page_title: United States federal budget
section_title: Major expenditure categories
hierarchical_section_title: United States federal budget / Major expenditure categories
caption_attribution_description: English: This shows the base defense budget plus specific funding for wars in Iraq and Afghanistan Chart explanation This chart shows trends in annual (fiscal year) defense spending from 2001 through 2017. The 2017 amount is an estimate. The chart shows three series of data: DOD base + 2% inflation: The 2001 base level of spending assuming it kept pace with inflation, which averaged 2% during the period. Increase in DOD base: The increase in the base level of spending above the 2% inflation adjustment. OC or Overseas Contingency Operations: Funding mainly for the Iraq &amp; Afghanistan wars, plus other "War on terror" expenses. So the base spending is the first two statistics. For the 2001-2017 period, the OCO amount was $1,677 billion. The Base + Inflation amount was $5,751 billion. The Increase over inflation was $1,961 billion. The sum of the three was $9,390 billion. Source Data Version two of the chart: Defense Budget Overview-FY 2017 U.S. DOD FY2017 Budget Request Version one of the chart (superseded): The data from 2001 - 2014 are from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). The data is contained on page 8 of the OMB document here: OMB-Overview FY 2014 Defense Budget The two documents below have the data for a similar analysis from CBO through 2009; one has the total amounts and the other has additional commentary on amounts spent in the wars, broken out by year. CBO-Historical Tables CBO-Testimony on Costs of Iraq &amp; Afghanistan Wars Here is a similar chart from the DOD for the 2010 budget: DOD-Defense Spending Trend Chart-May 2009 This supersedes an earlier chart on Commons: thumb|right|Defense Spending 2000–2011.
context_page_description: The United States federal budget comprises the spending and revenues of the U.S. federal government. The budget is the financial representation of the priorities of the government, reflecting historical debates and competing economic philosophies. The government primarily spends on healthcare, retirement, and defense programs. The non-partisan Congressional Budget Office provides extensive analysis of the budget and its economic effects. It has reported that large budget deficits over the next 30 years are projected to drive federal debt held by the public to unprecedented levels—from 78 percent of gross domestic product in 2019 to 144 percent by 2049.
  The United States has the largest external debt in the world and the 14th largest government debt as % of GDP in the world. The annual budget deficit increased from $585 billion in 2016 to $984 billion in 2019, up 68%. Relative to a CBO forecast prior to President Trump's inauguration, the budget deficits for 2019-2021 roughly doubled, due to the Trump tax cuts and other spending legislation.
context_section_description: During FY2018, the federal government spent $4.11 trillion, up $127 billion or 3.2% vs. FY2017 spending of $3.99 trillion. Spending increased for all major categories and was mainly driven by higher spending for Social Security, net interest on the debt, and defense. Spending as % GDP fell from 20.7% GDP to 20.3% GDP, equal to the 50-year average.
  During FY2017, the federal government spent $3.98 trillion, up $128 billion or 3.3% vs. FY2016 spending of $3.85 trillion. Major categories of FY 2017 spending included: Healthcare such as Medicare and Medicaid ($1,077B or 27% of spending), Social Security ($939B or 24%), non-defense discretionary spending used to run federal Departments and Agencies ($610B or 15%), Defense Department ($590B or 15%), and interest ($263B or 7%).
  Expenditures are classified as "mandatory", with payments required by specific laws to those meeting eligibility criteria (e.g., Social Security and Medicare), or "discretionary", with payment amounts renewed annually as part of the budget process. Around two thirds of federal spending is for "mandatory" programs. CBO projects that mandatory program spending and interest costs will rise relative to GDP over the 2016–2026 period, while defense and other discretionary spending will decline relative to GDP.
caption: Defense Spending 2001–2017.
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