Feb 4, 2018 - Politics & Policy
After tax cuts, U.S. borrowing to spike 84% this year to nearly $1 trillion
- Erica Pandey, author of Axios Finish Line
The U.S. national debt in March 2016 was $19 trillion, as pictured here. Photo: Luke Sharrett / Bloomberg via Getty Images
"The federal government is on track to borrow nearly $1 trillion this fiscal year — Trump's first full year in charge of the budget," the Washington Post's Heather Long reports.
Why it matters: It's an 84% jump from the last fiscal year, and the highest level of borrowing in six years. In a report out this week, the Congressional Budget Office attributes the rise to the lower level of tax revenue that the government will collect under the new tax law.