Budget

Amazing Facts and Figures from the Pentagon’s Failed Audit

By Michael Rainey

To the surprise of no one, the Department of Defense announced this week that it has failed its first-ever comprehensive audit. Rep. Mike Turner (R-OH), the outgoing chair of the House Subcommittee...
Congressional Panel Considers Budget Reforms

By Yuval Rosenberg

A bipartisan congressional panel tasked with revamping the federal budgeting process on Thursday marked up its proposed legislation ahead of a November 30 deadline. The panel, created as part of...
Pentagon Fails Its First-Ever Audit

By Yuval Rosenberg

The Defense Department has failed its first-ever comprehensive audit, Deputy Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan said Thursday, according to multiple reports. “We failed the audit, but we never...
The Economy’s Coming Wile E. Coyote Moment

By Michael Rainey

Most economists think that the “sugar high” in the economy produced by simultaneous tax cuts and federal spending increases this year will fizzle at some in the next few quarters, at which point GDP...
States Spent $2 Trillion in 2018. Here’s Where It Went.

By Yuval Rosenberg

The 50 states spent more than $2 trillion for the first time in fiscal 2018, according to a report released Thursday by the National Association of State Budget Officers. At the same time, as the...

Securing America’s Future Requires Political Courage Now

By Russ Latino

My son is five. He plays with Legos and digs old-school video games. My daughter is three. She likes dolls and is prone to uncontrollable giggling with no apparent provocation. Neither have much...
US Military Faces a Crisis and Needs More Money, Report to Congress Warns

By Yuval Rosenberg

America’s military superiority “has eroded to a dangerous degree,” leaving the national security “at greater risk than at any time in decades,” a bipartisan commission warned Wednesday in a...
The Cost of Post-9/11 Wars Nears $6 Trillion

By Yuval Rosenberg

The total cost of post-9/11 wars will approach $6 trillion by the end of fiscal 2019, according to an annual report published Wednesday by the Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs at...
Deficit Hit $100 Billion in October

By The Fiscal Times Staff

The U.S. government spent $353 billion in October while revenues came in at $253 billion, producing a deficit of $100 billion. Receipts were 7 percent higher than a year ago, but spending was up 18...
The Pentagon's $21 Billion Rust Problem

By The Fiscal Times Staff

“Rust costs the Pentagon more money annually than many of its most expensive weapons systems—up to $21 billion per year, according to a Defense Department-commissioned audit released in March,” Next...

One Key Way the US Lags Behind Finland (and Denmark and Taiwan)

By The Fiscal Times Staff

The U.S. ranks 27th in a new study that ranks 195 countries based on “expected human capital” — the population’s overall level of survival, health and education, considered a key determinant of...
Congress Fails to Pass Farm Bill

By Michael Rainey

The federal farm bill expired at midnight on Sunday, leaving dozens of programs in limbo until Congress can pass a new spending package or an extension of the old one. Lawmakers were unable to agree...
What’s in Trump’s New NAFTA?

By Michael Rainey

President Trump announced a new trade deal with Canada and Mexico Monday that is intended to replace NAFTA, the 24-year-old trade agreement that regulates roughly $1.2 trillion worth of trade between...
The US Government’s Biggest Financial Asset: Student Debt

By Michael Rainey

We hear a lot about government debt, but what about government assets? Jill Mislinski of Advisor Perspectives looked at the Federal Reserve's financial accounts data and found that student loans make...
Trump Signs Spending Bill to Avert Pre-Election Shutdown

By Yuval Rosenberg

President Trump on Friday signed the $854 billion spending package that had been passed by the House and Senate. The signing, announced by Senate Republicans, averts a partial government shutdown...