The federal government is running large budget deficits, spending too much, and heading toward a financial crisis. Total federal spending in 2007 of $2.8 trillion is up 56 percent from 2000. Recent spending increases have come just as the costs of Social Security and Medicare are set to balloon when the baby-boom generation retires.
If government spending is not cut in coming years, average working families will face huge tax increases that dwarf anything seen in decades. Tax increases would damage the economy and be strongly resisted by the public.
As a consequence, policymakers need to begin identifying programs in the federal budget that can be terminated, transferred to the states, or privatized. Cutting the budget would enlarge personal freedom, strengthen the economy, and leave a positive fiscal legacy to the next generation.
Downsizing the Federal Government is a new resource that examines the failings of each federal department and identifies specific programs to cut. The goal is to illustrate the cost savings possible if wasteful programs were ended, federalism were revived, and the government’s commercial activities were transferred to the private sector.
U.S. Department of Agriculture Briefing Room Proposed Spending Cuts
Learn more about and order Cato's book Downsizing the Federal Government, which provides a detailed analysis of the federal budget and options for reform.