The Congressional Budget Office has released its estimate for the fiscal year 2012, just ended on September 30 and the news is good. The federal deficit was just under $1.1 trillion, compared to just under $1.3 trillion at the end of fiscal year 2011, a reduction of $207 billion. As a percentage of the GDP, the 2012 deficit dropped to 7.0 per cent, down from 8.7 percent in 2011 and 9.0 percent in 2010. The actual deficit numbers will be released later this month by the Treasury Department
The September 2012 numbers show an increase in receipts of about $23 billion, or 9% higher than the same period a year ago and a decrease of $115 billion in spending.