U.S. budget deficit totals $743.6 billion over past 6 months

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U.S. budget deficit totals $743.6 billion over past 6 months

Associated Press | Friday, April 10, 2020 2:51 p.m.

Congress is considering ways to govern from afar during the coronavirus pandemic. Lawmakers are talking this week about whether it’s possible to conduct virtual committee meetings, particularly to oversee how the $2.2 trillion stimulus money is being spent. And they’re considering ways to pass virus-related legislation without requiring every lawmaker to be present.

WASHINGTON — The federal government’s budget deficit for the first half of this budget year totaled $743.6 billion, up 7.6% from last year, and well on its way to topping $1 trillion even before the impacts of the coronavirus were felt.

The Treasury Department reported Friday that the deficit from October, the start of the government’s budget year, through March was $52.5 billion higher than the same period a year ago.

The Trump administration and the Congressional Budget Office were already forecasting that this year’s deficit would top $1 trillion for the first time since 2012. But now with a $2.2 trillion rescue package approved by Congress and government spending expected to rise sharply, private economists are estimating that this year’s deficit could well exceed $2 trillion.

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