The Nation : Projection Places Deficit Beyond Target

Next year’s federal deficit was projected at $141 billion--well above the $110-billion target in the Gramm-Rudman balanced budget law--by the Congressional Budget Office, which provides Congress with nonpartisan fiscal information. It also estimates the shortfall will remain through fiscal 1993, when Gramm-Rudman requires that the budget be brought into balance. But the figures are of limited significance because the budget office’s forecasts are not used in the Gramm-Rudman process. Instead, it is the White House’s Office of Management and Budget--perennially more optimistic than CBO--whose projections are counted by the law. The executive branch plans to release its projections next week and OMB is expected to forecast a $116-billion deficit for fiscal 1990. When Congress returns from its August recess after Labor Day, legislators will have nearly four weeks to find additional savings before the Oct. 1 start of fiscal 1990.