Policy Backgrounder : - February 2024 CBO Budget and Economic Outlook

The growth in net interest costs is associated with projected increases in the average interest rates on the federal debt and the size of the primary deficit (the deficit excluding net interest spending) over the next decade. [...] Because of the rising Federal budget deficits over the next decade, CBO projects the Federal debt held by the public to grow from $27.9 trillion at the end of 2024 to $48.3 trillion at the end of 2034—an increase of over 40%. [...] As a percentage of GDP, the debt held by the public increases from 99 percent in 2024 to 116 percent in 2034, an all-time high that surpasses the levels of debt held by the public after the spending to achieve victory in World War II. [...] With deficits growing to $2.6 trillion over the next decade and the debt held by the public reaching an unsustainable level of 172 percent of GDP in 30 years, the fiscal outlook for the Federal government is not promising. [...] John Gardner is the Vice President of Public Policy at the Committee for Economic Development, the public policy center of The Conference Board.