The country’s budget deficit in the first two months of fiscal 2019, which began Oct. 1, was 50 percent higher than in the same period the previous year, according to the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), though the figure was inflated by timing.
In October and November, the federal government spent $303 billion more than it took in, compared to $202 billion in the same period of fiscal 2018, according to the CBO.
Tax revenues were just 3 percentage points higher than the previous year, largely because of the GOP tax law, while spending surged 18 percent.
{mosads}CBO noted that the data was somewhat skewed, however, because of when certain payments were made due to weekends.
Without the timing shift, CBO said, revenues would have increased $27 billion — just 4 percent — instead of $115 billion. That change, in turn, would have left the deficit increasing just $13 billion, about 6 percent more than the previous year.
The federal debt and deficit have grown dramatically since President Trump took office, a product of the tax cuts, biparisan spending increases and ongoing growth in mandatory spending programs such as Social Security and Medicare.
CBO has warned that if the debt continues to grow at the current level, it could lead to severe financial and economic consequences.
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