The Budget Treatment of Trust Funds
T-AFMD-90-3: Published: Oct 18, 1989. Publicly Released: Oct 18, 1989.
Additional Materials:
- Full Report:
Contact:
GAO discussed the federal budget treatment of trust funds, focusing on whether the budget should include Social Security trust fund surpluses in the budget totals that are subject to deficit reduction actions. GAO noted that: (1) the federal budget includes widely different discretionary and entitlement programs as trust fund programs; (2) the government treated trust funds separately until fiscal year 1969, when it introduced a unified budget which included trust funds; (3) debate continues regarding the appropriate budgetary treatment of trust funds, and there has been a proliferation of proposals aimed at removing one or more trust funds from the budget; (4) 1985 budget deficit reduction legislation provided for the two Social Security trust funds to go off-budget, and allowed the Office of Management and Budget to offset a projected $65 billion Social Security surplus, and another $69 billion total budget deficit; (5) establishment of off-budget government-sponsored enterprises has increased since 1985; (6) general, trust and enterprise fund subdivisions to the unified budget could enhance comprehension of the unified budget and subsequent fiscal policy decisions; (7) the government lacks a clear, concise definition of trust funds; and (8) an increase in national savings and investment would enhance other budget deficit activities.
Dec 13, 2018
STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS' FISCAL OUTLOOK:
2018 UpdateGAO-19-208SP: Published: Dec 13, 2018. Publicly Released: Dec 13, 2018.
Dec 11, 2018
-
FEDERAL BUDGET:
Government-Wide Inventory of Accounts with Spending Authority and Permanent Appropriations, Fiscal Years 1995 to 2015GAO-19-289T: Published: Dec 11, 2018. Publicly Released: Dec 11, 2018. -
Federal Budget:
Government-Wide Inventory of Accounts with Spending Authority and Permanent Appropriations, Fiscal Years 1995 to 2015GAO-19-36: Published: Nov 29, 2018. Publicly Released: Dec 11, 2018.
Jun 28, 2018
-
U.S. Postal Service:
Projected Capital Spending and Processes for Addressing Uncertainties and RisksGAO-18-515: Published: Jun 28, 2018. Publicly Released: Jun 28, 2018.
Jun 21, 2018
-
The Nation's Fiscal Health:
Action Is Needed to Address the Federal Government's Fiscal FutureGAO-18-299SP: Published: Jun 21, 2018. Publicly Released: Jun 21, 2018.
Apr 3, 2018
-
Defense Budget:
Actions Needed to Improve the Management of Foreign Currency FundsGAO-18-221: Published: Apr 3, 2018. Publicly Released: Apr 3, 2018.
Feb 6, 2018
-
Budget Issues:
Continuing Resolutions and Other Budget Uncertainties Present Management ChallengesGAO-18-368T: Published: Feb 6, 2018. Publicly Released: Feb 6, 2018.
Oct 12, 2017
-
Public Relations Spending:
Selected Agencies' Activities Supported by Contracts and Public Affairs StaffGAO-17-711: Published: Sep 12, 2017. Publicly Released: Oct 12, 2017.
Oct 2, 2017
-
U.S. Territories:
Public Debt OutlookGAO-18-160: Published: Oct 2, 2017. Publicly Released: Oct 2, 2017.
Sep 20, 2017
-
Budget Issues:
Budget Uncertainty and Disruptions Affect Timing of Agency SpendingGAO-17-807T: Published: Sep 20, 2017. Publicly Released: Sep 20, 2017.
Looking for more? Browse all our products here
Explore our Key Issues on Budget and Spending
Explore our other Key Issues here
