The U.S. government deepened its fiscal year financial shortfall in May, but Treasury Department data signaled that fiscal progress might be happening.
According to the Monthly Treasury Statement, the federal government registered a $316 billion budget deficit last month, a 9 percent decline from the same month a year ago.
However, after adjusting for shifts in the fiscal calendar due to benefit payments, the deficit was $219 billion, a 17 percent decrease from May 2024.
Federal tax receipts rose about 15 percent year over year, totaling $371.222 billion.
Outlays totaled $687.233 billion in May, representing an approximately 3 percent increase from the same period a year earlier.
In total, the fiscal year 2025 budget gap widened to $1.365 trillion, 14 percent higher than a year ago….