WSJ: How $100 Of Your Taxes Are Spent

Wall Street Journal, How $100 of Your Taxes Are Spent:

With April 18 nearly here, U.S. taxpayers are likely asking themselves: Where exactly are my tax dollars going?

To answer the question, here is a “Taxpayer Receipt” showing how each $100 of taxes was spent, both for 2016 and five years earlier. It was prepared by the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, a nonpartisan nonprofit group in Washington that monitors federal spending. The group’s three chairmen are Republican Mitch Daniels, Democrat Leon Panetta and independent Tim Penny.

Looking at the list of expenditures, it is clear why some say the U.S. is a giant insurance company with an army. Half of all spending goes for Social Security benefits and health programs such as Medicare and Medicaid, while another 20% is for defense and military benefits.

In the last five years, the shares of spending for Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid have each risen more than 15%. Social Security and Medicare increased largely due to the aging of the population, while the increase in Medicaid comes from aging, growth in health-care costs and expanded eligibility under the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare.