The CBO’s findings said increased tax revenues and lower spending led to the drop, reports The Hill.
Individual tax receipts were up by 10 percent after a two-point payroll tax expired in January. In addition, tax rates increased on people making more than $ 400,000 a year, also narrowing the deficit.
The decline also reflects a five percent spending decrease, reported the CBO, which came with sequestration cuts. For example, in the first two months of the year, there was $ 10 billion less in defense spending.
In addition, unemployment benefits spending and net interest on the public debt also each dropped by $ 3 billion, and disaster aid spending was down as well.
Department of Agriculture spending also dipped by $ 4 billion, and Federal Emergency Management Agency spending dropped by $ 2 billion, reports the CBO.
But increases in two of the government’s largest entitlement programs, Social Security and Medicaid went up, by $ 7 billion and $ 1billion, respectively.
The difference of one Day made a huge spending difference for the month of December, the CBO reports. Because Dec. 1 fell on a weekend, the government incurred a $ 140 billion deficit in November, $ 33 billion smaller than the $ 172 billion deficit in November 2012.
With Dec. 1 falling on a weekend in both years, some payments that would have been made in December came instead in November.
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CBO: US Deficit $61B Lower Than Last Year
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