The U.S. Government Accountability Office released its March 2026 assessment of federal debt management — GAO-26-107529 — and the headline is technically reassuring: Treasury is meeting borrowing needs. The subtext is not.

Public debt exceeded $31 trillion as of February 2026. In fiscal year 2025 alone, Treasury held 444 auctions to borrow $1.9 trillion for government operations and refinance $9.1 trillion of maturing securities. The Congressional Budget Office projects deficits averaging over $2 trillion annually through 2036. Treasury’s borrowing needs as a share of GDP were 21 percent in 2014. By 2025 they had reached 36 percent.