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Trump’s Proposed $1.5 Trillion War Budget in Three Charts - Trump’s Proposed $1.5 Trillion War Budget in Three Charts

Three charts explaining why the $1.5 trillion topline is a disaster for working families, and why every vehicle for higher Pentagon spending must be defeated.

How Many People In Every State and Congressional District Could Have Medicaid or SNAP Instead of $73 Billion for War?

This analysis shows each congressional district’s estimated contribution to a new expenditure of $73 billion for war and weapons, alongside how many people in that district could receive Medicaid or SNAP for the same amount of money.

Trump Bill for Mass Deportations: $268.9 Billion, and Counting

Under the Trump administration, Congress and federal agencies have already committed a total of $268.9 billion in federal funds for immigration enforcement from FY 2025 through FY 2029.

What Could We Do Instead of Spending Another $73 Billion for War?

Providing more money to the Pentagon at this time will prolong the war and continue to underfund programs that Americans need and deserve. With so many potential better uses for these funds, there is no excuse for their approval.

How Many People In Every State and Congressional District Could Have Medicaid or SNAP Instead of $150 Billion for the Pentagon?

Instead of more funding for weapons and war, Americans deserve a government that supports them when times are tough. In fact, the cost to provide Medicaid to 14 million Americans at risk of losing their insurance AND provide SNAP benefits to the 3.5 million who have already lost benefits amounts to less than the Pentagon’s $156 billion bonus – just $116 billion.

Budgetary Costs of U.S. Military Operations in Venezuela, the Caribbean, and the Eastern Pacific, August 1, 2025 – March 31, 2026

Spending on Operation Southern Spear and Operation Absolute Resolve in Venezuela, the Caribbean, and the Eastern Pacific cost at least $4.7 billion from August 1, 2025-March 31, 2026. Costs will continue to mount as some naval assets and aircraft remain in the region and strikes continue.

Tax Day 2026: Taxpayers Are Paying More than $4,000 for War - Tax Day 2026 Notes and Sources

National Priorities Project's annual Tax Receipt shows how your individual income taxes were spent.

Tax Day 2026: Taxpayers Are Paying More than $4,000 for War

In 2025, the average taxpayer paid $4,049 and worked 50 days to pay their taxes for war and weapons.

How Many People In Every State and Congressional District Could Have Medicaid or SNAP Instead of $200 Billion for War on Iran?

Instead of prolonging this war - or enabling the next one - with more funds, Americans deserve a government that supports them when times are tough.

FACT SHEET: How much is the war in Iran costing taxpayers?

Daily operations in and around Iran for major military systems are costing taxpayers an estimated $59.39 million per day.

What Do Trump’s National Guard Deployments Cost?

Our latest estimate shows sending the National Guard to U.S. cities has cost taxpayers nearly half a billion dollars through mid-November.

PAMPHLET: Divest from Violence! Invest in People and the Planet - SOURCES: Divest from Violence! Invest in People and the Planet

PAMPHLET: Divest from Violence! Invest in People and the Planet

The climate crisis and militarism are two of the most urgent threats we face, and they are deeply connected. Militarism fuels environmental destruction and accelerates climate change, and the climate crisis intensifies conflict and violence.

FACT SHEET: Taxpayer Trade Offs: D.C. Occupation vs. Public Housing

Deploying the National Guard against D.C.’s unhoused population costs four times more than simply housing them. And that’s true across the country.

10 Terrible Ways the GOP Budget Causes Harm

The new law slashes vital services to pay for tax cuts for the rich and massive hikes in military and deportation funding.

Trump's Unhinged Attack on Iran

President Trump’s unconstitutional act of war on Iran puts the U.S. and world at grave risk of another U.S. war of choice in the Middle East.

Trading Life for Death: What the Reconciliation Bill Puts at Stake in Your State - Trading Life for Death: What the Reconciliation Bill Puts at Stake in Your State

Trading Life for Death: What the Reconciliation Bill Puts at Stake in Your State

The current reconciliation bill proposes a historic $150 billion spending increase for the Pentagon and a $151.3 billion increase for mass deportation in the next few years.

Tax Day 2025: Your Tax Receipt - Tax Day 2025: Notes and Sources

Tax Day 2025: Your Tax Receipt

In February 2025, the average price for a dozen eggs was $5.90. Below, find out how much you might have paid for weapons and war, mass deportations, and programs that are on the Trump-Musk chopping block — and which programs cost less than a dozen eggs.

Trump & GOP Stack the Deck Against Struggling Americans to Build a War and Mass Deportation Machine

The GOP’s extreme increases in militarized spending - at the expense of working people and the planet - will make us all less secure.

BUDGET EXPLAINER: Senate Republicans Reach for Historic Levels of Militarized Spending at the Expense of Human Needs

Senate Republicans are aiming to cut federal spending on social services while increasing the budget by at least $346 billion over the next four years ($86.5 billion annually) to fund the Pentagon and a disastrous and cruel mass deportation plan. Policymakers must step up to help struggling families, not tear families apart while enriching corporations and billionaires at the expense of working people.

TRADE-OFFS: Senate Republicans Would Increase Spending for Pentagon and Deportations at the Expense of Solving Our Worst Problems

We have the means to solve homelessness, poverty, substance use, and more – but it will require spending priorities that line up with those needs instead of giving more to weapons contractors and demonizing immigrant communities.

Weapons for a Warming World: U.S. Contributions to the Green Climate Fund vs. Foreign Military Financing

To avoid the most destabilizing effects of a warming planet at home and abroad, the U.S. must rebalance foreign aid priorities and commit to providing a fair share of global climate adaptation and mitigation efforts– and end the arms aid that fuels conflict and enriches corporations that profit from endless war and climate collapse.

Tax Day 2024

It’s spring, and that means Americans are filing their tax returns. Most will know whether they get a refund, but how many know where their tax dollars really go?

Tax Day 2024 - Tax Day 2024 Notes and Sources

National Priorities Project's Tax Day shows how your individual income taxes were spent. Those are a portion of the taxes withheld from your paycheck.

FACT SHEET: Invest in Communities, Not Violence

For far too long, the U.S. has clung to a budget that prioritizes war, deportations and detentions, and policing at the expense of human needs. It’s time to reinvest these taxpayer dollars into real human needs — healthcare, education, housing, and a just energy transition to name a few. Here’s how legislators have splurged on militarism, and what could happen if those funds instead benefited people and communities.

More Military Aid to Israel Will Mean More Deaths

In the face of massive suffering in Gaza and disregard for international law by the Israeli government, the U.S. must not provide additional military aid or weapons that would cause more deaths. Instead, the U.S. should use its considerable diplomatic strength to call for an immediate ceasefire.

NPP at IPS Joins Calls for a Ceasefire in Israel and Occupied Palestine

“A ceasefire is the only way to stop innocent suffering,” said Lindsay Koshgarian, Program Director of the National Priorities Project at the Institute for Policy Studies.

National Priorities Project Among 27 Organizations Urging Emissions Transparency in NDAA

The National Priorities Project joins other organizations in a letter addressed to Congress leaders demanding the removal of anti-climate provisions in the NDAA for Fiscal Year 2024.

The Warfare State: How Funding for Militarism Compromises Our Welfare

Nearly two-thirds of the federal discretionary budget goes to militarized federal programs, leaving just over a third for our communities — a sliver some lawmakers want to cut even further.

Tax Day 2023 - Tax Day 2023 Notes and Sources

Tax Day 2023

Tax Day this year is April 18, 2023. Americans will file their tax returns for all income received in 2022. Want to know what your taxes pay for, and who pays what?

FY 2023 Budget Deal Rewards Military at Expense of Domestic Needs

“This budget deal is shameful. It perpetuates the status quo, where domestic priorities never get equal footing with military spending. It’s unconscionable to keep throwing more money at Pentagon contractors when so many in this country are struggling needlessly,” said Lindsay Koshgarian, Program Director for the National Priorities Project at the Institute for Policy Studies.

FACT SHEET: No National Security without Climate Security

Climate change represents arguably the biggest threat to U.S. national security - and human security - of the 21st century. Decades of inaction have led to worsening and more frequent extreme weather events, with associated loss of life and property. And yet in Washington, “national security” is still primarily synonymous with military approaches to geopolitical challenges.

Tax Day 2022 - Tax Day 2022 Notes and Sources

Tax Day shows how your individual income taxes were spent. These are one type of taxes withheld from your paycheck, and they pay for a vast array of government programs.

Tax Day 2022

Tax Day this year is April 18, 2022. Americans will file their tax returns for all income received in 2021. Want to know what your taxes pay for, and who pays what?

Biden FY 2023 budget puts war before human needs

President Biden’s FY 2023 budget request once again prioritizes violence, the military and war over peace and human needs. But more spending on militarism can’t address the nation’s or the world’s problems.

Budget Deal Prioritizes War and Militarization Over Critical Needs, Again

The budget deal announced today repeats a longtime pattern by putting more resources into the military and war than into K-12 education, affordable housing, public health, scientific and medical research, early childhood education and care, and homelessness combined.

A Moral Budget vs. A War Budget

These two bills represent diametrically opposed views of how to address the challenges of our time: a moral budget vs a war budget. Congress: Which side are you on?

National Priorities Project at the Institute for Policy Studies Condemns Passage of a $778 Billion Pentagon bill, Celebrates Lawmakers Who Opposed

The House of Representatives yesterday voted to approve a $768 billion Pentagon bill. National Priorities Project at the Institute for Policy Studies released the following statement.

Progress on Pentagon Cuts Must Continue

Two votes on cuts to the Pentagon budget today showed more members of Congress are willing to take a stand against a bloated Pentagon budget that has fueled endless wars and obscene profits for military contractors.

State of Insecurity: The Cost of Militarization Since 9/11

Over 20 years, the U.S. has spent more than $21 trillion on militarization, surveillance, and repression — all in the name of security. These investments have shown us that the U.S. has the capacity and political will to invest in our biggest priorities.

National Priorities Project Commends Senate Rejection of $50 Billion Pentagon Grab

August 10 - Today the Senate rejected an amendment to the budget resolution to add $50 billion to the Pentagon budget, 46-53. The National Priorities Project at the Institute for Policy Studies issued the following statement.

President Biden's FY 2022 Budget Request

The president's request calls for $753 billion for the Pentagon and nuclear weapons, plus another $12 billion in foreign military aid.

A Forever-Increasing Pentagon Budget Undermines American Security

Today’s budget proposal rightly calls for major increases in domestic investment. But at the same time, its continued funding increases for the Pentagon undermine the prioritization of real security and human needs over corporate profit and greed.

No Warming, No War: How Militarism Fuels the Climate Crisis—and Vice Versa - Climate, Militarism, and Migration

U.S. Militarism brings violence to communities in this country and around the world, while degrading our environment and contributing directly to climate change. The conditions of a climate-changed world compound existing crises and cause more instability, pushing people to migrate from their homes. Increasingly, the United States deploys military power in response to climate-linked migration. Immigration policy is climate policy, and demilitarization is at the core of upholding the right to move and the right to stay.

Pouring Money into the Pentagon Can’t Prevent Another Pandemic

At $753 billion, President Biden's requested Pentagon budget increase continues the dangerous and short-sighted path of ballooning military spending set by President Trump, and fails to recognize the reality that our most critical challenges don't have military solutions.

Peace Groups Urge Support for the PRO Act

Washington, DC. — On March 30, the National Priorities Project at the Institute for Policy Studies joined 20 other leading peace and justice organizations in delivering a letter to U.S. Senators in support of H.R. 842, the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act, in solidarity with workers demanding expanded labor rights.

Peace Groups Urge Support for the PRO Act - PRO Act Letter from Peace Groups

As organizations dedicated to promoting progressive foreign policy, we believe that a peaceful future must include fair treatment for the workers whose labor makes safe and thriving societies possible. For that reason, we celebrate the passage of H.R. 842, the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act, and urge the Senate to act quickly to pass this landmark legislation.

Poverty Amidst Pandemic Explainer

In 2017, 140 million people in the United States were living in poverty or on the verge of poverty using this measure.

With everything changed since 2019, and official poverty measures for 2020 still far in the future, we asked: what has become of the 140 million during the pandemic?

No Warming, No War: How Militarism Fuels the Climate Crisis—and Vice Versa - 7/27 Webinar Transcript

If you want to better understand the connections between militarism, racism, and the climate crisis, read the English-language transcript of our "No Warming, No War" webinar from Monday, July 27.

A Ten Percent Pentagon Cut Would Return Us to Obama-Biden Levels

As part of the annual must-pass military spending and policy bill (the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021, or “NDAA”), progressive lawmakers have put forward a proposal to cut the massive $740 billion Pentagon budget by 10 percent. The amendment is being introduced on the Senate side by Senator Bernie Sanders, joined by Senators Ed Markey and Elizabeth Warren, and on the House side, by Representatives Barbara Lee and Mark Pocan.

Ten Better Uses for 10% of the Pentagon Budget

A $74 billion cut is a strong step toward better spending priorities, and could make a tremendous difference in other programs ranging from health care and education to job creation at a time when it is desperately needed.

No Warming, No War: How Militarism Fuels the Climate Crisis—and Vice Versa - No más calentamiento, no más guerra

Lea en español: de cómo el militarismo alimenta la crisis climática y vice versa

No Warming, No War: How Militarism Fuels the Climate Crisis—and Vice Versa - 7/27 Webinar

If you want to better understand the connections between militarism, racism, and the climate crisis, watch our "No Warming, No War" webinar from Monday, July 27!

A Local Resolution to End the Transfer of Military Equipment to Police

Since 1990, the Department of Defense has transfered more than $7 billion worth of military equipment to more than 8,000 law enforcement agencies around the country through what is known as the 1033 Program. As part of the larger effort to defund the police, invest in communities and end structural racism, ending the 1033 program is an essential step to demilitarizing our communities and saving lives.

The Militarized Budget 2020

In 2019, the U.S. "militarized" budget amounted to 64.5 percent of discretionary spending.

US Over-Investment in the Pentagon Left Us Vulnerable to the Coronavirus

Congress allocates hundreds of billions of dollars to the Pentagon and militarized policing and immigration systems in the name of security, while underinvesting in priorities like health care, medical research and poverty programs that could keep us safe during this crisis.

No Warming, No War: How Militarism Fuels the Climate Crisis—and Vice Versa - Graphics and Social Media Toolkit

Share graphics from our new "No Warming, No War" report on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram using the hashtag #NoWarmingNoWar, or spread in your own networks:

No Warming, No War: How Militarism Fuels the Climate Crisis—and Vice Versa - Alternatives to Greening the Military

Instead of greenwashing the military, here are three suggestions for Pentagon policy that would drastically reduce greenhouse emissions, free up resources for green policies, and reduce U.S. reliance on militarism and war:

No Warming, No War: How Militarism Fuels the Climate Crisis—and Vice Versa - Why Not Green the Military?

The largest industrial military in the world is also one of the biggest polluters. Maintaining a massive military requires significant investment in carbon-intensive infrastructure and gas-guzzling equipment. The carbon footprint of the military is tremendous. So why isn’t “greening the military” a good solution?

No Warming, No War: How Militarism Fuels the Climate Crisis—and Vice Versa - Climate and Militarism Talking Points

General talking points on climate and militarism from the "No Warming, No War" report.

No Warming, No War: How Militarism Fuels the Climate Crisis—and Vice Versa - Climate and Militarism Discussion Guide

Discussion guide to "No Warming, No War" report

No Warming, No War: How Militarism Fuels the Climate Crisis—and Vice Versa

Climate change and militarism intersect in a variety of alarming ways: Recognizing that the impacts of climate change will dramatically increase instability around the globe, this paper examines the role of militarism in a climate-changed world.

Tax Day 2020

Tax Day is delayed several months this year to July 15, 2020, due to the pandemic. Want to know what your taxes pay for, and how much?

Fact Sheet: Wall Funding vs. Coronavirus

President Trump’s cruel immigration initiatives could instead fund a rational response to Coronavirus

The Toll of Poverty

Three Big Ideas for Reducing Military Spending

The time has come for an end to the United States ill-conceived wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and the moment is ripe for a new peace dividend. Today’s threats are mostly non-military in nature: climate change, global economic inequality, and rising nationalism all do not have military solutions.

Fact Sheet: What to Buy Instead of a Border Wall (Updated)

Fact Sheet: Defund Militarism in the United States

Militarism and violence are the hallmarks of U.S. policy at home and abroad. From war to mass incarceration and beyond, these policies amplify poverty, racism and environmental degradation. They can and must change.

Poor People’s Campaign State Fact Sheets

Learn more about the interlocking evils of systemic racism, poverty, militarism/the war economy, ecological devastation, and the distorted moral narrative of religious nationalism in your state!

President Trump's 2021 Budget Prioritizes the Pentagon

President Trump released his fourth budget proposal today, and the priorities are crystal clear. Just four agencies rate spending increases in the Trump 2021 budget: the Department of Defense, the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and the Treasury Department. From Agriculture to Education, and from Commerce to State, every other federal agency would face cuts under the president’s proposal. Across the board, the Trump budget prioritizes brute force and military solutions over humanitarian and diplomatic ones.

A Unified Budget to Demilitarize America, At Home and Abroad

NPP's Ashik Siddique addresses the Congressional Progressive Caucus Summit to explain how we could safely shift as much as $350 billion per year away from the Pentagon by ending the endless wars, closing 60% of foreign bases, cutting unnecessary weapons, and much more.

Poor People's Moral Budget: Everybody Has the Right to Live - Poor People's Moral Budget: Full Report

In April 2018, the Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival released a Moral Agenda and Declaration of Fundamental Rights. The demands contained within that document present a comprehensive response to the systemic racism, poverty, ecological devastation, militarism, and war economy plaguing our country today. For the 140 million people who are poor, or one emergency away from being poor, we know these demands are necessary.

This Poor People’s Moral Budget from National Priorities Project and our colleagues at the Institute for Policy Studies, together with the Poor People’s Campaign, the Kairos Center, and Repairers of the Breach, asks, given the resources of our society, whether these demands are also possible. Our answer is a resounding yes.

Five Ways Congress should invest $9.74 billion instead of Trump's immigration policy

At least $9.74 billion of our tax dollars could be used to lift up our children and communities instead of tearing families apart.

Poor People's Moral Budget: Everybody Has the Right to Live - Poor People's Moral Budget: Key Findings

Key findings from the Poor People's Moral Budget report.

Poor People's Moral Budget: Everybody Has the Right to Live

In the seven sections of the Moral Budget, we look at policies and investments for seven critical areas of the Poor People’s Moral Agenda.

Poor People's Moral Budget: Everybody Has the Right to Live - In Search of True Security: Rebalancing the Pentagon Budget

We identify as much as $350 billion in cuts that would bring the Pentagon budget down to roughly $400 billion per year, still more than the budgets of China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea - combined.

Tax Day 2019 - Tax Day 2019 Notes and Sources

Tax Day shows how your individual income taxes were spent. Those are a portion of the taxes withheld from your paycheck, and due this year on April 15.

Tax Day 2019 - Tax Day 2019 Social Media Toolkit

Tax Day 2019 graphics for social media.

Tax Day 2019 - Where Your Tax Dollar Was Spent in 2018

How were your tax dollars spent in 2018? Here's a breakdown of how the federal government used every dollar you paid.

Tax Day 2019 - Seven Surprising Tax Facts for 2019

Seven surprising facts about where our tax dollars go, and who pays what.

Tax Day 2019

Tax Day is April 15, 2019. Want to know what your taxes pay for, and who pays what?

Nine Things To Buy Instead of a Border Wall - Graphics

We're in the longest government shutdown in American history, all because of a political standoff over the border. What could we buy with $5 billion instead of a border wall?

Souls of Poor Folk

The Souls of Poor Folk is an assessment of the conditions and trends of poverty today and of the past fifty in the United States.

Tax Day 2018

Tax Day is April 17, 2017. Want to know what your taxes pay for, and who pays what?

Tax Day 2018 - Tax Day 2018 Notes and Sources

Tax Day shows how your individual income taxes were spent. Those are a portion of the taxes withheld from your paycheck, and due this year on April 18 (not April 15, as usual).

Tax Day 2018 - Tax Day 2018 Social Media Toolkit

Tax Day 2018 - Seven Surprising Tax Facts for 2018

Seven surprising facts about where our tax dollars go, and who pays what.

Trump Budget Request Takes Military Share of Spending to Historic Levels

By 2023, the final year included in President Trump's budget request, military spending would make up 65 percent of the federal discretionary budget, compared to 54 percent in 2018.

Trump's FY2019 Budget Request Has Massive Cuts for Nearly Everything But the Military

The president's priorities are clear: ever-increasing funds for the Pentagon, nuclear weapons and Homeland Security, and massive cuts to almost everything else.

The Souls of Poor Folk: A Preliminary Report

To support this modern-day Poor People’s Campaign, the Institute for Policy Studies has produced an analysis of the campaign’s four core issues: racism, poverty, the war economy/militarism, and ecological destruction.

Senate Plan: What Else Could Tax Cuts for the Richest 1% Buy? A 50-State Perspective

In the United States, the richest one percent – with average incomes of $2 million – will collectively get $56 billion in tax cuts in 2019 under the Senate plan.

House Plan: What Else Could Tax Cuts for the Richest 1% Buy? A 50-State Perspective

The richest one percent – with average incomes of $2 million – will collectively get $72 billion in tax cuts in 2018 under the Trump plan. What else could that pay for?

Protecting Our Communities: A State's Guide to Demilitarizing for a Brighter Future

U.S. military spending, with its major focus on exerting U.S. influence and dominance overseas, has an analog here at home: spending on policing, incarceration, and immigration enforcement.

Tax Day 2017 - Tax Day 2017 Social Media Resource Kit

Our social media toolkit with graphics and sample tweets abotu where your tax dollar goes: miltiarism, the Pentagon, incarceration and immigration. And what we should do instead: health care, education, jobs and more.

The Militarized Budget 2017

In 2016, the "militarized" budget amounted to 64 percent of discretionary spending.

Tax Day 2017

Want to know what your taxes pay for, and who pays what?

Tax Day 2017 - Tax Day 2017: Notes and Sources

Tax Day 2017: How we did it.

Tax Day 2017 - Seven Tax Facts for 2017

From who pays to what we pay for, here are the facts.

National Priorities Project Statement on Trump FY 2018 Budget Proposal

Competing Visions 2016

National Priorities Project examines how new budget proposals stack up to Americans’ priorities.

Competing Visions 2016 - Competing Visions 2016 One Pager

A one page version of our Competing Visions analysis comparing different budget proposals to Americans' priorities. Print it and take it with you!

Tax Day 2016 - Tax Day 2016: Notes and Sources

Tax Day shows how your income taxes were spent. Notes & Sources describes our data sources and how we analyzed the numbers.

Tax Day 2016 - Tax Day 2016: Seven Surprising Things You Should Know About Taxes

There's plenty to like about taxes. And what you don't like, you can change.

Tax Day 2016

Wondering where your 2015 income taxes went?

The President's 2017 Budget Proposal in Pictures

The National Priorities Project breaks down President Obama’s $4.2 trillion budget proposal in a series of pictures.

President Obama Proposes 2017 Budget

New proposal calls for investment in domestic priorities but also prioritizes Pentagon spending and military force.

Tax Extenders Explained

National Priorities Project answers important questions related to the temporary tax breaks known as the “tax extenders.”

Inequality Showdown: Early Childhood Education

It’s time for us to recognize that preschool is essential for our kids, our families, and our economy. And we can afford it.

What Congressional Budget Cuts Would Mean for Your State

Domestic discretionary programs that Congress funds annually have already been subjected to years of freezes and cuts. The budget passed by Congress would cut them by $500 billion more over the next decade.

Highlights from the 2015 Social Security and Medicare Trustees Reports

National Priorities Project breaks down what you need to know on the status of the Social Security and Medicare trust funds.

Pentagon Budget Request FY2016

On February 2, the Obama Administration released its fiscal year 2016 budget request reflecting input from the Department of Defense. Here's what they asked for.

Move the Money 2015

National Priorities Project, Peace Action, along with a terrific group of colleagues, have assembled all the materials you need to enter the current national debate about Pentagon spending within the federal budget, while building the capacity of colleagues and allies to join you!

Competing Visions: President Obama, House Budget Committee, Senate Budget Committee, and Congressional Progressive Caucus Release Budget Proposals for 2016

National Priorities Project examines how new budget proposals stack up against what Americans want.

Tax Day 2015 - Tax Day 2015: Notes and Sources

Tax Day 2015 - Tax Day 2015: Seven Things You Should Know About Taxes

Tax Day 2015

Tax Day is coming up on April 15. Wondering where your 2014 income taxes went?

President’s 2016 Budget in Pictures - President's Proposed 2016 Budget: Annual Budget Deficit or Surplus as Share of the Economy (GDP)

Size of the federal budget deficit (or surplus) as a share of the overall U.S. economy (measured by Gross Domestic Product, or GDP) dating back to 1930. In President Obama’s fiscal year 2016 budget, the deficit amounts to 2.5 percent of the economy. That’s on par with annual deficits since World War II.

President’s 2016 Budget in Pictures - President's Proposed 2016 Budget: Total Tax Revenue

In 2016, the president proposes collecting $3.5 trillion in total tax revenue, with individual income taxes and payroll taxes – which fund Social Security and Medicare – as the largest source of revenues. President Obama proposes a budget where tax revenue will cover nearly 87 percent of total spending. The rest – 13 percent – will come from borrowing.

President’s 2016 Budget in Pictures - President's Proposed '16 Budget: Individual/Corporate Income Taxes as % of Total Federal Revenue

How tax revenue from individual income taxes and corporate income taxes has changed over time. In fiscal year 2016, President Obama projects that individual income taxes will account for 46.7 percent of total tax revenue, while corporations will contribute 13.4 percent. The remaining 40 percent of federal revenue will come primarily from payroll taxes from Social Security and Medicare, as well as other sources such as customs and excise taxes.

President’s 2016 Budget in Pictures - President's Proposed 2016 Budget: Federal Spending and Revenue as Share of U.S. Economy (GDP)

Federal spending and tax revenue as a share of the overall U.S. economy (measured by Gross Domestic Product, or GDP) dating back to 1930. In fiscal year 2016, the president’s budget proposes federal spending levels totaling 21.3 percent of the U.S. economy and revenues as 18.7 percent.

President’s 2016 Budget in Pictures - President's Proposed 2016 Budget: Military and Non-Military Discretionary Spending

How funding for military and non-military discretionary programs has changed over time. Under the president’s fiscal year 2016 discretionary budget, military spending would account for 54 percent, while non-military spending would account for 46 percent.

President’s 2016 Budget in Pictures - President's Proposed 2016 Budget: Mandatory and Discretionary Spending and Interest on Debt

How mandatory spending and discretionary spending fit into the president’s overall budget. Under the president’s proposal, $1.15 trillion in discretionary spending would make up less than a third of all federal spending while 65 percent of spending, or $2.56 trillion, would be spent on mandatory spending programs. The remaining 7 percent of the budget, or $283 billion, would go towards interest on the federal debt.

President’s 2016 Budget in Pictures - President's Proposed 2016 Budget: Mandatory Spending

President Obama proposes to spend $2.63 trillion in mandatory spending in fiscal year 2016, an increase of more than 5 percent over the 2015 enacted level. Mandatory spending includes earned-benefit programs that people pay into, such as Social Security and Medicare, and accounts for 65 percent of all spending in the president’s proposed 2016 budget. Lawmakers do not choose the exact amount of money spent on these programs, because they are dependent on the number of people who qualify for benefits, but rule changes can indirectly affect how much is spent. This chart shows how the president would allocate that spending.

President’s 2016 Budget in Pictures - President's Proposed 2016 Budget: Discretionary Spending

President Obama proposes to spend $1.15 trillion in discretionary spending in fiscal year 2016, an increase of 2 percent over the 2015 enacted level. Discretionary spending is the portion of the federal budget that Congress determines annually in the appropriations process and accounts for 28 percent of all spending in the president’s proposed 2016 budget. It does not include earned benefits programs that people pay into like Social Security and Medicare. This chart shows how the president would allocate that spending.

President’s 2016 Budget in Pictures - President's Proposed 2016 Budget: Total Spending

How President Obama proposed allocating $4.1 trillion in total federal spending in fiscal year 2016, an increase of more than 5 percent over the total 2015 spending level. This includes every type of federal spending, from funding for discretionary programs like infrastructure improvements and job training to mandatory spending programs like Social Security and Medicare, as well as interest payments on the federal debt. Social Security and labor, Medicare and health programs, and military spending will make up 76 percent of the total budget, leaving just 24 percent, or $957 billion of the $4.1 trillion total, to spend on all other programs.

President’s 2016 Budget in Pictures

President Obama recently released his fiscal year 2016 budget proposal. And budgets are about our nation’s priorities: What are we going to spend money on? How are we going to raise the money we want to spend? These pictures tell the story of the priorities found in the president’s budget.

President Obama Proposes 2016 Budget

President Obama's budget proposal includes spending above sequestration caps for defense and non-defense, and many initiatives that would be widely popular with Americans.

National Priorities Project Reacts to President's Fiscal Year 2016 Budget

President Obama today released his budget proposal for fiscal year 2016. The $4 trillion spending and tax proposal includes funding that would provide two years of tuition-free community college for students, investments in job training and early education, as well as substantial increases in military spending.

What's in a Cromnibus: Extended Analysis

On Saturday, the Senate passed a U.S. budget that avoided a government shutdown, set the stage for a February showdown over immigration, relaxed financial investment rules implemented under the Dodd-Frank Act, raised limits on campaign contributions, and made policy changes in virtually every public policy arena you care about.

State Smart: Federal Funds in 50 States

NPP's State Smart offers an easy-to-use look at dozens of ways that federal dollars flow between states and the U.S. Treasury. This report examines the influence of the Great Recession on these dynamics and their impact on our everyday lives.

Tax Extenders Explained

National Priorities Project answers important questions related to the temporary tax breaks known as the “tax extenders.”

Competing Visions: Election Edition

NPP revisits its Competing Visions analysis that shows how lawmakers would break down the federal budget.

Voter’s Guides 2014

Our Voter’s Guides give you the low-down on our federal government’s role in vital systems we all care about, including education, health care, and the military, as well as how we can pay for it all through taxes and the role of deficits and the national debt, and key questions to ask candidates.

Factsheets on NPP's Eight Issue Areas

The National Priorities Project takes on analysis of eight key issue areas as they relate to the federal budget - from spending on health care and social insurance programs to the military budget.

Move The Money 2014

The Big Money in Tax Breaks Continues - Tax Breaks – Notes and Sources

The Big Money in Tax Breaks Continues - Report: The Big Money in Tax Breaks Continues

Everything you need to know about tax breaks including how much they cost the federal government, who benefits, and how you can influence the debate in Washington.

The Big Money in Tax Breaks Continues - Tax Break Costs: 1974 – Present

Download data and explore the cost of every tax break every year from 1974 to the present.

The Big Money in Tax Breaks Continues

National Priorities Project examines trillions of dollars in tax breaks, who benefits, and why it matters for you. Materials include an interactive visualization, a report, and data on every tax break from 1974 to the present.

President's 2015 Budget in Pictures - All Revenue and Spending: Where the Money Comes From and Where the Money Goes

This graphic shows how the government brings in revenue - from different types of taxes as well as borrowing - and how it spends money on programs ranging from Medicare to education to the military to interest on the federal debt.

Fiscal Year 2015 Pentagon Budget Analysis

National Priorities Project examines the new budget proposal for the Department of Defense.

Competing Visions: President Obama, Rep. Paul Ryan, and House Progressives Release Budget Proposals for 2015

National Priorities Project examines how new budget proposals stack up against what Americans want.

Tax Day 2014

April 15 is Tax Day. Do you know where your taxes went? See how the federal government spent each one of your federal income tax dollars, get the key facts in Taxes 101, and get your personalized tax receipt or the average tax receipt for taxpayers in your state.

Federal Spending in Your State, 2013-2015

Funding by state for select federal programs including Head Start, Special Education, and Medicaid.

President's 2015 Budget in Pictures

President Obama recently released his 2015 budget proposal. And budgets are about priorities: What we’re going to spend money on, and how we’re going to raise the money that we’re spending. These pictures tell the story of the priorities in the president’s budget.

President's 2015 Budget in Pictures - Annual Budget Deficit or Surplus as a Share of the Economy

The size of the federal budget deficit (or surplus) as a share of the overall U.S. economy since 1930. In President Obama’s 2015 budget, the deficit amounts to 3.1 percent of the economy. As you can see, that’s roughly on par with annual deficits since World War II.

President's 2015 Budget in Pictures - Total Tax Revenue

President Obama proposes collecting $3.34 trillion in total tax revenue in fiscal year 2015, with individual income taxes and payroll taxes – which fund Social Security and Medicare – as the largest revenue sources. Tax revenue will cover 84 percent of total spending. The rest – 16 percent – will come from borrowing.

President's 2015 Budget in Pictures - Individual and Corporate Income Taxes as Percent of Total Federal Revenue

How tax revenue from individuals and corporations has changed over time. Individual income taxes will account for 46 percent of total tax revenue in 2015, while corporations will contribute 13.5 percent. Other federal revenue will come from payroll taxes, as well as customs and excise taxes.

President's 2015 Budget in Pictures - Federal Spending and Revenue as a Share of GDP

Federal spending and tax revenue as a share of the overall U.S. economy all the way back to 1930. In 2015, President Obama proposes federal spending levels totaling 21 percent of the U.S. economy and tax revenue equal to 18 percent.

President's 2015 Budget in Pictures - MIlitary and Non-Military Discretionary Spending

How funding for military and non-military discretionary spending has changed over time. Military spending accounts for 55 percent of the president’s 2015 discretionary budget proposal, while non-military spending accounts for 45 percent.

President's 2015 Budget in Pictures - Total Spending

How President Obama proposes allocating all $3.97 trillion in federal spending in fiscal year 2015. This includes every kind of federal spending, from funding for discretionary programs like job training and environmental protection to mandatory programs like Social Security and Medicare as well as interest payments on the federal debt.

President's 2015 Budget in Pictures - Mandatory Spending

How President Obama plans to spend $2.6 trillion in mandatory spending in fiscal year 2015. Mandatory spending includes programs like Social Security and Medicare, which are often called earned-benefit programs. Lawmakers do not choose the exact amount of money spent on these programs, because it depends on how many people qualify for benefits.

President's 2015 Budget in Pictures - Mandatory and Discretionary Spending and Interest on Federal Debt

How discretionary spending fits into the overall federal budget. As you can see, discretionary spending is less than a third of all federal spending. Sixty-four percent of spending, or $2.6 trillion, falls under the mandatory spending category. Mandatory spending refers to spending for earned-benefit programs like Medicare and Social Security. The remaining 6 percent of the federal budget, or $252 billion, will go towards interest on the federal debt.

President's 2015 Budget in Pictures - Discretionary Spending

How President Obama proposes allocating $1.16 trillion in discretionary spending in fiscal year 2015. Discretionary spending is the part of the federal budget that Congress determines annually during the federal budget process, and it accounts for 29 percent of total spending in the president's proposed 2015 budget. It does not include earned-benefit programs like Social Security and Medicare.

Tax Day 2014 - Notes & Sources

Tax Day 2014 - Taxes 101: The Seven Things You Must Know About Taxes

President Obama Proposes 2015 Budget

New budget includes $56 billion in additional spending, relieving sequestration for fiscal 2015.

Sequestration’s Impact on Military Spending, 2013 – 2014

Across-the-board budget cuts have had a much smaller impact on military spending than news reports suggest.

History of the U.S. Federal Budget, 2011 – 2013

Recently the nation has endured one Congress-made, budget-related crisis after another. National Priorities Project documents the twists and turns.

Summary of 2014 Discretionary Spending Levels

Earlier this month, congressional lawmakers enacted an omnibus spending bill that would fund the federal government for fiscal year 2014. Here's how the omnibus compares to 2013 spending levels.

FAQ: The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013

Senate Budget Committee Chair Patty Murray and her House counterpart Rep. Paul Ryan came to a deal on the federal budget. See exactly what the deal contains.

Will the National Action Plan Tackle Spending Transparency Gaps?

Version 2.0 of the White House's Open Government National Action Plan commits to shining more sunlight on how the federal government spends our money. We applaud this focus, but a good deal of work remains to reverse the recent decline of federal spending transparency.

Americans' Blueprint for a Budget Resolution

Lawmakers are failing the basic task of managing our nation’s finances. Yet if they listened to the American people, they would pass a smart long-term budget plan by taking these actions on key issues.

Corporate Tax Reform - Frequently Asked Questions: U.S. Corporate Taxes and Tax Reform

There's currently bipartisan agreement that the corporate tax code is ripe for reform. Here are four things you need to know.

Corporate Tax Reform - 3 Outrageous Numbers on Corporate Taxes

3 outrageous numbers on corportate taxes.

Corporate Tax Reform

All Americans benefit from public goods like clean air and water, infrastructure, education and other federal programs. These goods are not free, though. They require revenue, provided by taxes. Loopholes in the tax code let big corporations avoid taxes, making it harder to provide public structures on which Americans rely.

A Multi-Issue Prevention Model for Benefiting Society While Reducing Government Spending

In a collaboration with the Prevention Project, National Priorities Project explores investment in prevention strategies -- from health care to criminal justice to national defense -- in order to achieve better outcomes for society while saving taxpayer dollars.

End the Government Shutdown and Raise the Debt Ceiling - Fact Sheet: Government Shutdown and the Debt Ceiling

End the Government Shutdown and Raise the Debt Ceiling - Have 3 Minutes? End the Shutdown!

You have the power to get our government back on track and prevent default on our existing debt.

End the Government Shutdown and Raise the Debt Ceiling

Lawmakers’ failure to pass a real budget by Oct. 1, combined with their inability to agree on raising the debt ceiling before Oct. 17, costs our economy billions of dollars and affects millions of Americans with each day that the impasse continues.

August Recess Legislator Meeting Fact Sheets - Taxes and Tax Reform Fact Sheet

This fact sheet has all the must-know information as lawmakers consider overhauling the tax code.

August Recess Legislator Meeting Fact Sheets - Military Spending Fact Sheet

Key facts for understanding the current debate over military spending.

August Recess Legislator Meeting Fact Sheets - Federal Spending Fact Sheet

The key facts on federal spending and the off-the-rails budget process.

August Recess Legislator Meeting Fact Sheets - Health Care Fact Sheet

The key facts on federal health care spending in this country – including rising costs and the implementation of the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare.

August Recess Legislator Meeting Fact Sheets - Education Fact Sheet

A fact sheet with must-know information about federal funding for education and what's at stake right now for K-12 education as well as student loan interest rates.

August Recess Legislator Meeting Fact Sheets - Social Security Fact Sheet

A cheat sheet for everything you need to know about Social Security and preserving the program's long-term future.

August Recess Legislator Meeting Fact Sheets

Members of Congress will be in their home districts in the month of August, and NPP encourages you to set up meetings with your legislators during August to make your budget priorities known. To assist you, this is a series of fact sheets covering federal funding for education, the military, health care, and Social Security, as well as tax reform and overall federal spending and the budget process.

Federal Spending in Your State, 2012-2014

Funding by state for select federal programs including Head Start, Special Education, and Medicaid, for fiscal years 2012 through projected 2014.

President Obama Proposes 2014 Budget

Overview and details of President Obama's 2014 budget proposal, including proposed reductions in Social Security benefits.

Fiscal Year 2014 Pentagon Budget Analysis

Overview, highlights, and details of the Pentagon's 2014 budget request.

Tax Day 2013 - Animated Video: If Paychecks Could Talk

Tax Day 2013

Find out where your 2012 income taxes went.

Competing Visions: President Obama, Rep. Paul Ryan, Sen. Patty Murray, and House Progressives Release Budget Proposals for 2014

National Priorities Project examines how new budget proposals stack up against what Americans want.

Homeland Security: The Second Defense Department

In an opinion piece for TomDispatch, Mattea Kramer and Chris Hellman describe their findings after exploring federal funding for homeland security.

Homeland Security Spending Since 9/11

NPP calculates how much the federal government has spent on homeland security since the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

Sequestration, the Pentagon, and the States

Sequestration, the Pentagon, and the States offers selected state-level briefs focused on the local impact of looming automatic across-the-board federal spending cuts known as sequestration and historically high levels of Pentagon spending.

Federal Budget Timeline: Beyond the Fiscal Cliff in 2013

The federal budget process is always complicated. This is truer today than perhaps ever before. Over the coming weeks and months Congress will take on issues that will shape our government for years to come.

The Fiscal Cliff Deal

At the eleventh hour, Congress and President Obama reached a deal to address the fiscal cliff. The deal focused on tax revenue and included a number of changes to the tax code, including a permanent extension of the Bush-era tax cuts on income below $450,000 for families and below $400,000 for individuals.

A Fight for the Future: Education, Job Training, and the Fiscal Showdown - Fight for the Future: Notes and Sources

A Fight for the Future: Education, Job Training, and the Fiscal Showdown - Conclusion: It's About Priorities

A Fight for the Future: Education, Job Training, and the Fiscal Showdown - National Service: A Missed Opportunity

A Fight for the Future: Education, Job Training, and the Fiscal Showdown - Ignoring Youth Unemployment

A Fight for the Future: Education, Job Training, and the Fiscal Showdown - Cutting Education: Pulling the Plug on Progress

A Fight for the Future: Education, Job Training, and the Fiscal Showdown - Introduction

A Fight for the Future: Education, Job Training, and the Fiscal Showdown - Executive Summary

A Fight for the Future: Education, Job Training, and the Fiscal Showdown

Young Invincibles and National Priorities Project released “A Fight for the Future: Education, Job Training, and The Fiscal Showdown,” a report detailing how the looming fiscal battle could severely threaten key investments in job training and education. This original analysis compares the scale of the challenges in educating the next generation of Americans to actual investments in the education and training of young adults, showing that our federal budget falls far short of the investment needed. The report also compares expenditures on training and education to other budget items like defense spending and tax cuts.

What is the Fiscal Cliff? Resources on the Bush Tax Cuts, Sequestration, and the Lame Duck Congress

In the coming weeks, Congress will take on the fiscal cliff and make decisions about the Bush tax cuts, the automatic spending cuts known as sequestration, and a host of other tax and spending issues that will affect every American. We've got all the details in plain English so you can follow these important negotiations and tell Congress your priorities.

Election 2012: The Voter Guide - Fact Sheet: Education

Did you know that education programs account for just 2 percent of federal spending? This one-pager explains the federal role in education and includes quotes on the issue from the presidential candidates.

Election 2012: The Voter Guide - Fact Sheet: Federal Spending

How big are budget deficits and what should be done?

Election 2012: The Voter Guide - Fact Sheet: Military Spending

Is the military budget getting bigger or getting cut? This one-pager covers the hotly-debated status of military spending.

Election 2012: The Voter Guide - Fact Sheet: Health Care

Health care accounts for 24 percent of the federal budget. This one-pager covers the facts on growth in health spending and proposals from both presidential candidates.

Election 2012: The Voter Guide

National Priorities Project's suite of resources for the 2012 election: A comparison of the presidential candidates on 12 key issues, plus fact sheets with crucial background information on Medicare, Social Security, taxes, and more.

Election 2012: The Voter Guide - Fact Sheet: Social Security

Is Social Security in crisis or not? This one-pager covers the must-know facts and proposals from both presidential candidates.

Election 2012: The Voter Guide - Fact Sheet: Taxes

Should tax rates go up or down, and for whom? This one-pager includes important but little-known facts about taxes and loopholes in the tax code, plus proposals from both presidential candidates.

Election 2012: The Voter Guide - Voter Guide 2012: Obama and Romney on the Issues

National Priorities Project compares the candidates on 12 key issues.

The Untold Story of Deficits in Washington - Where's the Revenue? - Infographic

The Untold Story of Deficits in Washington

In 2000, the federal government had a balanced budget and projected surpluses for years to come. Fast forward a decade, and Washington runs steep budget deficits while news media report that federal spending is out of control. But deficits depend on two things: spending and revenue. In 2000, when the budget was balanced, federal tax revenue amounted to around 20 percent of the U.S. economy.

President Obama's Fiscal Year 2013 Budget - Military Spending in Fiscal 2013 and Beyond

President Obama’s new budget includes $525 billion for the Department of Defense. Adjusted for inflation, that’s 2.6 percent less than fiscal 2012 levels. That’s the first cut to the Pentagon’s base budget in over a decade. The American public is divided over reducing military spending, according to a recent poll by the Pew Research Center. Forty-five percent of Americans say a smaller military can be just as effective, while 44 percent say the cuts will reduce effectiveness.

President Obama's Fiscal Year 2013 Budget - Health Spending in the President's Budget

President Obama’s recent budget estimates that spending on health care programs will cost the federal government $897 billion in fiscal year 2013; $530 billion of that will go to Medicare, the federal health insurance program for senior citizens. Health spending is the fastest growing type of spending in the federal budget, comprising 24 percent of the president’s fiscal 2013 spending plan. Less than four decades ago, federal spending on healthcare was 7 percent of the budget.

President Obama's Fiscal Year 2013 Budget - Money In, Money Out

This graphic shows where all the money in the federal budget comes from, and where it goes, in the president’s budget request for fiscal year 2013.

President Obama's Fiscal Year 2013 Budget - Funding Education

Competing Visions

This week the House of Representatives will consider two significantly different alternatives to the president’s fiscal 2013 budget request— the Republican draft budget resolution, introduced by Rep. Paul Ryan, and an alternative introduced by the Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC).

The two budgets offer vastly different visions for the nation, and each uses the president’s budget as a baseline to compare their contrasting proposals. Rep. Ryan reduces tax rates as well as spending, finding savings largely from domestic programs that serve low-income people, including Medicaid and the food stamp program. The CPC increases revenues with higher tax rates on wealthy individuals and corporations, while adding substantial new spending for job creation and making few changes to domestic programs.

Tax Day 2012 - Your Tax Receipt

Some people think the federal government should give them a receipt for their income taxes to show where all that money went. While you may not get a receipt from the IRS any time soon, National Priorities Project went ahead and wrote one up. This receipt shows where $2,654 in income taxes was spent by the government in fiscal 2011. That’s an estimate of the taxes paid by a single person earning around $30,000 annually.

Tax Day 2012 - Taxes and Your Paycheck

Tax Day 2012

On April 17, 2012, your 2011 federal income tax return is due to the IRS. Where did the federal government spend your income taxes during fiscal year 2011?

President Obama's Fiscal Year 2013 Budget - Federal Spending in Your State

Primary Stakes

The presidential election is about voters’ vision for how the federal government should serve the American people, so National Priorities Project is examining the extent to which residents of key primary states currently rely on federal support. Federal money often comprises a third or more of state budgets, while residents of those states receive thousands of dollars of direct federal assistance from programs ranging from Social Security and Medicare to Pell Grants or unemployment compensation.

Primary Stakes - Tale of Two Super Tuesday States

National Priorities Project’s Primary Stakes series examines how residents of primary states currently rely on assistance from the federal government, and two Super Tuesday states illustrate that support from the federal government—and taxes paid—can vary widely.

President Obama's Fiscal Year 2013 Budget - Deficits

President Obama's Fiscal Year 2013 Budget - Interactive: Where the Money Goes

President Obama's Fiscal Year 2013 Budget - Interactive: Where the Money Comes From

President Obama's Fiscal Year 2013 Budget

On Feb. 13, the president released his budget proposal for FY 2013. National Priorities Project looks at the numbers, the history behind them, and why the president's budget matters.

Primary Stakes - Federal Money Flows into Hard-Hit Michigan

Primary voters in Michigan head to the polls on Feb. 28 to weigh in on the Republican nominating contest. Michigan has been hard hit by the Great Recession, and National Priorities Project took a look at the extent to which Michigan currently relies on federal spending.

Analysis of Fiscal Year 2013 Pentagon Spending Request

On February 14, 2012 the Obama Administration released the government's Fiscal Year 2013 budget request. The budget proposal includes $525 billion for the Department of Defense, not including funding for military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan or the nuclear weapons activities of the Department of Energy. The Pentagon is seeking ways to reduce spending by $487 billion over the next decade.

Talking About Military Spending and the Pentagon Budget – Fiscal Year 2013 (And Beyond)

An FAQ focused on the immediate and long-term impact of projected Pentagon spending.

Primary Stakes - Federal Aid Assists Wealthy State of Colorado

Colorado residents attend caucuses on February 7th to decide their pick for the Republican nominee for president. Choosing a presidential candidate in part means caucus-goers will consider how they want the government to spend their federal tax dollars. National Priorities Project took a look at how much Colorado residents currently pay in federal taxes, and what they get in return.

Primary Stakes - Federal Money on the Rise in Florida, Nevada

The second publication in NPP's federal aid to the states series looks at the role of federal money in Florida and Nevada. Both states saw the percentage of federal money in their budgets increase between 2009 and 2010. In addition, state residents saw an increase in direct federal assistance dollars.

An Economy That’s Built to Last: The 2012 State of the Union Address

National Priorities Project takes apart President Obama’s last State of the Union Address in his first term as president.

Primary Stakes - Federal Spending Keeps Iowa, New Hampshire Afloat

This month the first voters head to the polls to decide who will be the Republican nominee for president. National Priorities Project took a look at the extent to which residents of the first primary states, Iowa and New Hampshire, receive federal support—even if they may be unaware of it.

Year End Wrap-Up

September 30th marks the end of the fiscal year for the U.S. Government, and if you've had trouble following events in Washington, you're in good company. NPP pulls together key events of 2011 and offers a look ahead to critical decisions awaiting our elected officials.

End of the Year Military Spending Wrap-Up

In the coming weeks the “Super Committee” of twelve Senators and Members of Congress will begin deliberating ways to generate as much as $1.5 trillion in deficit reduction over a decade. Beginning with the military, NPP will create a clearer picture of the budgetary decisions that await the Committee.

What's at Stake?

What's at Stake? offers 50 state-level briefs focused on the local impact of war spending.

Military Recruitment 2010

Approximately one quarter of all military spending goes towards the recruitment, retention, wages and benefits for military personnel. Each year, National Priorities Project (NPP) reports on military recruitment in an effort to better understand these expenditures by focusing on active-duty Army recruits.

Afghan War Costs Compared to State Budget Shortfalls

41 states and the District of Columbia are projecting budget shortfalls for FY2012 totaling $102.9 billion. This amount could be wiped out entirely by the amount spent on the war in Afghanistan this year ($122 billion in FY2011).

Annual Costs of the War in Afghanistan

As part of its "Cost of War" analysis, NPP has calculated the total cost of the war in Afghanistan.

U.S. Security Spending Since 9/11

The killing of Osama Bin Laden by U.S. special forces prompted a great many questions about the continued U.S. war in Afghanistan, and how much the United States has spent on “security” since the attacks on September 11, 2001. National Priorities Project has the numbers.

President's Budget 2012: Values By The Numbers - Defining the FY2012 Budget Debate

House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan’s “Path for Prosperity” and the Congressional Progressive Caucus’s (CPC) “People’s Budget” are more than competing budget proposals. They are also very different visions for our nation. President Obama must navigate along this continuum during future negotiations with Congress over the FY2012 budget.

Analysis of the Fiscal Year 2011 Budget Agreement

Quite literally at the 11th hour on Friday, April 8, narrowly averting a government shutdown, Democratic and Republican congressional leaders and President Obama reached agreement on a spending bill that will fund the federal government for the last six months of Fiscal Year (FY) 2011, which ends on September 30, 2011. The agreement is actually two bills – a seven day Continuing Resolution to allow time for the last minute work needed to enact the full spending package, and a Continuing Resolution (CR) that funds government, unless otherwise specified, at FY2010 levels for the remainder of FY2011.

The President's Budget to the Chairman's Plan

On April 5, House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-WI) released “Path to Prosperity,” his budget proposal for FY2012, with projections through FY2021. The plan cuts $6.2 trillion in spending over the next decade from the budget projections released with President Obama's proposed budget for FY2012.

NPP provides a two-page analysis of the Chairman's proposal, looking at the proposed cuts in FY2012, long-term funding, deficit projections and significant proposed policy shifts for major federal programs like Social Security and Medicare.

Taxday 2011 - Count Your Pennies

A deeper breakdown of our classic bar chart showing how much of every tax dollar goes into selected programs - WIC, Head Start, Section 8 Housing, and more.

Taxday 2011 - Revenues and Borrowing FAQ

A quick guide to Federal Funds, Trust Funds, debt, deficits and more.

Taxday 2011 - Revenue Sources and Federal Funds

A look at total federal revenue with a comparison of individual and corporate income taxes.

Taxday 2011 - Breakout of Your Federal Dollar

A bar chart showing how many cents out of every tax dollar are spent on healthcare, income security & labor, the military, and each of nine other spending categories.

Taxday 2011

National Priorities Project offers you several ways to learn about how the federal government spent each 2010 federal income tax dollar. Find out what other revenue sources were used to pay our nation’s bills in 2010.

President's Budget 2012: Values By The Numbers

National Priorities Project offers four detailed analyses of President Obama’s $3.7 trillion budget for Fiscal Year 2012 focused on: expenditures, revenue and deficits, the impact of federal spending on the states and a detailed FY2012 budget overview with a selection of actual and projected revenue and spending charts.

President's Budget 2012: Values By The Numbers - Federal Aid to States (Selected Programs)

What’s inside?

Fully Downloadable Table – presents state-level funding for thirty-three federal programs, including Medicaid, SNAP, CHIP, LIHEAP and public housing
View by state or program
Compares FY2010 actual spending and FY2012 proposed spending
Click on the program to find out more about what it funds

President's Budget 2012: Values By The Numbers - The President's Budget Unveiled

What’s inside?

Analysis – a complete overview of President Obama’s proposed budget highlighting salient points and offering key questions to consider
Revenue and Spending Charts – a selection of actual and projected revenue and spending information in easy-to-understand chart formats

President's Budget 2012: Values By The Numbers - Revenues and Deficits

What’s inside?

Fully Downloadable Table – presents state-level funding for thirty-three federal programs, including Medicaid, SNAP, CHIP, LIHEAP and public housing
View by state or program
Compares FY2010 actual spending and FY2012 proposed spending
Click on the program to find out more about what it funds

President's Budget 2012: Values By The Numbers - FY2012 Spending in Historical Perspective

What’s inside?

Bar Chart – breaks out FY2000 to FY2012 federal revenue and borrowing
Pie Chart – details projected FY2012 revenues by source

Analysis of the Fiscal Year 2012 Pentagon Spending Request

On February 14, 2011 the Obama Administration released its proposed Fiscal Year 2012 budget for the federal government. As part of this budget, the Administration is seeking $553 billion in funding for the Department of Defense, not including funding for military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan or the nuclear weapons related activities of the Department of Energy.

The Numbers Behind President Obama's “State of the Union” Address

Article II, Section 3 of the U.S. Constitution requires the President to “from time to time give to the Congress Information of the State of the Union, and recommend to their Consideration such Measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient.” President Obama's 2011 “State of the Union” address covered a broad range of policy and budgetary issues. NPP looks at the numbers behind some of the major topics covered by the President.

NPP's New Trade Offs Tool Shows the Magnitude of Federal Spending

With all eyes on our nation's budget, National Priorities Project (NPP) has overhauled its Trade Offs Tool designed to clarify the magnitude and localized impact of federal spending programs. The tool estimates FY2011 spending for select federal programs for individual states, counties, congressional districts, and towns. It then represents these dollar amounts in terms of localized costs of alternative goods and services such as police, teachers, or care for military veterans.

A Host of Updates for NPP's Federal Priorities Database

National Priorities Project has updated all state-level data in its Federal Priorities Database with the latest available federal government data. This database offers a collection of federal spending data accompanied by budget area indicators.

U.S. Jobs and the Economic Crisis: Local Impacts and Federal Initiatives

A jobless recovery...State and local budget crises...Federal spending and tax policies...New jobs legislation on Capitol Hill. They all affect you. This packet of resources provides current state and local data to help you understand the depth of the problems confronting your state and community, and see the local impact of federal policies.

NPP's Federal Budget 101 Charts: Spotlight on FY2011

National Priorities Project has updated its Federal Budget 101: Budget Charts with data from the FY2011 budget.

Where Do Your Tax Dollars Go? Tax Day 2010

With this publication, taxpayers can take stock of how the federal government spent each 2009 income tax dollar. The publication also shows, in addition to individual income taxes, where the money came from in 2009 to pay for federal spending.

Out of Balance: Back by Popular Demand!

Out of Balance has been updated with a fresh FY 2011 budget critique, offering a unique tool for organizers, activists, local and state officials and policy analysts. Participants will be able to download the presentation slides, analysis, talking points and state-level data sheets for community meetings, meetings with their congressional representatives, or to facilitate their own Out of Balance presentation.

The President's Budget Fiscal Year 2011: Impact on the States

This publication reviews Presidential budget requests spanning fiscal years 2008 to 2012 which include requested spending authorities from the final Bush budget to the Obama administration's projected 2012 budget.

Data for Democracy 2010 Webinar Series Launches with Out of Balance

National Priorities Project is proud to announce the launch of the 2010 Data for Democracy webinar series with Out of Balance. The goal of the webinar series is to help our constituents – elected officials, labor leaders, members of the media, organizers and community groups – use NPP's data and tools more effectively.

NPP Releases Key Energy Consumption & Federal Spending Information

NPP has overhauled the Energy area of its Federal Priorities Database. Visitors to the website will find updated national and state-level data related to energy concerns including federal spending for Renewable Energy Research and Development (R&D), Weatherization Assistance for low-income people, and Conservation/Energy-Efficiency R&D. Users of the database can contrast this with federal spending for Fossil Fuel R&D or Nuclear Energy R&D and waste management.

Do You Want to Enter the Healtcare Debate? NPP's database is a one-stop-shopping resource

Health care is one of the most pressing issues of our time. National Priorities Project can help you participate in the healthcare debate. NPP is the only resource in the country providing data that spotlights the intersection of federal spending and human needs over the last 25 years.

The President's Budget Fiscal Year 2010: Bush to Obama

This publication offers a look at federal budgets spanning 2008 to 2010, including the Obama administration's first budget.

National Energy Priorities: The Obama Administration's First Budget

The federal budget has been called a moral document by Congresswoman Barbara Lee. Its spending priorities reflect these morals. The release of President Obama's full fiscal year 2010 budget begins to show us his administration's national priorities. Our job as citizens is to reconcile the President's budget numbers with his words.

Where Do Your Tax Dollars Go? Tax Day 2009

With this publication, taxpayers can take stock of how the federal government spent each 2008 income tax dollar. Income tax dollar spending is available for all states as well as over 200 cities and towns.

Where Do Your Tax Dollars Go? Tax Day 2008

Taxpayers can take stock of how the federal government spent their 2007 income tax dollars. This publication shows how the median income family's 2007 income tax dollars were spent for every state and 200 cities, towns and counties.

The President's Budget: Fiscal Year 2009

The administration released its fiscal year 2009 $3 trillion budget request on Monday, February 5. An overview of the budget proposal along with state-level breakdowns on selected programs are available.

Half of Low-Income People Not Receiving Food Stamp Benefits

NPP's new analysis of 2004 county-level data and statistics focuses on the distribution of Food Stamp Program benefits. The study found that half of all low-income people did not receive benefits.

Where Do Your Tax Dollars Go? Tax Day 2007

This publication shows how the median income family's 2006 income tax dollars were spent for every state and 200 cities, towns and counties.

The President's Budget Fiscal Year 2008: Impact on the States

The budget request released by the administration proposes cuts in non-security related discretionary spending. Compared to fiscal year 2006, $13 billion would be cut from these programs, while another $100 billion would be added for more war spending. State-level tables and other information are now available. State-level factsheets are also available.

Where Do Your Tax Dollars Go? Tax Day 2006

This publication shows how the median income family's 2005 income tax dollars were spent for every state and 200 cities, towns and counties.

The President's Budget Fiscal Year 2007: Impact on the States

The administration released its budget request for fiscal year 2007 proposing deep cuts to domestic spending. NPP offers an analysis with state-level breakdowns on the impact of this budget proposal.

Congress Cuts Clean Water

Congress cut the Clean Water State Revolving Fund for next year. State cuts are provided in this table.

Federal Cuts to Community and Economic Development Funding: Impact on Infrastructure

This page indicates the potential impact of cuts in community and economic development funding to selected cities.

The President's Budget Fiscal Year 2006: Impact on the States

The President's Budget: Impact on the States provides a state-by-state breakdown showing what each state would lose in federal funding.

Where Do Your Tax Dollars Go? Tax Day 2005

With this publication, taxpayers can take stock of how the federal government spent each 2004 income tax dollar.

Impact of President's Budget Proposal on States

On Monday, February 7, 2005, the Bush Administration sent to Congress its budget request for fiscal year 2006. Under the proposed budget, discretionary spending would increase overall

Rising Cost of Prescription Drugs: The Impact of Changes in Medicare

This publication summarizes the provisions in the new Medicare bill that will limit seniors' savings and offers state-by-state numbers on the dollars spent annually on prescription drugs and their rising cost.

Federal Education Funding Falls Short

Federal Education Funding Falls Short assesses federal education spending under the Bush Administration and its impact on each state.

Veterans Benefits Under-funded

This release shows the funding gap nationally and by state in the amount needed to adequately fund discretionary veterans benefits and health care needs.

The President's Budget Fiscal Year 2005: Impact on the States

The President's Budget: Impact on the States provides a state-by-state breakdown showing what each state woul