CBO Monthly Budget Review, April 2009
year 2009, $640 billion more than the deficit recorded through March 2008. That estimate of this years deficit to date includes outlays of about $290 billion for the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP). Although the Treasury has been recording most spending for the TARP on a cash basis, CBO believes that the budget should record the programs transactions on a net-present-value basis adjusted for market risk. Using that approach, CBO estimates that outlays of $140 billion should be recorded for the TARP through March, which would yield an estimated deficit of about $803 billion for the first half of the year. The following discussion focuses on the budget figures as they are being reported by the Treasury.”
