Despite Artificial Crises, the Budget's Still Unsustainable

With the passage of the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 (in early January, 2013), many observers are claiming that fiscal issues have been, essentially, resolved and that the nation should move on to other issues. The February 2013 release of the Congressional Budget Office’s Budget and Economic Outlook provides an opportunity to re-examine these issues and to update our estimates (most recently, Auerbach and Gale 2012) of the fiscal status of the country.