WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. budget deficit will jump to $1.915 trillion for fiscal 2024, topping last year’s $1.695 trillion gap as the largest outside the COVID-19 era, the Congressional Budget Office said on Tuesday, citing increased outlays for student loans, Medicaid, bank failure costs and aid to Ukraine and Israel.
The CBO said these higher outlays would make up some 80% of a $408 billion increase in this year’s projected deficit since February, when it forecast a $1.507 trillion deficit. If realized, the forecast would mean a second consecutive substantial deficit increase for U.S. President Joe Biden after deficits fell substantially in 2022 as COVID spending subsided.