Total U.S. government debt has topped $40 trillion for the first time, according to the Treasury Department, as rising spending and interest costs continue to outpace federal revenues.
The Treasury said total public debt stood at $40.047 trillion on Tuesday. That included $32.266 trillion in debt held by the public and $7.782 trillion in intragovernmental holdings.
The federal debt has more than doubled since January 2017, when it stood at $19.95 trillion. About one-third of the increase came during the COVID-19 pandemic, while long-running gaps between government spending and revenues have accounted for much of the remainder.
Budget watchdog groups have warned that the growing debt could lead to a broader fiscal crisis unless lawmakers address the imbalance through measures including higher taxes, spending cuts or both.
Maya MacGuineas, president of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, said the $40 trillion milestone highlighted the economic consequences of continued borrowing, including higher inflation risks and pressure on other government priorities.
The debt has risen by $3.8 trillion since President Donald Trump returned to office in January 2025. It increased by about $8.4 trillion during former President Joe Biden's four-year term.
Rising debt has also contributed to higher long-term Treasury yields, which can increase borrowing costs for mortgages, car loans and commercial lending. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced Wednesday that the department would double the size of some debt buyback operations to at least $4 billion each.
Interest costs have become a growing burden for the federal government. The U.S. spent about $1.1 trillion on interest during the latest period, making debt service one of the largest federal expenditures.
The total federal debt now exceeds annual U.S. economic output by roughly 20%, while spending on Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and other mandatory programs continues to place pressure on the federal budget.Could not auto-import the full article from Reuters. Open the original article, copy the text, paste it here, then run Blitz Rewrite.
