US Budget Deficit Hits Record $1.147 Trillion in First 5 Months of Fiscal Year

March 13, 2025 TruthUSA

Rising costs for debt interest, Social Security, and health care drive spending increases, pushing the deficit to new highs.

The U.S. budget deficit for the first five months of fiscal 2025 reached a record $1.147 trillion, according to data released by the Treasury Department on Mar. 12.

The deficit includes a $307 billion shortfall for February, which marked a 4 percent increase from the same month in 2024.

The October-to-February deficit surpassed the previous record of $1.047 trillion set during the same period in fiscal 2021, when pandemic-related spending was at its peak.

The latest figures include nearly four months under former President Joe Biden’s administration and reflect overall government spending and revenue trends since the start of the fiscal year.

February’s deficit rose by $11 billion compared to a year earlier, driven by increased spending on debt interest, Social Security, and health care. The report notes that some government payments were made earlier than usual because Feb. 1 and March 1 fell on weekends. This shifted some expenses into January and February, making spending appear higher for those months without actually increasing costs.

Federal revenue for the month was $296 billion, up 9 percent from February 2024, while spending reached $603 billion, an increase of six percent.

For the fiscal year to date, total government revenue reached $1.893 trillion, a 2 percent increase from the year-ago period.

However, spending grew at a much faster rate, rising 13 percent, to $3.039 trillion, leading to the record shortfall.

The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget estimated that government borrowing so far this fiscal year has averaged about $8 billion per day. Maya MacGuineas, the group’s president, argued in a statement that nearly half the fiscal year has passed without progress in addressing the country’s growing debt.

“Despite our debt approaching a record share of the economy and interest payments on track to exceed our defense spending—totaling $396 billion to date this year, and on track to reach $952 billion—we are not doing anything to change course,” she said in the statement. “Lawmakers should use these numbers as a wakeup call on the reality of our unsustainable fiscal situation and get to work on putting in place a comprehensive plan to stabilize and bring our debt down to sustainable levels. For the sake of our economy and national security, the time to act is now.”

While the Trump administration has promoted efforts to reduce government spending, the deficit remains elevated.

February’s budget report reflected ongoing spending growth in key areas, including Treasury’s interest payments on public debt, which reached $478 billion for the fiscal year to date, a 10 percent increase from the previous year.

These interest payments have surpassed military spending, which stood at approximately $380 billion. Social Security expenditures grew by 8 percent, to about $663 billion, driven in part by a 2.5 percent cost-of-living adjustment for 2025.

The Department of Education’s spending declined to $8 billion in February from $14 billion the previous year. The decrease was in part due to lower funding for elementary and secondary education programs, according to the Treasury report.

The U.S. Agency for International Development also recorded a notably less $226 million in spending last month, down from $542 million in February 2024, reflecting broader budget adjustments.

Reuters contributed to this report.

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