CBO Blog


How Does CBO Model the Response of Labor Supply to Changes in Tax and Spending Policies? October 25, 2012 Although much of the analysis that CBO undertakes is very technical in nature, the agency works hard to explain the basis for its findings so that Members of Congress, their staff, and outside analysts can understand the results and question the methods used. To that end, CBO just released a report, How the Supply of Labor Responds to Changes in Fiscal Policy, that explains an important aspect of the agency’s analysis.
CBO's Latest Estimate of the Cost of the TARP: $24 Billion October 11, 2012 Today CBO released the latest in a series of statutory reports on transactions undertaken as part of the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP)—the program established in October 2008, during the financial crisis, to enable the Department of the Treasury to promote stability in financial markets through the purchase and guarantee of "troubled assets."
The Federal Budget Deficit Totaled $1.1 Trillion in 2012, CBO Estimates October 5, 2012 The federal government’s fiscal year 2012 has come to a close, and CBO estimates—in its latest Monthly Budget Review—that the federal budget deficit for the year was about $1.1 trillion, or 7.0 percent of gross domestic product (GDP). Although the deficit is approximately $200 billion lower than the shortfall recorded in 2011, fiscal year 2012 marks the fourth year in a row with a deficit of more than $1 trillion.
As the Population Ages, Social Security’s Spending Is Projected to Outpace Its Tax Revenues October 2, 2012 CBO estimates that in fiscal year 2012, spending for Social Security totaled $773 billion, equal to about 5 percent of gross domestic product and one-fifth of federal spending. As more members of the baby-boom generation retire and the U.S. population grows older in the coming decades, Social Security outlays are projected to grow more rapidly than the economy and more rapidly than the program’s dedicated tax revenues.