Web Links

• p. 316: Go to http://www.cbo.gov/ to learn more about the activities of the Congressional Budget Office, which reports to the legislative branch of the U.S. government about the current state of the federal government's spending and receipts.
• p. 325: For more information about the role of the Office of Management and Budget in the government's budgeting process, go to http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/.

Issues and Applications Web Resources:

• To examine the most recent U.S. government budget documents, go to the Web site of the Office of Management and Budget at http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/budget/fy2005/, and click on "Budget Documents" in the left-hand margin.
• For access to the Congressional Budget Office’s most recent U.S. federal deficit projections, go to http://www.cbo.gov/publications/bysubject.cfm?cat=51.

The Public Debt
Examining the federal government’s budget data enables its current estimates of the public debt to be determined.

     Title: Historical Tables: Budget of the United States Government

     Navigation: Use http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/ to visit the Office of Management and Budget. Select the most recent budget. Then click on Historical Tables.

Application
After the document downloads, perform the indicated operations and answer the questions.

1. In the Table of Contents in the left-hand margin of the Historical Tables, click on Table 7.1, "Federal Debt at the End of the Year, 1940-2009." In light of the discussion in this chapter, which column shows the net public debt? What is the conceptual difference between the gross public debt and the net public debt? Last year, what was the dollar difference between these two amounts?

2. Table 7.1 includes estimates of the gross and net public debt over the next several years. Suppose that these estimates turn out to be accurate. Calculate how much the net public debt would increase on average each year. What are possible ways that the government could prevent these predicted increases from occurring?