this month, but it’s unlikely to differ much from the CBO tally.
