Create Your Own Federal Budget!

[Sasquatch]

I ended the Bush tax cuts, eliminated all pork spending, slashed the military, and wouldn't you know it...crisis solved.

Perhaps folks in DC should play this.

[Senator Ben]

Budget Totals
Old budget was $3748.1268 billion
($2673 billion in spending, $1075.1268 billion in tax expenditures and cuts).

New budget is $3587.38 billion
($2813.09 billion in spending, $774.29 billion in tax expenditures and cuts).
You have cut the deficit by $160.75 billion.
Your new deficit is $240.25 billion.

Spending
$452.84 billion: Military Spending
$113.91 billion: Iraq and Afghanistan Operations
$131 billion: Military Retirement
$40.54 billion: International affairs
$18.59 billion: Science, Space and Technology
$29.99 billion: Natural Resources and Environment
$26.45 billion: Agriculture
$5.73 billion: Commerce and Housing Loan Programs
$76.67 billion: Transportation
$20.19 billion: Community & regional development
$78.47 billion: Education
$47.12 billion: Training, labor and unemployment
$275.2 billion: Non-Medicare Health
$398.36 billion: Medicare
$78.74 billion: Civilian Retirement (Social Security excluded)
$212.65 billion: Aid to Low-Income Families
$25.91 billion: General Family Support
$553.86 billion: Social security
$41.07 billion: Administration of justice
$16.48 billion: General government administration
$211.08 billion: Net interest

Tax Expenditures and Tax Cuts
$43.6 billion: 2001 and 2003 Tax Cuts
$19.79 billion: Corporate Tax Breaks
$78.33 billion: Personal Business & Investment Benefits
$180.39 billion: Pension & Retirement Deductions
$153.13 billion: Health Insurance Tax Benefits
$148.03 billion: Housing tax benefits
$151.02 billion: Other individual deductions and exemptions

[Gustaf]

I ended the Bush tax cuts, eliminated all pork spending, slashed the military, and wouldn't you know it...crisis solved.

Perhaps folks in DC should play this.

Fun, but I will have to do it again, now that I'm beginning to get it. I was surprised at how simple it was to get rid of the deficit economically speaking - I just eliminated pork, cut discretionary spending, cut defence and repealed the Bush tax cuts and voila! no more deficit.

[Mint]

Playing Budget Hero, it's pretty obvious that all of our fiscal problems are useless moderate heroism. Any reasonable choices results in the national debt decreasing by trillions of dollars over the next decade. Of course, given the epic fail of American politics, you can always count on the reasonable choices to not be chosen.

Yeah when I saw that cutting the military by 10% was the most 'extreme' option you could go with I laughed.

[Vepres]

Budget Totals
Old budget was $3748.1268 billion
($2673 billion in spending, $1075.1268 billion in tax expenditures and cuts).

New budget is $2196.79 billion
($1803.32 billion in spending, $393.47 billion in tax expenditures and cuts).
You have cut the deficit by $1551.34 billion.
Your new deficit is $-1150.33 billion.

Basically, I cut everything except R&D, environmental stuff, and educational stuff. I let the Bush tax cuts expire and eliminated most tax credits. I'm draconian

[dialectical fetishist]

Budget Totals
Old budget was $3747.36 billion
($2672.527 billion in spending, $1074.833 billion in tax expenditures and cuts).
New budget is $3726.41 billion
($3157.24 billion in spending, $569.17 billion in tax expenditures and cuts).

You have cut the deficit by $20.95 billion.
Your new deficit is $380.05 billion.

Eliminated the tax cuts, hiked economic spending, cut the military.

[Teddy (IDS Legislator)]

from link #1:

Budget Totals

Old budget was $3748.1268 billion
($2673 billion in spending, $1075.1268 billion in tax expenditures and cuts).
New budget is $2994.73 billion
($2315.85 billion in spending, $678.88 billion in tax expenditures and cuts).


You have cut the deficit by $753.4 billion.

Your new deficit is $-352.39 billion.

Not as big of a surplus as I'd like, but, I'll take it.

[Pacific Councillor Big Wiggly Style]

Hate to bump a 2 year old thread but this is so rad.

[Redalgo]

Following the first link in the OP, my initial adjustments without reshaping institutions would be:


Military Spending ($255.72 billion: cut $190.38 billion)
Iraq and Afghanistan Operations ($36.98 billion: cut $74.86 billion)
Military Retirement ($138.58 billion: increased $23.1 billion)
International affairs ($39.84 billion: increased $8.25 billion)
General science, space, and technology ($47.94 billion: increased $23.97 billion)
Non-Defense Energy Spending ($2.33 billion)
Natural resources and environment ($46.85 billion: increased $15.69 billion)
Agriculture ($28.16 billion: increased $2.14 billion)
Commerce and Housing Loan Programs ($7.04 billion)
Transportation ($75.3 billion: increased $4.63 billion)
Community and regional development ($24.77 billion: increased $5.67 billion)
Education ($67.49 billion: increased $3.42 billion)
Training, labor and unemployment ($49.18 billion: increased $1.37 billion)
Non-Medicare Health Spending ($385.46 billion: increased $132.14 billion)
Medicare ($518.62 billion: increased $172.87 billion)
Civilian Retirement (Social Security excluded) ($78.74 billion: increased $6.71 billion)
Aid to Low-Income Families ($332.39 billion: increased $125.62 billion)
General Family Support ($25.62 billion)
Social security ($726.35 billion: increased $181.53 billion)
Administration of justice ($45.21 billion: increased $2.11 billion)
General government administration ($18.92 billion: increased $1.17 billion)
Net Interest Long ($211.08 billion)
Undistributed offsetting receipts and allowance ($-43.99 billion)


2001 and 2003 Tax Cuts ($0 billion: cut $294.88 billion)
Corporate Tax Breaks ($49.46 billion: cut $10.89 billion)
Personal Business & Investment Benefits ($56.33 billion: cut $30.37 billion)
Pension & Retirement Deductions ($188.24 billion: increased $19.77 billion)
Health Insurance Tax Benefits ($15.3 billion: cut $125.68 billion)
Housing tax benefits ($163.71 billion)
Other individual deductions and exemptions ($159.99 billion)


Old budget was $3748.1268 billion
New budget is $3751.61 billion
You have increased the deficit by $3.47 billion.
Your new deficit is $404.47 billion.


I was very surprised when there were no options available for raising the marginal income tax rate, social security tax, or tinker with the retirement age; without being able to do so I cannot really gauge to what extent I would manage (or fail) to balance the budget. That aside though, I find it almost hilarious that my deep cuts in some areas and boosts in others ended up being a wash. xD

Edit: Sifting through all the other links was somewhat disappointing. None of these sims afford me the flexibility to make major changes to both spending and revenue sources. The third link on the OP won't let me go past the "start" button after the intro, incidentally, so I can't check that one out.

[dialectical fetishist]

Old budget was $3747.36 billion
($2672.527 billion in spending, $1074.833 billion in tax expenditures and cuts).

New budget is $3331.92 billion
($2698.76 billion in spending, $633.16 billion in tax expenditures and cuts).
You have cut the deficit by $415.44 billion.
Your new deficit is $-14.43 billion.