By FATIMA HUSSEIN

WASHINGTON (AP) — 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.

Related Articles

Trump’s tariffs threaten to end quarter-century era of cheap goods for US consumers

This federal rule helped clear air over America’s most beloved parks. Trump’s EPA wants to kill it

Billionaires, trusted allies, media personalities. These are the people Trump picked for top roles

Pressed for evidence against Mahmoud Khalil, government cites its power to deport people for beliefs

The House passed a requirement to prove US citizenship to vote. This is how it could affect voting

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.

In the Oval Office on Thursday, Musk said DOGE expected to achieve $150 billion in savings during the next fiscal year by reducing waste and fraud, which he described as “very common.” That’s much lower than his previous target of cutting $1 trillion — a number he used last month in a Fox News interview.

Maya MacGuineas, president of the nonpartisan Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, said Thursday, “The numbers are undeniable. We are racking up debt at an alarming pace, and it’s unlikely to end any time soon. In fact, lawmakers seem hellbent on adding to that sum with trillions of unpaid-for tax cuts and spending increases.”

“We need to correct the unsustainable course we are on and start focusing on fixing our nation’s finances before it is too late,” MacGuineas said.

Tensions remain within the Republican conference about the scope of the proposed tax and spending cuts. Some want more in tax cuts than what is in the blueprint, while others want steeper spending cuts.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has frequently spoken about the need to tamp down on spending.

He told Bloomberg Television earlier this month that the nation would creep closer to hitting the statutory debt ceiling on the so-called X-date, as soon as the early summer. “We are going to go onto the warning track sometime in May or June,” Bessent said.

Associated Press reporters Lisa Mascaro, Kevin Freking and Chris Megerian contributed to this report.

Honora Rodriguez was going about her day at Kaposia Library in South St. Paul, where she is the branch manager, when a man came in to return an overdue vinyl – nearly 50 years late.

Zef Miller tried to return a long overdue Cat Stevens record to South St. Paul’s Kaposia Library on April 7, 2025. Miller had checked it out in 1976 when he was in the eighth grade. (Honora Rodriguez / Kaposia Library)

As an eighth-grader in 1976, Zef Miller checked out Cat Stevens’ “Greatest Hits” vinyl record from the now-closed South St. Paul Library. On Monday, he brought the very same record to Kaposia Library, wanting to return it to its rightful owners and see how much he owed in overdue fees, Rodriguez said.

“I went to check out the new library with my grandchildren and I had to open a new library card,” Miller told the Pioneer Press on Thursday. Opening a new library card got him thinking about the last time he used one.

“I went there many times and checked out many albums. I was too poor to buy them then,” Miller said of the South St. Paul Library.

“It got lost in my other albums, I guess it wasn’t something I cherished at the time,” Miller said of the Cat Stevens record, which he never intended to keep past its due date.

“(The record) was checked out three years before I was born,” said Rodriguez, who has worked as a librarian since 2007. “It’s the oldest return I’ve seen,” she said.

“It’s been in my record collection for 50 years,” said Miller, adding that he listened to it “one last time” before bringing it in.

Yusuf Islam, who is more commonly recognized by his former stage name Cat Stevens, rose to fame with hits like “Wild World,” “Father And Son” and “Morning Has Broken.”

The singer-songwriter changed his name and converted to Islam in the late 1970s. After converting, he took a step back from the entertainment industry and became involved in charity work before being inducted to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2014.

How much does he owe?

When the record was initially checked out, the South St. Paul Library at the northeast corner of Third and Marie avenues was an independent city-run library.

The nearly 100-year-old library, which was built in 1927 when Calvin Coolidge was president, was closed in December 2023 due to the lack of space, accessibility and modern amenities.

South St. Paul is now home to the one-year-old Kaposia Library at 131 N. Seventh Ave., which, lucky for our Cat Stevens fan, is part of the Dakota County Library system.

Unbeknownst to Miller, the Dakota County Library system terminated its late fees as of Jan. 2, 2024.

Before this change, readers were charged 30 cents for each day a book was kept past due, Rodriguez said.

Hypothetically, if this same rule applied to vinyls, this particular earworm would have set Miller back around $5,250 to return.

Related Articles

Apple Valley: Home & Garden Expo this weekend — for free

Burnsville graduation date scheduled on major Islamic holiday

Mendota Heights med tech company to lay off 124 workers after acquisition

South St. Paul man killed in solo vehicle crash in St. Paul Park

Family-owned restaurant and recreation complex pitches Apple Valley location

Rodriguez assured that the library would charge a replacement fee at most, but it’s still fun to do the math.

“My son said they would take the album and put it on a wall of shame,” Miller said with a laugh, but so much time had passed that the library wouldn’t take it back.

“The reluctant returner was ready to settle up, but we let him know: We’re fine free AND no longer circulate vinyl! So, this time, the record gets to stay with him,” Rodriguez wrote on the Dakota County Library Facebook page.

Before other music enthusiasts get any ideas, note that while late fees no longer accumulate, if an item is overdue by 42 days, it will be considered lost and billed to the account holder.

“If implemented, RACE would incentivize large-scale relocations to older, underused office spaces to bolster the citywide economy. This would work hand-in-hand with REAP, elevating additional businesses, neighborhoods, and industries.”

(Gerardo Romo / NYC Council Media Unit)

Anyone who has lived, worked, or even visited New York City can attest to its growing lack of affordability. The city’s 183,000 small business owners aren’t exempt—with rising costs on everything from materials to utilities, it’s harder to stay afloat and nearly impossible to grow. This is stunting businesses and job growth, and as a result, communities in every corner of our city, with no signs of abating anytime soon.

Any elected official who is serious about addressing our affordability crisis must prioritize strengthening jobs in our city. That means we need smart policy that maintains and grows businesses by providing them the resources to succeed. 

One successful initiative doing so is the Relocation and Employment Assistance Program (REAP), which incentivizes businesses to move to New York City’s outer boroughs and Northern Manhattan. As leaders of the Chambers of Commerce in Brooklyn, Queens and the Bronx, we’ve seen this impact firsthand from businesses that have relocated, grown, created jobs, and contributed to our boroughs’ overall vitality.

Gov. Kathy Hochul’s got the right idea—in the Executive Budget, as part of her affordability agenda, she proposed a five-year extension of this essential incentive so communities are able to withstand the financial pressures that come with living here, making them more resilient.

Take Brooklyn, where at least 50 businesses have utilized REAP, creating over 3,500 new jobs. Not only is that impacting those thousands of New Yorkers and their families, it’s also creating economic activity for Brooklyn’s bodegas, restaurants, and other businesses, beginning a positive loop that strengthens the borough.

And those businesses themselves are contributing to Brooklyn’s strength: the Architecture Research Office used REAP to relocate to a larger office space in Willoughby Square, and went on to design a brand new building for the Khalil Gibran International Academy, New York City’s first Arabic-English dual-language public school.

In Queens, REAP has also had profound impacts. Data from the Long Island City Partnership shows that the program has led to an estimated 3,000 new jobs in just the one neighborhood, with many stemming from the manufacturing industry.

And as the South Bronx is seeing a boom in development and activity, REAP is helping businesses match the growing needs there. From office jobs to manufacturing jobs, REAP helps diversify our economic strength to make it more resilient both citywide and across each borough.   

Gov. Hochul understands that without adequately supporting our small businesses, our communities will suffer— which is why she doubled down on her promise to support business owners in New York City and introduced the Relocation Assistance Credit for Employees (RACE) program.

If implemented, RACE would incentivize large-scale relocations to older, underused office spaces to bolster the citywide economy. This would work hand-in-hand with REAP, elevating additional businesses, neighborhoods, and industries.

However, the state legislature hasn’t stepped up to match the governor’s commitment. The criticism that it shuffles businesses within the city misses both the point, and the moment—our businesses will leave without the proper resources. While neither program was included in State Senate and Assembly’s one-house budget proposals, we are optimistic that our legislative leaders will recognize that we need to use every tool available to address our affordability crisis, and that REAP and RACE are important ones. 

With the budget deadline approaching, it’s imperative that REAP and RACE be included. Investing in both of these programs means investing in more jobs, better affordability for our neighborhoods and a higher quality of life for all New Yorkers. 

Randy Peers is the president and CEO of the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce. Thomas Grech is the president and CEO of the Queens Chamber of Commerce. Lisa Sorin is the president and CEO of the Bronx Chamber of Commerce. 

The post Opinion: Helping NYC’s Small Businesses Relocate & Grow appeared first on City Limits.

NEW YORK (AP) — A helicopter crashed Thursday into the Hudson River just off Manhattan, authorities said. There were no immediate reports on injuries or fatalities.

The fire department said it received a report of a helicopter in the water at 3:17 p.m.

Videos posted on social media showed the aircraft mostly submerged, upside down in the water. The fire department said it had units on scene performing rescue operations. Multiple rescue boats were seen on video circling the aircraft.

The rescue craft were near a site close to the Manhattan waterfront, near the end of a long maintenance pier for one of the ventilation towers for the Holland Tunnel. Fire trucks and other emergency vehicles were on streets near the scene with their lights flashing.

The skies over Manhattan are routinely filled with both planes and helicopters, both private recreational aircraft and commercial and tourist flights. Manhattan has several helipads that whisk business executives and others to destinations throughout the metropolitan area.

Over the years, there have been multiple crashes, including a collision between a plane and a tourist helicopter over the Hudson River in 2009 that killed nine people and the 2018 crash of a charter helicopter offering “open door” flights that went down into the East River, killing five people.