Feds Collect Record Taxes for October — But Still Run Massive Deficit

The federal government collected approximately $403,434,000,000 in total taxes in October, a record for that month, which is the first month of the fiscal year.

At the same time, according to the Monthly Treasury Statement, the federal government spent $469,997,000,000 during October—and ran a deficit of $66,564,000,000.

In October 2022, the first month of fiscal 2023, the federal government collected $318,500,000,000 in total taxes. When adjusted for inflation into October 2023 dollars (using the Bureau of Labor Statistics inflation calculator) that equals $328,823,050,000. That is $74,610,950,000 less than the federal government collected this October.

This October’s federal tax collections included $219,908,000,000 in individual income taxes; $114,210,000 in Social Security and retirement taxes; $7,263,000,000 in excise taxes; $4,460,000,000 in estate and gift taxes; $6,903,000,000 in customs duties; and $2,481,000,000 in what the Treasury categorizes as “miscellaneous receipts.”

The largest source of federal spending in October was the Social Security Administration, which spent $117,573,000,000, according to Table 3 in the Monthly Treasury Statement.

The second-highest source of federal spending was the Department of Health and Human Services, which spent $89,785,000,000 during the month. The third-highest was gross interest on Treasury Debt Securities, which cost $88,926,000,000. The fourth-highest was the Department of Defense-Military Programs, which spent $83,381,000 during the month.