The federal government ran a $355 billion deficit through the first seven months of fiscal 2016, the Treasury reported Wednesday, up $72 billion from a year earlier.
In April, the government saw a $106 billion surplus, thanks to the surge in tax collections that came with tax day. Revenues in the month were $438 billion, versus spending of $332 billion.
Last year, however, saw higher revenue, of $472 billion, and a bigger monthly surplus, of $157 billion.
The federal government is on pace to run a $616 billion deficit for 2016, the Treasury projected.
That shortfall would be a major increase from last year’s $438 billion, breaking a streak of four straight declines. The deficit topped out at $1.3 trillion in 2011, not adjusted for inflation.
It also would eclipse the Congressional Budget Office’s projection for a $544 billion deficit in 2016. The budget office currently sees annual deficits rising each year.
