As Americans paid their taxes in July, Uncle Sam kept sending that money back out

I had an extra interest in finding what the US budget deficit looked like through the Monthly Budget Review from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), given that income taxes for 2019 were due last month. This allows us to get back to an even comparison with last year's revenues, and that report gave insight as to just how much of a record deficit we were running, particularly as we debate what additional stimulus (if any) should be handed out.

Not surprisingly, there was a big jump in tax collections in July compared to the same month in 2019, because of that delayed tyax deadline.

Individual income and payroll (social insurance) taxes more than doubled, together increasing by $248 billion. Most of that rise is attributable to an increase in nonwithheld individual income taxes resulting from the delayed payment deadlines.
oNonwithheld taxes totaled $292 billion, compared with $12 billion last July, an increase of $280 billion. Most of those payments would normally have been received from April through June....

Corporate income taxes, on net, totaled $68 billion, compared with just $7 billion in the same month last year, an increase of $61 billion, because of the delay in deadlines from April and June to July.

But how do those payments from tax filing compare to last April? Turns out both were up, particularly on the corporate side.

I'm fairly certain a lot of the higher amount for corporate taxes is because many businesses were using the filing season in April 2019 to cash in (or not owe) from the first year of the GOP Tax Scam that significantly cut corporate taxes. 2020 has caused tax collections to drop for a different reason - a severe recession due to COVID-related shutdowns. As a result, corporate taxes to this point in the Federal Fiscal Year are below what we had last year, and you can see where the Tax Scam started to kick in and depress revenues.

Income taxes for individuals have also dropped in the 2020 Fiscal Year, reflecting the tens of millions of Americans that have lost jobs and/or wages since COVID-19 started to break out in March.

While the loss of revenues has made the deficit larger, the main reason it has blown up in 2020 is the spending side, to try to keep Americans afloat through the unprecedented amount of layoffs and COVID-related needs.

Total spending in July 2020 was $624 billion, CBO estimates — $253 billion more than outlays in July 2019—largely stemming from legislation enacted in response to the novel coronavirus pandemic. If not for the shift of some federal payments from August 2020 to July 2020, total spending would have been $197 billion (or 53 percent) more than in the same month last year....

Outlays for unemployment compensationincreased from $3 billion in July 2019 to $110 billion this year. More than half of that rise is attributable to a $600 increase in the weekly benefit amount provided under the CARES Act. Benefits for regular unemployment compensation rose as well.

Outlays by the Small Business Administration increased from $103 million to $26 billion,primarily because of loans and loan guarantees to small businesses through the Paycheck Protection Program authorized by the CARES Act and PPPHCEA.

Outlays for the Public Health and Social Services Emergency Fund totaled $17 billion this July, compared with $243 million last July. Funding was increased by recent legislation to reimburse health care providers (such as hospitals) for health care costs or for revenues lost as a result of the pandemic. That fund also provides money for testing for and treatment of COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus.

The COVID effect really shows itself in a chart the CBO produced. Our deficit was basically the same as 2019's through March, but exploded from there, and is now nearly $3 trillion for FY 2020 with 2 months left to go.

That $3 trillion deficit has gotten the attention of a guy who voted for every measure that has led to that number - US Sen. Ron Johnson.

Ron Johnson calls stalled coronavirus relief talks “very good news” because of their potential impact on the deficit.

“It's very good news for future generations," Johnson said. "I hope the talks remain broken down." https://t.co/TJYnxnQSun

— Igor Bobic (@igorbobic) August 10, 2020

Because severe poverty, long-term unemployment, and large-scale disease aren't things that'll mess up generations and end opportunities for people. (slams head on desk) Does this guy not understand that most of us can't pay our bills by being gifted a company thru marriage and then giving "our" business a multi-million dollar tax cut?

While these budget numbers do show that the Johnson-approved GOP Tax Scam continues to starve government of resources, there's little doubt that we'd be in worse shape if we weren't increasing the deficit as much as we have been through the massive amount of direct government assistance, which enables some kind of economic activity to continue. But if (mo)Ron wants cutbacks in a time of double-digit unemployment and depressed consumer spending, I'm guessing a lot of other Republicans that have to face the voters this November might not like how the average American will respond to that.