Economic Updates

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Total interest paid by the US Goverment on debt held by the public was $1 billion every 46 hours and 21 minutes in 2009. Total public debt reached $7.54 trillion in 2009. Public debt is defined as all federal debt held by individuals, corporations, state or local governments, foreign governments, and other entities outside the US Government. (Source: Congressional Budget Office)

40% of US banks failed during the 5-years from 1929-1933. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, guaranteeing an individual's account up to a maximum threshold of $2,500 initially, was signed into law on 6-6-33 and became effective on 1-01-34, sadly too late for thousands of US savers. The maximum deposit insurance level was raised to $250,000 in May 2009 (Source: FDIC)

In the 1930s, the average length of a home mortgage taken out by an American homebuyer was only 3-5 years (source: Financial Times)

The deduction Americans receive for the home mortgage interest expense they pay reduces the tax receipts taken in by the Internal Revenue Service by $127 billion a year. Citizens of Britain had a deduction for home mortgage interest expense paid until 1999 when the deduction was eliminated from their tax code. (source: Internal Revenue Service)

Small businesses pay on average 18% more per worker than large firms for the same level of health insurance coverage. (Source: Small Business Owners Association)

The bottom 50% of US taxpayers pay 3% of all federal income tax (source: IRS, Tax Foundation)