Pop quiz time! The Treasury Department on Tuesday released its monthly statement for March, meaning that the official federal spending and revenue data are in for the first six months of fiscal year 2022. See how much you know about the federal budget and deficit by answering the questions below. The answers are at the bottom.
1. Federal receipts last month rose by 18% from a year earlier to $315.2 billion, reportedly the highest for any March on record. Federal receipts for the first half of the year totaled a record $2.1 trillion, up from $1.7 trillion for the same period a year ago. How much revenue did the government take in over all of fiscal year 2021?
A. $1.25 trillion
B. $3.15 trillion
C. $4.05 Trillion
D. $6.25 trillion
2. Outlays for March were $508 billion, down 45% from the same month a year ago. How much has the government spent over the first six months of the fiscal year?
A. $1.88 trillion
B. $2.79 trillion
C. $3.89 trillion
D. $4.39 trillion
3. The federal budget deficit for March was $193 billion, down 71% from a year earlier, when the government was still sending out stimulus payments. The March number brings the deficit for the first half of the year to $668 billion. How does that compare to the first half of last year?
A. Up $50 billion.
B. Down $50 billion.
C. Down about $500 billion.
D. Down about $1 trillion.
4. The national debt is now nearly $30.4 trillion. Of that, how much is debt held by the public — meaning it’s owed to individuals and entities outside the federal government?
A. $11.75 trillion
B. $23.85 trillion
C. $28.55 trillion
D. $30.40 trillion
5. The cost of interest on the public debt over the first half of the year was $290.3 billion. How does that compare to the same period last year?
A. Down 15%
B. Up 15%
C. Up 27%
D. Up 47%
Answers:
1. C. Federal receipts for fiscal year 2021 totaled roughly $4.05 trillion. The White House projects that receipts for this year will climb to more than $4.4 trillion.
2. B. Outlays for the first half of the year totaled $2.79 trillion, down 18% from $3.41 trillion a year ago.
3. D. The deficit for the first half of the year is about $1 trillion, or 61%, lower than the $1.7 trillion budget gap over the first half of fiscal year 2021.
4. B. Debt held by the public is approaching $24 trillion.
5. D. Inflation and rising interest rates have helped drive a 27% increase in interest on the public debt. Inflation compensation on Treasury inflation-protected securities (TIPS) is up $59 billion so far this year, according to Treasury officials cited by The Wall Street Journal.
