Cost of Government Day (COGD)
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Title: ATR Numbers Show Spike In Government Spending, Regulation Under Bush.

Date: July 11, 2003

Source: The White House Bulletin

Words: 627

Americans for Tax Reform (ATR) released their "Cost of Government" calculations today, which show a dramatic increase in spending under the Bush Administration. ATR defines cost of government to include federal and state spending on programs and the cost of complying with federal and state regulations. GOP sources downplayed the findings, though, saying the cost of responding to 9/11 accounts for most of that increase. However, the numbers are likely to add to dissatisfaction within conservative ranks that surfaced most recently in the House vote on Medicare.

Among the ATR findings are: -- Americans now work until July 11 (Cost of Government Day) to pay for all their government services, 4.5 days more than last year and the third straight increase after eight years of decline. Taken as a percentage of the calendar - 193 days out of 365 - ATR says "the cost of government consumes nearly 53 percent of national income." -- Federal spending alone accounts for more than 45 percent of the total cost of government and 71 percent of this year's Cost of Government Day increase. -- Federal spending is rising faster than national income growth and the era of federal budget surpluses occurred only "by reducing government spending relative to national income." According to ATR, "Even if the federal government spent at the rate of national income growth, the country would never have entered into a surplus." -- "In just the past three years, Congress is on pace to increase spending three times the amount tha[t] they did in the previous eight years combined." -- "The increase in federal spending above 2002 levels is the result of Operation Iraqi Freedom and the federal bailout of the states. If these one- time spending items were not included in federal spending, the average American would have worked one-half fewer days out of the year to pay for federal spending relative to 2002." -- "In fiscal year 2002, non-defense discretionary spending increased 12.3 percent with major increases coming in education, transportation, health and justice. Moreover, the CBO reports that more than half of the growth in defense spending resulted from initiatives that were planned or funded before the September 11 attacks." -- Unemployment insurance funding "has precipitously grown over the past two years as Congress continues to extend unemployment benefits. In fact, over the past two fiscal years, unemployment benefit spending has doubled and represents the largest percentage increase in the federal budget." -- "Medicaid and Medicare continue to increase in cost as Congress gets set to add more costs onto these programs into the future. Through the fiscal year 03, Medicare spending is up by 9 percent (on top of last year's 10 percent) and Medicaid spending is up by 10 percent (on top of last year's 15 percent increase.)" -- "According to the American Legislative Exchange Council state budgets increased 63 percent from 1990 to 2000. This represents an annual increase of 3.6 percent a year above the rate of inflation. Moreover, in the latter half of the decade state budgets increased twice as fast as federal spending and nearly four times the rate of inflation." -- "If spending was held to the rate of national income growth starting in 1998, state and local governments would never have entered a period of deficits and in 2003, state and local governments would have had a combined surplus of $62.1 billion instead of a combined deficit of $36.1 billion." -- Estimating the total cost of federal and state regulations in 2003 was $1.6 trillion, ATR concludes, "In total, the average American has worked a cumulative total of 10.1 additional days to pay for the substantial increases in regulations since 2000."

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