Analysis of notable trends: Halfway through fiscal year 2022, the cumulative deficit has fallen relative to last year and is now comparable to pre-COVID deficits. Through the first six months of FY2022, the federal government ran a deficit of $667 billion, 61% less than at the same point in FY2021 ($1.7 trillion) and in the ballpark of the FY2019 and FY2020 deficits, which stood at $691 billion and $743 billion, respectively.
Revenues remained strong, rising $418 billion (25%) from the same period in FY2021 to a total of $2.1 trillion during this fiscal year to date. Increases in individual income and payroll tax receipts rose by $357 billion (24%) and drove much of the overall surge in receipts. Higher total wages and salaries, especially among upper-income workers who are subject to higher tax rates, contributed to the increase in those tax revenues, as did the receipt of some payroll taxes that pandemic relief legislation authorized companies to defer from 2020 into 2021. Corporate income tax revenues rose by $22 billion (22%) year-over-year.