How bad has the US debt crisis become? US net interest payments as a percentage of federal revenue reached a whopping 18.7% in January, the highest since the 1990s. This is just 20 basis points below the all-time high of 18.9% posted in 1992. Furthermore, this share has DOUBLED in just 18 months as interest costs have skyrocketed. Interest expense hit a record 1.2 trillion over the last 12 months and is the second-largest government outlay after Social Security. The worst part? Net interest costs as a percentage of federal revenues are estimated to reach 34% by 2054, assuming there will be no recession over this period. This is a crisis.