2003 Federal Outlays: Summary

Introduction

This page provides an overview of how the federal government spent money in a single year. For a more detailed breakdown of the spending numbers, see TruthAndPolitics' Federal Budget: Detailed Numbers.

The chart and table depict federal spending for fiscal year 2003. Figures here are for outlays, not budget authority. The budget categories below roughly reflect the budget functions.

Composition of 2003 Federal Outlays: Piechart

Numbers are the percent of total outlays.

Composition of 2003 Federal Outlays: Table

Name		percentage	$ billions	Details
Total outlays		100.0	2157.64
Social Security		22.0	474.68	Function 650
Military		18.8	404.92	Function 050
Medicare		11.6	249.43	Function 570
Social welfare		8.6	185.18	Subfunctions 604, 605, 609
Medicaid		7.6	165.01	Medicaid
Interest		7.1	153.08	Function 900
Retirement, disability, unemployment		6.9	149.26	Subfunctions 601, 602, 603
Education, training, employment, social services		3.8	82.57	Function 500
Transportation		3.1	67.07	Function 400
Veterans		2.6	57.02	Function 700
Other health		2.5	54.56	Health (function 550) minus Medicaid
Other		5.3	114.86	Sum of following items:
	Administration of justice	1.6	35.41	Function 750
	Natural resources and environment	1.4	29.70	Function 300
	General government	1.1	22.99	Function 800
	Agriculture	1.0	22.60	Function 350
	International affairs	1.0	21.21	Function 150
	Science	1.0	20.87	Function 250
	Community and regional development	0.9	18.85	Function 450
	Energy	-0.0	-0.78	Function 270
	Commerce and housing credit	-0.1	-1.61	Function 370
	Offsetting receipts	-2.5	-54.38	Offsetting receipts

Notes

Figures below 100.0 in the column entitled percentage may not add up to 100 because of rounding errors.

Units: the figures in the column entitled $ billions are millions of dollars. They have not been adjusted for inflation. Examples:

• 2157.64 is 2 trillion, 157 billion, 640 million dollars
• 474.68 is 474 billion, 680 million dollars
• 1.61 is 1 billion, 610 million dollars
• 0.78 is 780 million dollars

Some of the numbers in the table are negative. This is because offsetting receipts and collections are recorded as negative outlays.

Data source

Public Budget Database, Budget of the United States Government, Fiscal Year 2005.

Recommended Reading

The choice of budget categories in the piechart and table were influenced by Anders Schneiderman and Nathan Newman, The National Budget Simulation.

References

The following documents were used in the development of this presentation of the budget:

• "Budget Explorer: The Complete US Federal Budget", Kowal Design
• Anders Schneiderman and Nathan Newman, The National Budget Simulation
• Public Budget Database, Budget of the United States Government, Fiscal Year 2005