U.S. budget deficit hits record high

The U.S. Treasury Department announced on Monday that the U.S. budget deficit topped $864 billion in June, breaking the $738 billion record set in April and putting the deficit at a nine-month high. The federal government is on track to meet or exceed the Congressional Budget Office’s prediction of a $3.7 trillion annual deficit.

How did it climb so high? The U.S. government spent $511 billion on the Paycheck Protection Program in June after re-upping the fund to buffer small businesses during the pandemic. And that was just part of the most expensive fiscal relief package in U.S. history. Meanwhile, a delayed tax deadline and millions of lost jobs slimmed down the government’s revenue last month.

Dig deeper: Read David L. Bahnsen’s report on what made it into the $2 trillion stimulus package.