CBO reports annually to the Congress on programs funded for the current fiscal year whose authorizations of appropriations have expired and on programs whose authorizations of appropriations will expire during the current fiscal year.
CBO Blog
During his presentation, Director Doug Elmendorf emphasized that federal debt remains on an unsustainable path, and the composition of federal spending is changing dramatically from what it has been in the past.
In recent years, debt held by the public has been significantly greater relative to GDP than at any time since just after World War II; under current law it will continue to be quite high by historical standards during the next decade.
Director Doug Elmendorf spoke with a group of reporters who gather regularly at the invitation of the Christian Science Monitor. He opened with a discussion of the slow recovery of the labor market.
Raising the minimum wage would increase family income for many low-wage workers, moving some of them out of poverty. But some jobs for low-wage workers would probably be eliminated and the income of those workers would fall substantially.
CBO answers a few questions it has received about last week’s analysis of the labor market effects of the Affordable Care Act.
The federal government ran a budget deficit of $184 billion for the first four months of fiscal year 2014, CBO estimates—$107 billion less than the shortfall recorded in the same span last year.
Director Doug Elmendorf testified on CBO’s latest projections for the budget and economy. The video of that testimony is now available.
In a briefing for the press this morning, Director Doug Elmendorf summarized CBO’s outlook for the budget and the economy. His remarks and accompanying slides are now available.
Under current law, deficits will drop through 2015 but rise thereafter, boosting the already high federal debt, CBO projects. Economic growth will be solid in the near term, but unemployment will not drop below 6.0 percent until 2017.