<< Between now and that time, I think gold and silver will be the place of most % in terms of money flow growth.>>
It is hard to disagree when reading the stories like this:
<<
CBO Projects Budget Deficit
At 'Well Above' $100 Billion
DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
A sharp decline in tax collections will help boost the U.S. budget deficit "well above" $100 billion for the 2002 fiscal year, the Congressional Budget Office said Friday, more than doubling its previous estimate.
"It looks obvious to us the deficit will be greater than $100 billion," Dan Crippen, the office's director, told reporters, adding that it could even approach $150 billion.
Tax revenues dropped by $24 billion in May from a year earlier, including a $21 billion drop-off in individual income-tax receipts, the office said in its monthly budget review.
Meanwhile, spending continues to grow "at a double-digit pace for all major categories except social security and net interest," the office said.
The deficit forecast is generally in line with the projections of private forecasters. The office's previous estimate, issued in April, put the deficit for the year, which ends Sept. 30, at $46 billion.
The decline in tax receipts was most dramatic when examined for the period of October through May, when total receipts fell by $161 billion, or almost 12%, compared with a year earlier. During that same period, individual income-tax receipts fell 20%. The decline in income-tax receipts followed considerable weakness in the economy. It also reflects the Bush administration's tax-cut bill, which was signed into law last year.
Federal spending for October through May rose 18% from a year earlier, led by higher claims for unemployment insurance and increased defense, Medicare and Medicaid spending.
Mr. Crippen said the budget outlook is little changed from last month. "Even though we're getting positive signs about the economy, the tax base is not going up," he said. "Revenues are not recovering back to what we think would be a normal level of economic activity."
The office intends to release its next detailed deficit forecast in the third week of August.
The nonpartisan office estimates that a Senate proposal to raise the federal-debt ceiling by $450 billion, if effected, would accommodate the federal government's borrowing needs through March or April 2003, Mr. Crippen said.
Updated June 14, 2002 2:47 p.m. EDT
. |
