- Bureau of the Fiscal Service
- Financial Report of the United States Government
- Management's Discussion & Analysis

# Management's Discussion & Analysis

## The Long-Term Fiscal Outlook:  “Where We Are Headed”

An important purpose of the *Financial Report*is to help citizens understand current fiscal  policy and the importance and magnitude of policy reforms necessary to make it  sustainable. This *Financial Report*includes  the Statements  of Long-Term Fiscal Projections and a related Note Disclosure (Note  23). The Statements display the present value of 75-year projections of the  federal government’s receipts and non-interest spending21 for FY 2017 and FY 2016. The projections and accompanying discussion do  not reflect the *Tax Cuts and Jobs Act*(P.L. 115-97) enacted on December 22, 2017.  Additional  information about these projections may be found in Note 23 and the RSI section  of this *Financial Report*; and  additional information about the *Tax Cuts  and Jobs Act*may be found in Note 25, *Subsequent  Events*.

### Fiscal Sustainability

A sustainable fiscal policy is one where the debt-to-GDP  ratio is stable or declining over the long term. The projections discussed here  show the impact on the ratio if current policy (i.e., current law, with certain  adjustments, such as extension of expiring policies that are expected to  continue)22 is assumed to continue indefinitely. The projections are therefore  neither forecasts nor predictions. As policy changes are enacted, actual  financial outcomes will be different than those projected.

The projections in this *Financial  Report*show that current policy is not sustainable. As discussed below, if  current policy is left unchanged, the debt-to-GDP ratio is projected to fall  about 4 percentage points by 2023 before commencing a steady rise to 297  percent in 2092 and is projected to rise continuously thereafter. Preventing  the debt-to-GDP ratio from rising over the next 75 years is estimated to  require some combination of spending reductions and revenue increases that  amount to 2.0 percent of GDP over the period. While this estimate of the  “75-year fiscal gap” is highly uncertain, it is nevertheless nearly certain  that current fiscal policies cannot be sustained indefinitely.

Delaying action to reduce the gap increases the magnitude of  spending and/or revenue changes necessary to stabilize the debt-to-GDP ratio.  For example, reforms necessary to close the gap rises about 20 percent if reforms  are delayed ten years, and about 50 percent larger if reform is delayed 20  years.

The estimates of the cost of policy delay assume policy does  not affect GDP or other economic variables. Delaying fiscal adjustments for too  long raises the risk that growing federal debt would increase interest rates,  which would, in turn, reduce investment and ultimately economic growth.

### The Primary Deficit, Interest, and Debt

The primary deficit – the difference between non-interest  spending and receipts – is the determinant of the debt-to-GDP ratio over which  the Government has the greatest control (the other determinants include  interest rates and growth in GDP). Chart G shows receipts, non-interest  spending, and the difference – the primary deficit – expressed as a share of  GDP. The primary deficit-to-GDP ratio spiked during 2009 through 2012 due to  the 2008-09 financial crisis and the ensuing severe recession, as well as the  increased spending and temporary tax reductions enacted to stimulate the  economy and support recovery. These elevated primary deficits resulted in a  sharp increase in the ratio of debt to GDP, which rose from 39 percent at the  end of 2008 to 70 percent at the end of 2012. As an economic recovery took  hold, the primary deficit ratio fell, averaging 1.9 percent of GDP over 2013  through 2017. This primary deficit ratio was still high enough that the debt  increased further relative to GDP, ending 2017 at 76 percent. The primary  deficit is projected to shrink further through 2021 as discretionary spending  limits called for in the BCA continue and the economic recovery boosts tax  receipts. After 2021, however, increased spending for Social Security and  health programs due to the ongoing retirement of the baby boom generation and  increases in the price of health care services is projected to result in  increasing primary deficits that reach 1.1 percent of GDP in 2027. The primary  deficit peaks at 2.1 percent of GDP in 2037 and 2038, gradually decreases  beyond that point as aging of the population continues at a slower pace and  reaches 0.6 percent of GDP in 2088 through 2091.

Primary deficit trends are heavily influenced by tax  receipts. Receipts as a share of GDP were markedly depressed in 2009 through  2012 because of the recession and tax reductions enacted as part of the *American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of  2009*(ARRA) and the *Tax Relief,  Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010*. The  share has increased in subsequent years and was 17.2 percent in 2017, similar  to its 30-year average due to continued economic growth and the higher tax  rates enacted under the ATRA.

Adobe Flash Playerdownload the chart's data source here in XML format

After 2020, receipts are projected to grow  slightly more rapidly than GDP over the projection period as increases in real  incomes cause more taxpayers and a larger share of income to fall into the  higher individual income tax brackets.

Non-interest spending as a share of GDP is projected to stay  at or below its current level of about 19 percent until 2025, and to then rise  gradually to 21.5 percent of GDP by 2037 and 21.8 percent of GDP in 2070  through 2092. Slight reductions in the non-interest spending share of GDP over  the next few years are mostly due to caps on discretionary spending, which hold  growth in discretionary spending below GDP growth. The subsequent increases are  principally due to faster growth in Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security  spending (see Chart G). 

The aging of the baby boom generation over  the next 25 years is projected to increase the Social Security, Medicare, and  Medicaid spending shares of GDP by about 1.1 percentage points, 1.5 percentage  points, and 0.5 percentage points, respectively. After 2042, the Social  Security spending share of GDP remains relatively stable, while the combined  Medicare and Medicaid spending share of GDP continues to increase, albeit at a  slower rate, due to projected increases in health care costs. 

One of the most important assumptions underlying the  projections is the future growth of health care costs. As discussed in Note 22,  these future growth rates – both for health care costs in the economy generally  and for Federal health care programs such as Medicare, Medicaid, and Affordable  Care Act (ACA) exchange subsidies – are highly uncertain. In particular,  enactment of the ACA in 2010 and the *Medicare  Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA)* in 2015 established cost  controls for Medicare hospital and physician payments whose long-term  effectiveness is still to be demonstrated. The Medicare spending projections in  the long-term fiscal projections are based on the projections in the 2017  Medicare trustees’ report, which assume the ACA and MACRA cost control measures  will be effective in producing a substantial slowdown in Medicare cost growth.  As discussed in Note 22, the Medicare projections are subject to much  uncertainty about the ultimate effects of these provisions to reduce health  care cost growth. For the long-term fiscal projections, that uncertainty also  affects the projections for Medicaid and exchange subsidies, because the cost  per beneficiary in these programs is assumed to grow at the same reduced rate  as Medicare cost growth per beneficiary.

Adobe Flash Playerdownload the chart's data source here in XML format

The primary deficit-to-GDP projections in Chart  G, projections for interest rates, and GDP growth rates are the primary  determinants for the debt-to-GDP ratio projections shown in Chart H. That ratio  was 76 percent at the end of FY 2017 and under current policy is projected to  be 74 percent in 2027, 136 percent in 2047, and 297 percent in 2092. The  debt-to-GDP ratio rises continually despite primary deficits that flatten out  because higher levels of debt lead to higher net interest expenditures, and  higher net interest expenditures lead to higher debt.23 The continuous rise of the debt-to-GDP ratio after 2023 indicates that  current policy is unsustainable. 

These debt-to-GDP projections are generally higher than the  corresponding projections in both the FY 2016 and FY 2015 *Financial**Reports*. For  example, the debt-to-GDP projection  for   2090  (the  final  projection year for the 2015 report) is 289 percent in this year’s *Financial**Report*,  249 percent in the FY 2016 *Financial  Report*, and 223 percent in the FY 2015 *Financial  Report*.24

Subsequent to the close of the reporting period, and after  the preparation of these long-term fiscal projections, Congress passed and the  President signed the *Tax Cuts and Jobs  Act* (Public Law 114-411) which enacts comprehensive reforms to the  individual and corporation income tax code.   See Note 25, Subsequent Events, for more information.  

#### The Fiscal Gap and the Cost of Delaying Policy Reform

The 75-year fiscal gap is one measure of the degree to which  current fiscal policy is unsustainable. It is the amount by which primary  surpluses over the next 75 years must, on average, rise above current-policy  levels in order for the debt-to-GDP ratio in 2092 to remain at its level in 2017  (76 percent). This fiscal gap is estimated to equal 2.0 percent of GDP. The  projections show that projected primary deficits average 1.2 percent of GDP  over the next 75 years under current policies. If policies were adopted to  eliminate the fiscal gap, the average primary surplus over the next 75 years  would be 0.8 percent of GDP, 2.0 percentage points higher than the projected  present value of receipts less non-interest spending shown in the basic  financial statement. The 75-year fiscal gap represents 10.0 percent of 75-year  present value receipts and 9.4 percent of 75 year present value non-interest  spending. The fiscal gap was estimated at 1.6 percent in the 2016 *Financial Report*, 0.4 percentage points  lower than estimated in this Report.

In these projections, closing the fiscal gap requires  running substantially positive primary surpluses, rather than simply  eliminating the primary deficit. The primary reason is that the projections  assume future interest rates will exceed the growth rate of GDP. Achieving  primary balance (that is, running a primary surplus of zero) implies that the  debt grows each year by the amount of interest spending, which under these  assumptions would result in debt growing faster than GDP.

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Table 6: Costs of Delaying Fiscal Reform

Table 6 shows the cost of delaying policy reform to close the fiscal gap by comparing policy reforms that begin in three different years. Immediate reform would require increasing primary surpluses by 2.0 percent of GDP on average between 2018 and 2092 (i.e., some combination of reducing spending and increasing revenue by a combined 2.0 percent of GDP on average over the 75-year projection period). Table 6 shows that delaying policy reform forces larger and more abrupt policy reforms over shorter periods. For example, if policy reform is delayed by 10 years, any reforms must increase the primary surplus by 2.4 percent of GDP on average between 2028 and 2092. Similarly, delaying reform by 20 years requires primary surplus increases of 3.0 percent of GDP on average between 2038 and 2092. The differences between the required primary surplus increases that start in 2028 and 2038 (2.4 and 3.0 percent of GDP, respectively) and that which starts in 2018 (2.0 percent of GDP) is a measure of the additional burden that delay would impose on future generations. Future generations are harmed by such a policy reform delay, because the higher the primary surplus is during their lifetimes the greater the difference is between the taxes they pay and the programmatic spending from which they benefit.

### Conclusion

The past nine years saw the national debt nearly double as a  share of GDP, bringing it to a level not seen since shortly after World War II.  The debt-to-GDP ratio is projected to remain relatively stable over the next  decade and then rise indefinitely if current policies are unchanged, which  implies that current policies are not sustainable and must ultimately change.  As long as policy changes are not so abrupt as to hinder economic growth, the  sooner policies are adopted to avert these trends, the smaller the changes to  revenue and/or spending will need to be to achieve sustainability over the long  term. While the estimated magnitude of the fiscal gap is subject to a  substantial amount of uncertainty, there is little doubt that current policy is  not sustainable.

These long-term fiscal projections and the topic of fiscal  sustainability are discussed in further detail in Note 23 and the RSI section  of this *Financial Report*.

### Social Insurance 

The long-term fiscal projections reflect Government receipts  and spending as a whole. The Statement of Social Insurance (SOSI) focuses on  the Government’s “social insurance” programs: Social Security, Medicare,  Railroad Retirement, and Black Lung. 25 For these programs, the SOSI reports: (1) the actuarial present value of  all future program revenue (mainly taxes and premiums) - excluding interest -  to be received from or on behalf of current and future participants; (2) the  estimated future scheduled expenditures to be paid to or on behalf of current  and future participants; and (3) the difference between (1) and (2). Amounts  reported in the SOSI and in the RSI section in this *Financial Report*are based on each program’s official actuarial  calculations.

Table 7 summarizes amounts reported in the SOSI, showing  that net social insurance expenditures are projected to be $49.0 trillion over  75 years as of January 1, 2017 for the “Open Group,” an increase of $2.3  billion over net expenditures of $46.7 trillion projected in the 2016 *Financial Report*.26 The current-law 2017 amounts reported for Medicare reflect the physician  payment levels expected under the MACRA payment rules and the ACA-mandated  reductions in other Medicare payment rates, but not the payment reductions  and/or delays that would result from trust fund depletion.27 Similarly, current-law projections for Social Security do not reflect  benefit payment reductions and/or delays that would result from fund depletion.  By accounting convention, the transfers of general revenues are eliminated in  the consolidation of the SOSI at the governmentwide level and as such, the  general revenues that are used to finance Medicare Parts B and D are not  included in these calculations even though the expenditures on these programs  are included. For the FY 2017 and 2016 SOSI, the amounts eliminated totaled  $30.0 trillion and $28.7 trillion, respectively. SOSI programs and amounts are  included in the broader fiscal sustainability analysis in the previous section,  although on a slightly different basis (as described in Note 23).

 The amounts reported in the SOSI provide perspective on the  Government’s long-term estimated exposures for social insurance programs. These  amounts are not considered liabilities in an accounting context. Future benefit  payments will be recognized as expenses and liabilities as they are incurred  based on the continuation of the social insurance programs' provisions  contained in current law. The social insurance trust funds account for all  related program income and expenses. Medicare and Social Security taxes,  premiums, and other income are credited to the funds; fund disbursements may  only be made for benefit payments and program administrative costs. Any excess  revenues are invested in special non-marketable U.S. Government securities at a  market rate of interest. The trust funds represent the accumulated value,  including interest, of all prior program surpluses, and provide automatic  funding authority to pay cover future benefits.

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**Table 7: Social Insurance Future Expenditures**

Table 8 identifies the principal reasons for the changes in  projected social insurance amounts during 2017 and 2016.

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**Table 8: Changes in Social Insurance Projections**

| **Net Present Value (NPV) - Open    Group (Beginning of the Year)** | **$(46.7)** | **$(41.5)** |
|---------------------------------------------------------------------|-------------|-------------|
| **Changes in:**                                                     |             |             |
|     Valuation Period                            | $(2.0)      | $(1.7)      |
|     Demographic data and    assumptions         | $0.2        | $1.1        |
|     Economic data and assumptions1              | $(0.6)      | $(0.9)      |
|     Law or policy                               | $           | $0.3        |
|     Economic and other healthcare assumptions2  | $(0.3)      | $(3.4)      |
|     Change in projection base2                  | $0.7        | $(0.6)      |
| Net Change in Open Group measure                                    | $(2.3)      | $(5.2)      |
| **NPV - Open Group (End of the Year)**                              | **$(49.0)** | **$(46.7)** |

1Relates to SSA.

2Relates to HHS.          Note: Some totals may not equal sum of components due to rounding. 

The following briefly summarizes the significant changes for  the current valuation (as of January 1, 2017) as disclosed in Note 22, Social  Insurance. See Note 22 for additional information.

- Change in valuation period (relates to both Social Security and  Medicare): This change replaces a small negative net cash flow for 2016 with a  much larger negative net cash flow for 2091. As a result, the present value of  the estimated future net cash flows decreased (became more negative) by $2.0  trillion.
- Changes in economic data and assumptions (relates to Social Security  only): For the current valuation, the only change to any of the ultimate  assumptions was to the ultimate average real wage differential, 28  which was assumed to be 1.20 percent, an approximate 0.01 percent  decrease from the previous year. The assumed real-wage differential for the  first 10 years of the projection period was also lower than previous years.  Otherwise, the ultimate economic assumptions for the current valuation period  are the same as those for the prior year valuation. However, the starting  economic values and the way these values transition to the ultimate assumptions  were changed. Most significantly, an assumed weaker recovery from the recent  recession than previously expected led to a reduction in the ultimate level of  actual and potential GDP of about 1.0 percent for all years after the short-range  period. Overall, changes to these assumptions caused the present value of the  estimated future net cash flows to decrease (become more negative) by $576  billion.
- Change in Projection Base (relates to Medicare only): Actual income and  expenditures in 2016 were different than what was anticipated when the 2016  Medicare Trustees Report projections were prepared. Part A income was higher  and expenditures were lower than anticipated, based on actual experience. Part  B total income and expenditures were higher than estimated based on actual  experience. For Part D, actual income and expenditures were both lower than  prior estimates. Actual experience of the Medicare Trust Funds between January  1, 2016 and January 1, 2017 is incorporated in the current valuation and is  slightly more favorable than projected in the prior valuation. The net impact  of the Part A, B, and D projection base changes is an increase (become less  negative) in the estimated future net cash flow by $700 billion.

Projected net expenditures for Medicare Parts A and B  declined significantly between FY 2009 and FY 2010 reflecting provisions of the  ACA. As reported in Note 22, uncertainty remains about whether the projected  cost savings and productivity improvements will be sustained in a manner  consistent with the projected cost growth over time. Note 22 includes an  alternative projection to illustrate the uncertainty of projected Medicare  costs. As indicated earlier, GAO disclaimed opinions on the 2017, 2016, 2015,  2014 and 2013 SOSI because of these significant uncertainties.

Costs as a percent of GDP of both Medicare and Social  Security, which are analyzed annually in the Medicare and Social Security  Trustees’ Reports, are projected to increase substantially through the  mid-2030s because: (1) the number of beneficiaries rises rapidly as the  baby-boom generation retires and (2) the lower birth rates that have persisted  since the baby boom cause slower growth in the labor force and GDP.29 According  to the Medicare Trustees’ Report, spending on Medicare is projected to rise  from its current level of 3.6 percent of GDP to 5.6 percent in 2041 and to 5.9  percent in 2091.30 As for Social Security, combined spending is projected to generally  increase from its current level of 4.9 percent of GDP to about 6.1 percent by  2037, declining to 5.9 percent by 2050 and then generally increase to 6.1  percent by 2091. Table 9 summarizes additional current status and projected  trend information for the Medicare and Social Security Trust Funds.

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**Table 9: Trust Fund Status**

| Medicare Hospital Insurance (HI)*                                                                                    | 2029                 (2028 in FY 2016 Report)       | In 2029, trust fund income is projected to cover 88 percent of benefits, decreasing to 81 percent in 2041, then increasing to 88 percent by 2091. |
|----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|------------------------------------------------------|---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Combined Old-Age Survivors and Disability Insurance (OASDI)**                                                        | 2034                (unchanged from FY 2016 Report) | In 2034, trust fund income is projected to cover 77 percent of scheduled benefits, decreasing to about 73 percent by 2091.                        |
| *Source: 2017 Medicare Trustees Report     ** Source: 2017 OASDI Trustees Report                      |
| Projections assume full Social Security and Medicare benefits are paid after fund depletion contrary to current law. |

As previously discussed and as noted in the Trustees’ Reports, it is apparent that these programs are on a fiscally unsustainable path. Additional information from the Trustees Reports may be found in the RSI section of this Financial Report.

### Footnotes

21 For the purposes of the Statement of Long-Term Fiscal Projections and this analysis, spending is defined in terms of outlays. In the context of federal budgeting, spending can either refer to: (1) budget authority – the authority to commit the government to make a payment; (2) obligations – binding agreements that will result in either immediate or future payment; or (3) outlays, or actual payments made.  (Back to Content)22 Current policy in the projections is based on current law, but includes certain adjustments, such as extension of certain policies that expire under current law but are routinely extended or otherwise expected to continue (e.g., reauthorization of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program).  (Back to Content)23 The change in debt each year is also affected by certain transactions not included in the budget deficit, such as changes in Treasury’s cash balances and the          nonbudgetary activity of Federal credit financing accounts. These transactions are assumed to hold constant at about 0.4 percent of GDP each year, with the          same effect on debt as if the primary deficit was higher by that amount.  (Back to Content)24 See the Note 23 of the FY 2016 Financial Report of the U.S. Government for more information about changes in the long term fiscal projections between FY 2015 and FY 2016.  (Back to Content)25 The Black Lung Benefits Act (BLBA) provides for monthly payments and medical benefits to coal miners totally disabled from pneumoconiosis (black          lung disease) arising from their employment in or around the nation's coal mines. See http://www.dol.gov/owcp/regs/compliance/ca_main.htm (Back to Content)26 'Closed' Group and 'Open' Group differ by the population included in each calculation. From the SOSI, the 'Closed' Group includes: (1) participants who          have attained eligibility and (2) participants who have not attained eligibility. The 'Open' Group adds future participants to the 'Closed' Group. See ‘Social          Insurance’ in the Required Supplementary Information section in this Financial Report for more information. (Back to Content)27 The Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA) of 2015 permanently replaces the sustainable growth rate (SGR) formula, which was used to determine payment updates under the Medicare physician fee schedule with specified payment updates through 2025. The changes specified in MACRA also establish differential payment updates starting in 2026 based on practitioners’ participation in eligible alternative payment models; payments are also subject to adjustments based on the quality of care provided, resource use, use of certified electronic health records, and clinical practice improvement. (Back to Content)28 The real wage differential is the annual percentage change in the average covered wage, minus the annual percentage change in the CPI. Source: https://www.ssa.gov/oact/TR/2014/V_B_econ.html#292722 Item 4. (Back to Content)29 2017 Trustees Report for Medicare, pp. 5, 29. (Back to Content)30 Percent of GDP amounts are expressed in gross terms (including amounts financed by premiums and state transfers). (Back to Content) 

## Table of Contents

              - Current Report: Fiscal Year 2018  -  PDF version

By Section
              - A Message from the Secretary of the Treasury -  PDF version
              - Table of Contents -  PDF version
              - Results in Brief  -  PDF version
              - The Nation By The Numbers
              - Executive Summary  -  PDF version                  - Where We Are Now
                - An Unsustainable Fiscal Path
                - Find Out More 
              - Management's Discussion & Analysis  -  PDF version                  - The Government's Financial Position and Condition
                - An Unsustainable Fiscal Path
                - Financial Management
                - Additional Information 
              - Statement of the Comptroller General of the United States -  PDF version
              - Financial Statements  -  PDF version                  - Statements of Net Cost
                - Statements of Operations and Changes in Net Position
                - Reconciliations of Net Operating Cost and Budget Deficit
                - Statements of Changes in Cash Balance from Budget and Other Activities
                - Balance Sheets
                - Statements of Long-Term Fiscal Projections
                - Statements of Social Insurance and Changes in Social Insurance Amounts
                - Statements of Changes in Social Insurance Amounts 
              - Notes to the Financial Statements -  PDF version                  - Note 1. Summary of Significant Accounting Policies -  PDF version
                - Note 2. Cash and Other Monetary Assets -  PDF version
                - Note 3. Accounts and Taxes Receivable, Net -  PDF version
                - Note 4. Loan Receivable and Loan Guarantee Liabilities, Net -  PDF version
                - Note 5. Inventories and Related Property, Net -  PDF version
                - Note 6. Property, Plant, and Equipment, Net -  PDF version
                - Note 7. Debt and Equity Securities -  PDF version
                - Note 8. Investments in Government-Sponsored Enterprises -  PDF version
                - Note 9. Other Assets -  PDF version
                - Note 10. Accounts Payable -  PDF version
                - Note 11. Federal Debt Securities Held by the Public and Accrued Interest -  PDF version
                - Note 12. Federal Employee and Veteran Benefits Payable -  PDF version
                - Note 13. Environmental and Disposal Liabilities -  PDF version
                - Note 14. Benefits Due and Payable -  PDF version
                - Note 15. Insurance and Guarantee Program Liabilities -  PDF version
                - Note 16. Other Liabilities -  PDF version
                - Note 17. Collections and Refunds of Federal Revenue -  PDF version
                - Note 18. Contingencies -  PDF version
                - Note 19. Commitments -  PDF version
                - Note 20. Funds from Dedicated Collections -  PDF version
                - Note 21. Fiduciary Activities -  PDF version
                - Note 22. Social Insurance -  PDF version
                - Note 23. Long-Term Fiscal Projections -  PDF version
                - Note 24. Stewardship Land and Heritage Assets -  PDF version
                - Note 25. Disclosure Entities and Related Parties -  PDF version
                - Note 26. Subsequent Events -  PDF version 
              - Required Supplementary Information (Unaudited) -  PDF version                  - The Sustainability of Fiscal Policy -  PDF version
                - Social Insurance -  PDF version
                - Deferred Maintenance and Repairs -  PDF version
                - Other Claims for Refunds -  PDF version
                - Tax Assessments -  PDF version
                - Federal Oil and Gas Resources -  PDF version
                - Federal Natural Resources Other than Oil and Gas -  PDF version 
              - Other Information (Unaudited) -  PDF version                  - Tax Burden -  PDF version
                - Tax Gap -  PDF version
                - Unmatched Transactions and Balances -  PDF version 
              - Required Supplementary Stewardship Information (Unaudited) -  PDF version
              - Appendices                                                 - Appendix A: Reporting Entity -  PDF version
                - Appendix B: Acronyms -  PDF version 
              - U.S. Government Accountability Office Independent Auditor's Report -  PDF version
              - List of Social Insurance Charts -  PDF version
              - Related Resources

Certain material weaknesses, limitations, and uncertainties prevented the Government Accountability Office from expressing an opinion on the U.S. Government's consolidated financial statements included in the *Financial Report* and, therefore, GAO disclaimed an opinion on such statements. Certain information included on or referenced in this website, such as individual agency financial reports that were audited by other auditors, is separate from and not specifically reported in the *Financial Report* and therefore not covered by GAO's disclaimer. 

Last modified 04/06/23