[20021113]RS20645_联邦债务及其主要组成部分的近期变化.pdf

1 Unless otherwise noted, all years referred to are fiscal years. Data are generally end-of-year orend-of-period; changes are generally measured from the end of one year to the end of the next.2 The combination of constant and fairly rapid economic growth and declining deficits beginningin the mid-1990s caused a steep fall in debt held by the public as a share of gross domestic(continued.)Congressional Research Service The Library of CongressCRS Report for CongressReceived through the CRS WebOrder Code RS20645Updated November 13, 2002Recent Changes in Federal Debt And Its Major ComponentsPhilip D. WintersAnalyst in Government FinanceGovernment and Finance DivisionSummaryThe government had surpluses in each of the four years 1998 through 2001. Overthose years, the surpluses reduced federal debt held by the public, one of twocomponents of total federal debt, by $453 billion. Debt held by government accounts,the other component of total federal debt, grew by $853 billion over the same four years.Total federal debt, the combination of the two components, increased by $401 billionduring the period. Annual change in debt held by government accounts is not affectedby the governments overa