Public Pays $3 Million Toward Federal Debt
By JODY MURPHYFact Box
HOW MUCH?
$3 million pales when compared against the national debt, which is approaching $12 trillion. It would take almost 12 million donations of $1 million each to erase the debt.
IF YOU WANT TO PAY
To make a contribution make checks payable to the Bureau of the Public Debt, and in the memo section, note it as a "gift to reduce the debt held by the public. Mail checks to Bureau of the Public Debt, P.O. Box 2188, Parkersburg, WV 26106-2188 Attn. Dept. G.
PARKERSBURG - The U.S. Treasury Department received more than $3 million in monetary gifts last year to pay down the national debt.
Joyce Harris, a spokeswoman for the Bureau of Public Debt, said the agency received more than $3.06 million during the 2009 fiscal year to help offset the national debt.
Harris said the contributions are nothing new.
"This is something that has been around a while," she said.
Since 1961, tax-deductible contributions can be made to the U.S. Treasury Department's Bureau of Public Debt. The contributions are sent to a post office box in Parkersburg.
According to its Web site, the Bureau of the Public Debt may accept gifts donated to the United States government to reduce debt held by the public.
The national debt sits at $11.991 trillion and public debt accounts for $7.59 trillion.
The bureau may accept a monetary gift only on the condition that it be used to reduce debt held by the public. Other intangible personal property may also be given on condition the property is sold and the proceeds from the sale are used to reduce the public debt. Gifts to reduce debt held by the public may be living trusts gifts or "testamentary bequests."
The $3 million is a recent high for contributions, but not a record, according to Harris. In 1992, the bureau received a single gift of $3.5 million.
"People have been contributing to reduce debt for many reasons," she said. "Some are very patriotic. Some feel fortunate to be citizens of this country and want to give back.
"They may have been immigrants and want to contribute something to a country that has given them so much."
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Russell1959
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11-28-09 10:09 PM
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the main difference I see is that Obama is accounting for his spending in the budget....where as Bush spent as much (or more) but hid it through creative accounting and 'emergency' spending.. he kept the Iraq war off the books so he could look people in the eye and say he was a conservative..
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PCGS70
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11-28-09 1:24 PM
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You gotta be kidding me, why would I pay to reduce the debt when Obama is spending money faster than the US Treasury can print it. He is digging a hole so deep that our grandchildren will be paying on it. I hope for change.
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WVEXPAT
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11-28-09 11:14 AM
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$3 million? How pathetic! It's obvious that liberals (and a lot of "conservatives") only want to help our nation by spending other peoples money. Why aren't the ultra rich Hollywood types donating 95% of their wealth to bailing out this country??? 67 million people voted for Obama but only 3 million has been donated to pay off our $12 trillion credit card bill. Our debt has been building over many administrations, but we are nearing a "tipping point" financially. Our "revenue" this year will be a little over $2.1 trillion and our debt around $12 trillion. Thats the equivalent of a household earning $100,000/year having credit card debt of $600,000! The CBO estimates that we will add ANOTHER $7 TRILLION to our budget by 2019! Our interest payments alone are well over $300 BILLION this year! We could be paying $1000 BILLION in interest alone by 2019 (w/o touching the original debt)! Do our politicians (on both sides) not understand this??
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EllisWyatt
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11-28-09 9:23 AM
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In Pennsylvania, there is a law that requires the Governor and the Legislature to deliver a balanced budget by a certain date. For 6 of the last 6 years, they have been late in getting a budget. For 6 of the last 6 years, it has included tax increases, spending increases and additional debt. It has been hidden behind government style accounting. What does the Governor, Fast Eddie Rendell, say? "We've delivered a balanced budget for 6 straight years!" Well, gee, you are REQUIRED TO DO SO BY LAW! And you failed to mention that you were late for 6 consecutive years. Philadelphia should be kicked out of PA. It fits in with Delaware or New Jersey in that it is corrupt, expensive, full of criminals and not too intelligent. Perhaps then a true conservative could actually get elected in PA.
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Shark88
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11-27-09 10:18 PM
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If you want to pay? What is that suppose to mean? Who in their right mind wants to pay money to a government who will only turn around and spend it on something we don't need so that some politician can get re-elected. What a waste. The debt thing is serious business though and the only way to really begin to cure the problem is thru strick term limits. Three terms maximum for Congressman and one term for Senators. It is the only way to even begin to stop the corruption. Government debt isn't restricted to just the federal scene. Most state and local governments are wallowing in deep debt as well mostly for the sake of getting re-elected. It is a shame how politicians can not honestly balance a budget. You'd have to be an idiot if you can't balance a government budget.
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JamesT
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11-27-09 2:39 PM
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Ar ethese people freekin nuts? Politicians waste, abuse, and fraudualently spend OUR money because they can. The independents in America are more furious than either the dems or Reps over these acts and the total all out arrogant corruption. From Mollohan, Space, and Wilson, we are all made out of being suckers and ignorant. Sweep em out in 2010!!
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EllisWyatt
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11-27-09 1:32 PM
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For 2008-2009, our national debt averaged about $10.5 trillion. We paid about $363 billion in interest on that debt during the fiscal year. This is $1,190.16 for every citizen in this nation. Imagine if someone showed up at your door and said "Okay, the Census says you have 4 people living here. I'll need $4,760.66 from you-right now". That is ONE year and it does not cover national defense, law enforcement, administration and social spending. NOW, Barry Sotero's plans will raise the debt to $22 trillion after 10 year of his spending. This number does not include the additional interest that will have to be paid each year. Foreign borrowers will soon demand higher returns on the debt they hold. Right now, we pay $363 billion per year on $11 trillion in debt. What will the annual cost be when the debt is $22 trillion and interest rates are 8%-10%? Do the math. WE ARE BROKE. And this doesn't address the $45 trillion in unfunded liabilities.
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nosmart
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11-27-09 10:33 AM
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yep the news is covering a dinner party crash. when one of the worlds fastest growing economies crashed. will we be next on posponing our debt.????
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trolll
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11-27-09 7:28 AM
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I admire people whose altruism rises to occasions like these, but the cynic in me realises that giving the Feds money to knock down this debt is like giving a gambling addict money to give him back the money he just blew in a poker machine - this money is nto going to mend their ways, it is just going to end up being p!$$ed down the same rathole the last money was. Our National Debt is quickly climbing to the point it reaches our yearly economic output. We are reaching the tipping point where we are going to defult, much like the wave of homeowners who took out mortgages too high for them to be able to pay off. Time to un-elect every single Congressman and Senator, both aprties. They are all just a bunch of self-serving prostitutes more interested in personal power and rewarding their political patrons than they are solving our country's problems, starting with paying down the debt.
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