Exploring solutions to America's fiscal and economic challenges
We can choose a better future — a future with a stabilized level of debt, faster economic growth, broader prosperity, and enhanced opportunity and mobility.
Understanding the Issues
Fiscal Outlook
America’s high and rising national debt places a growing burden of debt and interest on the next generation. The problem is serious, but the math is simple: every year, we spend more than we take in. The good news is that there are many ways to improve our outlook, and the federal budget is entirely within our control.
Healthcare
The U.S. healthcare system is the most expensive in the world, but we don’t have the results to show for it. America’s inefficient healthcare system worsens our fiscal standing, undermines our economy, and threatens our personal health and well-being. Lowering healthcare costs while improving outcomes is at the heart of building a better fiscal and economic future for our nation.
Social Programs
Critical government programs like Social Security and Medicare provide essential retirement security and health benefits to millions of Americans. However, on our current fiscal path, these programs are at financial risk, unnecessarily jeopardizing many recipients with severe and immedtiate cuts within the next 10 years. Additionally, there are other important income security programs that are designed to aid moderate- to low-income people. One of the key reasons to improve our nation’s fiscal path is to preserve and protect these vital programs.
The U.S. Budget
The U.S. budget reflects lawmakers’ decisions to tax and spend, borrow and lend, and consume and invest. The size and scope of those decisions make the federal budget process one of the most important and complex exercises in public policy making.
Defense Spending
In a complex and changing global landscape, the United States faces a range of critical national security challenges. As a result, defense spending is one of the largest categories in the federal budget. Because our fiscal health is directly relevant to our economic strength and international standing, America’s unsustainable national debt is a dangerous threat to our national security.
Policy Proposals
The good news about our fiscal challenges is that finding legislative solutions is entirely within the power of our elected officials, and there are many options available. As lawmakers consider proposals, it is important to understand their fiscal and economic impact.
Individual Taxes
Individual income taxes are a fundamental part of the nation’s tax system. These taxes total more than half of all revenues collected and include taxes levied on wages and salaries, income from investments, and other income.
Corporate Taxes
The corporate income tax — a tax levied on the profits of corporations — is a key part of America’s overall fiscal picture. The corporate income tax represents the third-largest category of revenues for the federal government, trailing only individual income and payroll tax revenues.
Economic Outlook
Putting our nation on a sustainable fiscal path creates a positive environment for economic growth and opportunity. With a strong fiscal foundation, the nation will have increased access to capital, more resources for future public and private investments, improved consumer and business confidence, and a stronger safety net.
Democracy
Increasing polarization, reduced trust in elections, and broadly shared misinformation erode the national conversation and threaten the essential exchange of ideas that is required for effective policymaking. We must work together to protect and strengthen American democracy.