Fiscal Policy | Econofact

Are Growing Federal Budget Deficits and Debt Cause for Concern?

By William G. Gale·February 13, 2019
Brookings Institution

The Issue:

Over the next ten years, the United States is on course for routine trillion-dollar annual deficits in the federal budget and the highest debt-to-GDP ratio in its history. Beyond the next decade, large and rising projected annual deficits will push the national debt steadily upwards, reaching almost

What Tools Does the U.S. Have to Combat the Next Recession? (VIDEO)

By Karen Dynan and Jay C. Shambaugh·December 12, 2018
Harvard University and George Washington University and The Hamilton Project, Brookings Institution

Excerpt from webinar with Karen Dynan (Harvard University), Jay Shambaugh (George Washington University, and The Hamilton Project at The Brookings Institution), and Eduardo Porter (New York Times), October 23, 2018. A collaboration between EconoFact and The Hamilton Project, Brookings.

The Issue:

U.S. fiscal ...
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Government Budget Deficits and Economic Growth

By Michael Klein·July 12, 2017
Fletcher School, Tufts University

The Issue:

The United States government budget deficit was $587 billion in 2016, representing 3.2 percent of that year’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projects that the budget deficit will rise to 5 percent of GDP in 2027, even if the economy is operating near full capacity ...
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