Mandatory spending

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Mandatory spending (dt .: dutiful spending ) means a category of government spending , issued on the basis of existing laws for specific programs must.

In the United States, mandatory spending refers to household authority and related expenses set out in laws other than annual appropriation bills . In fiscal 2011, mandatory spending made up approximately 60% of the United States federal budget. The two largest items that fall under mandatory spending are the health insurance programs ( Medicare , Medicaid and CHIP ) and social security , which together made up 43% of the federal budget in fiscal 2012. However, parts of the budget of various ministries also consist of mandatory spending , for example the Ministry of Agriculture , the Ministry of Defense , the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of War Veterans .

history

Before the Great Depression almost all federal spending in the United States was spending category discretionary spending . However, since the Social Security Act was passed in 1935, an increasing proportion of the federal budget has been used for mandatory spending . In 1947, social security accounted for less than five percent of the federal budget and less than 0.5% of gross domestic product . In 1962, 13% of the federal budget and half of the mandatory spending was spent on social security. In 1965, Congress passed Medicare, a government program to provide health insurance to elderly citizens. In the following 10 years the share of mandatory spending in the federal budget rose from 30% to over 50%. Although the increase has since decreased, mandatory spending still made up about 60% of the federal budget in fiscal 2012.

In fiscal year 2011, social security, Medicare and Medicaid accounted for the largest individual expenditures of mandatory spending with a total of 70% . Various income protection programs made up a further 18% of mandatory spending , including SNAP , unemployment insurance, and programs to top up wages, as well as child tax considerations.

See also

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e D. Andrew Austin: Mandatory Spending Since 1962. (PDF; 355 kB) Congressional Research Service, accessed October 6, 2013 .
  2. ↑ Policy Basics: Where Do Our Federal Tax Dollars Go? Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, April 12, 2012, accessed October 6, 2013 .
  3. ↑ Patricia Martin, David Weaver: Social Security: A Program and Policy History . In: Social Security Bulletin . 66, No. 1, 2005. Retrieved October 5, 2013.
  4. ^ Peter Corning: The Evolution of Medicare. . . from idea to law. Social Security Administration, accessed October 6, 2013 .