Federal Debt and Interest Costs

The Congressional Budget Office's January estimates of baseline federal budget deficits have grabbed the attention of members of Congress and the public. The cumulative effects of persistently large deficits show up in the stock of debt held by the public and the net interest costs of servicing that debt.

This brief will provide historical data on those items and CBO's current projections. It also will discuss some of the risks to CBO's estimates.