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US budget deficit drops to $82.4 billion in May

FILE - In this May 19, 2015, file photo, Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew, accompanied by Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen, speaks during a Financial Stability Oversight Council meeting at the Treasury Department in Washington. The Treasury Department releases federal budget data for May on Wednesday, June 10, 2015. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, File) FILE - In this May 19, 2015, file photo, Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew, accompanied by Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen, speaks during a Financial Stability Oversight Council meeting at the Treasury Department in Washington. The Treasury Department releases federal budget data for May on Wednesday, June 10, 2015. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, File)

By Associated Press June 10, 2015 1 min read

WASHINGTON (AP) – The U.S. budget deficit for May dropped sharply from the level a year ago but much of the improvement reflected a calendar quirk.

The Treasury Department says the deficit dropped to $82.4 billion in May, down from a deficit of $130 billion in May 2014. But last year’s deficit was inflated because June 1 fell on a Saturday, requiring the government to mail out $35 billion in June benefit payments in May of last year.

For the first eight months of this budget year, which began Oct. 1, the deficit totals $365.2 billion, down 16.3 percent from the same period last year. This year’s deficit improvement has been helped by a stronger economy, which has pushed up tax receipts by 8.6 percent.