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New record set for most money the government has ever collected
By Catholic Online (NEWS CONSORTIUM)
February 8th, 2013
Catholic Online (www.catholic.org)
February 8th, 2013
Catholic Online (www.catholic.org)
According
to projections from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), federal
revenue will return to its pre-recession levels in 2013. This sets a new
record for the most money the government has ever taken in.
Government revenues had fallen by nearly $500 billion during the recession to $2.1 trillion in 2009, contributing to the $1.5 trillion deficit that year. Federal revenues however, have been recovering since the recession ended in June 2009. The CBO now projects that they will slightly eclipse their pre-recession peak.
The $2.7 trillion in revenue will be the most money the federal government has collected in history.
the government has never collected more than the $2.6 trillion it collected in 2007, according to historical tables compiled by the White House Office of Management and Budget. This means that if CBO's projection is correct, it will set a new record for revenue collection in 2013.
This projection could undercut a key argument made by the White House that any balanced approach to deficit reduction must include more federal revenue in the form of "tax reform."
"Now, I think this balanced mix of spending cuts and tax reform is the best way to finish the job of deficit reduction," President Obama said in a speech this week.
Republicans insist that additional tax revenue is not necessary, citing the tax increases on wealthier Americans they agreed to as part of the January deal to make permanent most of the Bush tax cuts.
Republicans argue that the focus should now turn to cutting federal spending rather than raising further tax revenues.
"Democrats say we should replace the president's 'sequester' with revenue increases, or delay it. Republicans say we should replace [it] with responsible reforms that will help put us on a path to balance the budget in 10 years," House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) said at a news conference.
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