Federal Government's Debt Jumps More Than $1T for 5th Straight Fiscal Year

By the end of the third quarter of fiscal 2012, the new debt accumulated in this fiscal year by the federal government had already exceeded $1 trillion, making this fiscal year the fifth straight in which the federal government has increased its debt by more than a trillion dollars, according to official debt numbers published by the U.S. Treasury.

Prior to fiscal 2008, the federal government had never increased its debt by as much as $1 trillion in a single fiscal year. From fiscal 2008 onward, however, the federal government has increased its debt by at least $1 trillion each and every fiscal year.

The federal fiscal year begins on Oct. 1 and ends on Sept. 30. At the close of business on Sept. 30, 2011-the last day of fiscal 2011-the total debt of the federal government was $14,790,340,328,557.15. By June 29, the last business day of the third quarter of fiscal 2012, that debt had grown to $15,856,367,214,324.44-an increase for this fiscal year of $1,066,026,885,767.29.

In the fourth quarter of fiscal 2012, the federal debt has continued to accumulate, hitting $15,874,365,457,260.40 at the close of business on Thursday, July 19-marking a total increase so far in fiscal 2012 of $1,084,025,128,703.25.

In fiscal 2007, according to the U.S. Treasury, the federal government's debt increased $500,679,473,047.25. But that marked the last fiscal year in which the federal government's debt did not increase by at least $1 trillion.

FINISH