Senator Rick Scott proposes bill to include debt interest in CBO estimates

U.S. Senator Rick Scott (R-Fla.) has introduced the Cost Estimates Improvement Act (S. 5442) to require federal budget scorekeepers to include the cost of servicing public debt in their estimates. The bill, which has been referred to the Senate Budget Committee, seeks to amend the Congressional Budget Act to mandate that the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) and the Joint Committee on Taxation include these interest costs in any estimates they prepare, to the extent practicable.

The proposal mirrors a similar measure introduced by U.S. Representative Michael Cloud (R-Texas), known as H.R. 10327. Both bills aim to provide taxpayers with a more comprehensive view of the true cost of legislation. This comes amid significant federal fiscal pressure; Treasury Department data shows the federal government ran a $2 trillion deficit in the first 11 months of fiscal year 2026, with net interest on public debt exceeding $1.02 trillion during that period.