The monthly deficit for August alone was $132 billion, or $4.25 billion a day.

(OTM) — The non-partisan Congressional Budget Office on Thursday estimated that the federal budget deficit through August stands at $1.23 trillion.

CBO says the government is on track to record a deficit of $1.28 billion when the fiscal year ends Sept. 30, $10 billion less than last year but the third straight year of $1 trillion-plus deficits.

The 11-month total is $28 billion less than the deficit incurred in the same period last year. A large reason for the improvement has been an increase in individual tax collection.

The monthly deficit for August was $132 billion, CBO estimates, $41 billion more than August 2010. CBO said the difference was mostly due to a technical reason: Aug. 1, 2010 was on a weekend and the government made some big payments that July.

The government spent $3.3 billion in the first 11 months of fiscal 2011 which ends on Oct. 1, $118 billion more than last year despite budget cutting efforts.