Congressional Budget Office Director Douglas Elmendorf predicted on Tuesday what he believes the coming years will look like for the budget and economy.
Under current law, Elmendorf estimated that economic activity will continue to grow at a "solid pace" through the next few years, "reducing the amount of underused resources, or 'slack,' in the economy," Breitbart reported.
Beyond 2018, though, the outlook is grim, Elmendorf told the House Budget Committee.
Within 25 years, he predicted that debt will exceed 100 percent of gross domestic product, eventually leading to an increased "risk of a fiscal crisis."
Between 2016 and 2025, he said the cumulative deficits are likely to reach $7.6 trillion. By the end of this year, the federal debt held by the public is predicted to be 74 percent of the GDP - more than twice what it was in 2007, when the economic crisis began.
By 2025, the deficit is slated to be 79 percent of the GDP, and is expected to continue to climb until it reaches 100 percent in 25 years, which could result in a fiscal crisis.
"That trend that could not be sustained. Such large and growing federal debt would have serious negative consequences, including increasing federal spending for interest payments, restraining economic growth in the long term, giving policymakers less flexibility to respond to unexpected challenges, and eventually heightening the risk of a fiscal crisis," Elmendorf said.
