WASHINGTON >> The U.S. budget deficit has grown to more than $1.3 trillion in the first half of the 2025 fiscal year — the second highest six-month deficit on record, according to Treasury Department data released Thursday.

The deficit for October through March spans the administrations of President Joe Biden and President Donald Trump. The previous high in the four decades of recordkeeping was $1.7 trillion in the first half of fiscal year 2021, when the government was tackling the COVID-19 pandemic.

A Treasury official who spoke on the condition of anonymity to preview the data said the increased spending was in part due to a mix of expenditures, including cost of living increases to Social Security payouts, higher Medicare and Medicaid costs, increased disaster assistance to the Federal Emergency Management Agency and Defense Department spending.

The widening deficit, which occurs when spending exceeds the amount of money being raised, comes as the Trump administration has touted a plan to reduce waste and spending in the federal government through Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, also known as DOGE.

It also comes as House Republicans narrowly approved their budget framework Thursday, which advances $4.5 trillion in tax cuts and seeks at least $1.5 trillion in cuts to federal programs and services.

DOGE has recommended plans to lay off a large portion of the 2.4 million members of the civilian federal workforce, eliminate entire agencies, including the Education Department, and cut other government services.

The new Treasury Department data shows a deficit of $1.307 trillion for October through March, the first six months of the fiscal year 2025.

And spending is $139 billion more in the first three months of 2025 compared to the same period last year, with borrowing over that period $41 billion higher.