CBO’s budget projections under current law—known as baseline projections—give the Congress a benchmark against which to measure the effects of proposed changes spending and taxes. The projections show what would happen to the federal budget if current laws remained in place, that is if no new laws affecting spending and taxes were enacted during the projection period. In addition, the agency regularly shows the effects of adopting alternative policies that have been discussed by the Congress, so that the impact of those alternative policies is clear. CBO also makes long-term budget projections.
Budget Projections
featured work
Federal Debt and the Statutory Limit, September 2013Sep 2013 - CBO projects that the Treasury will exhaust its well-established set of extraordinary measures—which allow for additional borrowing without breaching the debt limit—as well as its cash balance, between October 22 and the end of the month.
Long-Term Budget OutlookSep 2013 - Federal debt would grow to 100 percent of GDP by 2038 under current law, CBO projects, and would be on an upward path relative to the size of the economy—a trend that could not be sustained indefinitely.
Updated Budget Projections: Fiscal Years 2013 to 2023May 2013 - A robust increase in revenues projected over the next few years will help shrink deficits through 2015. But deficits are projected to rise later in the decade, partly because of pressures of an aging population and rising health care costs.
The Budget and Economic Outlook: Fiscal Years 2013 to 2023Feb 2013 - Under current law, federal debt will stay at historically high levels relative to the economy, CBO projects. Economic growth will be slow in 2013 but pick up thereafter. Even so, the unemployment rate will be above 7.5 percent through 2014.
latest work
Testimony on The 2013 Long-Term Budget Outlook
reportSeptember 26, 2013Federal Debt and the Statutory Limit, September 2013
reportSeptember 25, 2013Press Briefing on The 2013 Long-Term Budget Outlook
presentationSeptember 23, 2013Breakfast with Reporters
blog postSeptember 19, 2013Federal Spending for Everything Other Than Major Health Care Programs, Social Security, and Net Interest
blog postSeptember 19, 2013Federal Spending on the Government’s Major Health Care Programs Is Projected to Rise Substantially Relative to GDP
blog postSeptember 18, 2013The 2013 Long-Term Budget Outlook
reportSeptember 17, 2013Has the Fundamental Federal Budgetary Challenge Been Addressed?
blog postSeptember 12, 2013
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