US budget deficit 317 billion dollars in
just-ended fiscal year
Yahoo News/AFP
October 6, 2005
WASHINGTON (AFP) - The US federal budget deficit narrowed to a
better-than-expected 317 billion dollars in the fiscal year ended September 30,
as corporate tax payments exceeded forecasts, congressional officials said.
The CBO said the deficit for the 2005 fiscal year completed September 30
amounted to about 2.6 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP), down from
3.6 percent in 2004.
Revenues were up 17.5 percent in the fiscal year compared with a 16.3
percent gain in fiscal 2004, CBO said.
The CBO said hurricanes Katrina and Rita had relatively little effect on the
2005 budget results because they occurred so late in the fiscal year.
But many analysts expect the deficit to balloon in the current fiscal year,
in large part from the reconstruction costs associated with the vast
storms.
A big part of the increase in revenues came from higher-than-anticipated
corporate taxes.
CBO said corporate receipts accounted for about 29 billion of the 45 billion
dollar revenue increase.
The deficit was not as large as the 331 billion dollars forecast by the
congressional office in August, but some of that was due to special factors
including 14 billion dollars in payments made in September instead of October
because the first day of the month fell on a weekend, CBO said.
Total federal receipts amounted to 2.154 trillion dollars, or about 17.5
percent of GDP and showed the first increase in this percentage since 2000,
according to CBO.
Overall federal expenditures rose to 2.470 trillion dollars, from 2.293
trillion in fiscal 2004, roughly 20 percent of GDP.
The largest single expense -- 514 billion dollars -- was for social security
payments, followed by defense (474 billion) and the Medicare health program for
the elderly (335 billion). Debt service accounted for 191 billion dollars.
Corporate receipts were 2.3 percent of GDP, the highest point since 1980,
after a 48 percent increase. Individual income taxes rose a more modest 14.8
percent but still accounted for the largest share of revenues, 809 billion
dollars.
"The strength in receipts reflects economic activity in both 2004 and 2005,"
the CBO said.
"It also results from the expiration at the end of 2004 of provisions
enacted in 2002 and 2003 that allowed additional first-year depreciation
deductions for investments in equipment."
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