The financial situation of the Federal government is almost hopeless, but it’s difficult for the average American to see when the debt is so large. It’s easier to scale down these numbers and apply real world concepts to gain insight.
The average National Salary of an American is approximately $60,000[1]. And $60,000 will be the annual income of the Federal Government “Household” in this exercise. The results from the data calculated and explained at the very bottom of the blog are as follows:
US Government “Household”
Income . . . . . . . . . . . $60,000
Total Debt . . . . . . . . $470,000
Total Annual Debt . . . $23,200
Legal Debt . . . . . . $2,860,000
Most people in this situation would declare bankruptcy to remove the debt and legal obligations and stop spending money beyond their means. If they didn’t, they'd lose their house, and a court would garnish their wages forcing them to begin to pay off their debt. From a country's standpoint, history has demonstrated that countries that continue to print money to make up for their shortfall end up in turmoil within a decade due to hyperinflation.
As dire as the situation is, it's not too late! An Article V Convention, could be used to remove the deficit and rein in spending to begin the process of becoming financially responsible. Fiscal Responsibility of the federal government is one of Convention of States platforms, so that America will not fall.
Explanation and Calculations
US Government Revenue totaled $4.4 trillion[2] for the 2023 fiscal year, which is the actual income of the US Government. $60,000 will be divided by this number to yield a ratio, to be applied to all the other numbers to scale the data down for the US Government “Household”.
The total debt is approximately $34.5 Trillion[3] with $213 Trillion[3] in unfunded liabilities, which could also be known as the legal debt. The federal budget deficit is approximately $1.7 trillion, that is how much debt occurs annually in the US Government “Household”.
Ratio used to apply to values
$60,000 = 1.36 x 10(-8)
$4.4 x 10(12)
Total Debt
{ $34.5 x 10(12) } x { 1.36 x 10(-8) } = $470,000 total debt
Deficit
{ $1.7 x 10(12) } x { 1.36 x 10(-8) } = $23,200 annually debt
Unfunded Liabilities
{ $210 x 10(12) } x { 1.36x10(-8) } = $2,860,000 total legal debt
BIBLIOGRAPHY
[1] "Average salary in the U.S. in 2024" USA Today. Https://www.usatoday.com/, 22 Feb. 2024 Web. 12 Mar. 2024 <[1]>
[2] "Revenues in Fiscal Year 2023: An Infographic" Congressional Budget Office. https://www.cbo.gov, 5 Mar. 2024. Web. 12 Mar. 2024. <[2]>
[3] "USDebtClock.org." US Debt Clock. Usdebtclock.org, 2024. Web. 12 Mar. 2024. <[3]>
[4] " Monthly Budget Review: Summary for Fiscal Year 2023" Congressional Budget Office. https://www.cbo.gov, 8 Nov. 2023. Web. 12 Mar. 2024. <[4]>
