Leading a generational call to stewardship

We are committed to presenting solutions. Join our fight to leave America better than we found it.

DISCOVER OUR STORY

A Duty to the Future

In the Black, launched in 2019 as the Millennial Debt Foundation, was founded to raise awareness and engagement around reckless fiscal policy in Washington, DC and the bleak world it would leave to our children.

We quickly realized that the most important venue for that conversation was in states that were already employing strong fiscal management.

Starting in our home state of Tennessee, we rebranded as “In the Black” to engage with business leaders, elected officials, and others who are interested in leaving it better for those who are to come.

The National Debt by the Numbers

Our current path is a slow-motion disaster

$870B
Interest payments on national debt in 2024
99%
Current size of the national debt relative to the US Economy
77%
Percentage of debt-driving legislation that enjoyed bipartisan support (both parties made this mess)
$2T
Average projected annual deficit over the next decade
OUR PROJECTS

We are committed to presenting solutions

These projects represent our commitment to the future of our country.

What We Owe The Future

What We Owe The Future

A set of 10 common-sense policy recommendations to stabilize our debt and secure our nation's prosperity.
Learn more →
Tennessee Resilience Playbook

Tennessee Resilience Playbook

States can’t fix D.C.’s math or its melodrama. But they can decide, right now, how to protect classrooms, keep hospitals open, and stay in the black when the federal tide turns. This series is the playbook.
Learn more →
Projects
STAY INFORMED

The latest from our team

Investing in America or Mortgaging Its Future? GDP sits down with Congressman Blake Moore

America can still borrow today—but what happens the minute the bond market blinks? That’s the knot we pull on in Episode 12 of Gross Domestic...
Read more →
Investing in America or Mortgaging Its Future? GDP sits down with Congressman Blake Moore

In the Black Warns State Leaders About Federal Dependence

To start with the obvious: the national debt has blasted past $37 trillion, interest costs are compounding faster than growth, and Congress is lurching from...
Read more →
In the Black Warns State Leaders About Federal Dependence

The Debt Bomb pt. 2

The Wharf Dockmaster Building was treated to a dose of accountability and tough love last week as Senator James Lankford joined a room full of...
Read more →
The Debt Bomb pt. 2
(
)
A CALL TO STEWARDSHIP

Join our fight to leave America better than we found it.