WASHINGTON — The federal government ran a $36.9 billion deficit in March, the Treasury Department reported Thursday.
The deficit followed a $193.5 billion deficit in February. The March deficit was smaller than the median $78 billion deficit predicted by economists polled by Thompson Reuters.
Outlays in March totaled $252.7 billion, compared to $337.9 billion in February. Receipts totaled $215.8 billion in March, compared to $144.3 billion for the previous month.
Fiscal year to date, there was a $413.3 billion deficit, compared to a $600 billion deficit for the same period last year. The federal government's 2014 fiscal year began Oct. 1.
In March 2013, the government ran a $106.5 billion deficit. A Treasury official said that 48 of the last 60 Marches had deficits. The last time there was a March surplus was in 1966.
Year-over-year changes to March and to fiscal year-to-date results were impacted by timing-related transactions, Treasury said. Taking into account calendar adjustments, March 2014 would have had a $77 billion deficit, which is $30 billion less than the adjusted deficit in March 2013. The adjusted fiscal year to date deficit through March 2014 is $411 billion, compared to an adjusted $600 billion fiscal year to date deficit through March 2013.
