FISCAL BLOG

Tax expenditures are costly for the federal government but they can be effective vehicles for lawmakers to achieve policy goals.

As a large portion of the American population lives well beyond retirement age, the total cost of providing healthcare will grow as well.

One of the largest drivers of that rising debt is federal spending on major healthcare programs, such as Medicare and Medicaid.

The lawmakers we choose this November will face critical fiscal and economic decisions in the near future.

The 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act made a number of changes to the corporate tax code, most prominently lowering the top corporate tax rate from 35 to 21 percent.

The depletion dates for Social Security and Medicare’s Trust Funds are rapidly approaching.

Without reform, Medicare spending will continue to rise over the coming years — threatening the HI Trust Fund and placing immense pressure on the federal budget.

Without reform, the Social Security Trust Funds will soon be depleted and unable to pay full benefits.

Today, the Social Security and Medicare Trustees released their annual reports on the programs’ financing, showing that the future of these vital programs remain at risk.

Federal spending for international affairs, which supports American diplomacy and development aid, is a small portion of the U.S. budget.