What is deficit spending?

Within the budgetary process, deficit spending is the amount by which spending exceeds revenue over a particular period of time, also called simply deficit, or budget deficit, the opposite of budget surplus. The term may be applied to the budget of a government, private company, or individual.

What is a budget deficit?

Budget Deficit by Year The budget deficit is the difference between the money the federal government takes in, called receipts, and what it spends, called outlays each year. The U.S. government has run a multibillion-dollar deficit almost every year in modern history, spending much more than it takes in .

How many years has the federal government run a deficit?

Total U.S. debt as of Oct. 6, 2023. Since 1970, the federal government has run deficits during every fiscal year for all but four years, from 1998 to 2001. Political analysts and economists debate the effect of these cumulative budget shortfalls, but their origins are much less controversial.