Non-Defense Discretionary Spending: $615 billion; 15% of Federal Outlays
Annual appropriations for a multitude of government operations and programs are often known as “non-defense discretionary” — Including law enforcement, veterans healthcare, homeland security, education, prisons, NASA, disease and epidemic control, highways & bridges, food and drug inspection, disaster relief, airports, health research, housing assistance, and many other functions of government. Following are non-defense discretionary programs/categories funded at close to, or more than, $1 billion in FY 2017.
- March 1, 2017: NDD United releases a “Dear Representative/Senator” letter urging Congress “to help ensure adequate funding for programs funded through annual appropriations, by continuing the bipartisan practice of providing relief from sequestration budget cuts and opposing any new efforts to cut these programs more deeply.”
FY 2017 Budget Authority and Outlays by Function, Category, and Program
| Budget Function | Program or Program Categories Source for Data: Budget of the United States, OMB FY 2017 Outlays Baseline Click on program titles for nonpartisan CRS background reports |
FY 2017 (rounded) |
Defense (Budget Function 050) Go to the “Defense Spending” page |
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International Affairs (Budget Function 150)Click here for spending and background on State Dept. and Foreign Aid |
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General Science, Space & Technology (Budget Function 250) |
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| NASA | $19 billion | |
| National Science Foundation | $6.7 billion | |
| Dept of Energy Science Programs | $5.9 billion | |
| CRS Report: Overview of Federal Research and Development Funding | n/a | |
Energy (Budget Function 270) |
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| Fossil Energy Funding | $0.8 billion | |
| Uranium Enrichment Decontamination | $0.8 billion | |
| Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (supply and conservation) | $2 billion | |
| Nuclear Energy R&D Funding | $0.9 billion | |
Natural Resources & Environment (Budget Function 300) |
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| Pollution Control and Abatement (EPA) — Appropriations Overview | ||
| —Regulatory, Enforcement, and Research | $3.3 billion | |
| —EPA State and Tribal Assistance Grants | $3.8 billion | |
| —Hazardous Substance Cleanup (Superfund) | $1.1 billion | |
| —CRS: Nonpartisan Background Paper on Climate Change for Congress —CRS: Changes in the Arctic Background and Issues for Congress |
n/a | |
| Corps of Engineers – Water Projects | $7.2 billion | |
| Forest Service | $6.5 billion | |
| Operation of Recreational Resources | $3 billion | |
| Fish and Wildlife Service | $1.5 billion | |
| Nat’l Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration | $6 billion | |
| U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) | $2 billion | |
| Management of Public Lands (BLM) | $1.2 billion | |
| Bureau of Reclamation (responsible for construction of most of the large irrigation and water resources infrastructure in the West) | $1.3 billion | |
Agriculture (Budget Function 350) |
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| Farm Income Stabilization (these are administrative expenses; the program itself is an entitlement) | $1.3 billion | |
| Research and Education | $2.2 billion | |
| Animal and Plant Inspection | $1.1 billion | |
Commerce and Housing Credit (Budget Function 370) |
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| National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST): Science and Technology | $1 billion | |
| Economic and Demographic Statistics | $1.5 billion | |
| Small and Minority Business Assistance | $0.7 billion | |
Transportation (Budget Function 400) |
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| Federal funding for Highways: is a budgetary oddity since the spending authority is considered to be “mandatory spending” since it is provided in multiyear highway “authorizing legislation,” however, the outlays are considered to be “discretionary” since they are controlled by the Appropriations Committee. | $43 billion | |
| Federal Funding for Mass Transit similar to funding for Highways, explained above, the outlays for mass transit are considered to be “discretionary,” although the spending authority is controlled by multiyear authorizing legislation. | $10.5 billion | |
| Airports and Airways (FAA) | $17 billion | |
| Marine Safety and Transportation | $8.6 billion | |
| Air Transportation Security (TSA) | $5 billion | |
| Railroads | $3.4 billion | |
| Highway Safety | $1.5 billion | |
Community and Regional Development & Disaster Relief (Budget Function 450)
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| Disaster Assistance and Response Programs | $3 billion | |
| Indian Programs | $1.7 billion | |
| Community Development Grants to States and Cities | $6.8 billion | |
| FEMA State and Local Grants | $2.2 billion | |
| Other Disaster Programs | $1.4 billion | |
| Rural Development Programs | $0.8 billion | |
Education, Employment & Training, Social Services (Budget Function 500) |
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| Pell Grants and other Higher Education and Student Aid Federal Pell Grant Program: How it Works (funded primarily through discretionary appropriations, with a portion through mandatory spending). |
$27 billion | |
| Education for the Disadvantaged Title I | $16 billion | |
| Special Education Funding (Children with Disabilities) | $13 billion | |
| Children and Family Services | $11.1 billion | |
| School Improvement Funding | $4.5 billion | |
| Training and Employment Services | $6.9 billion | |
| Older Americans Act and Aging Services | $1.9 billion | |
| Innovation & Improvement (Charter Schools and Non-Public Education) | $1.3 billion | |
| Vocational and Adult Education | $1.5 billion | |
| Indian Education | $1 billion | |
| Corporation for National and Community Service (AmeriCorps and Senior Service Corps) | $1.1 billion | |
| Impact Aid (payments to states/cities) | $1.4 billion | |
| Labor law, statistics and other labor services | $1.9 billion | |
| Smithsonian Institution: protecting national treasures and increasing knowledge in art, science & history [2018 SI bj 2015 2011 2007 2007 2006 1996 1992 1977] | $863 million | |
| Corporation for Public Broadcasting | $445 million | |
Health (Budget Function 550) |
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| Note: the bulk of U.S. health spending is through the Medicare, Medicaid, Children’s Health Insurance, and Affordable Care Act programs, all of which are “entitlement programs” i.e. annual spending is determined by benefit formulas and the number of eligible individuals — not by annual appropriations decisions. See “Medicaid and Medicaid,” “Affordable Care Act,” and “Other Mandatory” pages of this website for program and spending details. | ||
| National Institutes of Health | $32 billion | |
| Centers for Disease Control Funding | $6.5 billion | |
| Indian Health Service | $4.9 billion | |
| Mental Health, Substance Abuse (SAMHSA) | $3.6 billion | |
| HRSA: health care services for the uninsured and medically underserved and Social Services Emergency Fund | $7.2 billion | |
| Food and Drug Administration Overview
Medical Devices; Drugs: Safety and Effectiveness; FY 2016 Appropriations; Food Safety Primer; PDUFA; Safety and Innovation Act |
$2.6 billion | |
| Food Safety and Inspection Service | $1 billion | |
| Occupational and Mine Safety and Health | $1 billion | |
Medicare Administrative Costs (Budget Function 570) |
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| Medicare Hospital Insurance (Part A) Administrative Costs | $2.9 billion | |
| Medicare Part B Administrative Costs | $2.8 billion | |
| See the “Medicare and Medicaid” page for outlays from Medicare Hospital Insurance, Supplementary Medical Insurance, and Prescription Drugs which are entitlement programs, i.e., annual outlays is determined by benefit formulas and the number of legally eligible beneficiaries — not by annual appropriations decisions. Net mandatory spending for Medicare is $602 billion. | ||
Income Security (including Housing, Food & Nutrition) (Budget Function 600) |
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| Rental Housing Assistanc (Section 8) | $20 billion | |
| Project-Based Rental Assistance | $11 billion | |
| Public Housing Operating and Capital Fund | $6.5 billion | |
| HOME Investment Partnerships Program | $1 billion | |
| Nutrition for Women Infants and Children | $6.4 billion | |
| LIHEAP: Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program | $3.1 billion | |
| Unemployment Trust Fund: Administrative Expenses | $4.1 billion | |
| Homeless Assistance | $2.3 billion | |
| Childcare and Development Block Grant
(In addition to this amount, there is a $3 billion Child Care Entitlement to States that is “mandatory” spending.) |
$2.8 billion | |
| Rural Housing Assistance | $1.5 billion | |
| Refugee Assistance | $1.8 billion | |
| Supplemental Security Income Administration | $5.4 billion | |
Social Security Administration (Budget Function 650) |
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| Social Security Administration (Old Age and Survivors Insurance Expenses) | $2.8 billion | |
| Social Security Administration (Disability Insurance Expenses) | $3.0 billion | |
| See “Other Mandatory” Spending page for Social Security Old Age and Survivors Benefits and Disability Benefits which are entitlement programs, i.e., annual spending for particular benefits is determined by the number of legally eligible beneficiaries — not by annual appropriations decisions. Total mandatory spending for Social Security is $970 billion. | ||
Veterans Benefits and Services (Budget Function 700) |
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| Veterans Healthcare (unlike other VA benefits that are statutory entitlements, healthcare is part of the annual discretionary budget) | $64 billion | |
| Veterans Administration Medical Facilities and Construction | $5.5 billion | |
| Department of Veterans Affairs Administrative Expenses | $7.5 billion | |
| See “Other Mandatory” Spending page for Veterans compensation, pension, education, training, and rehabilitation which are entitlement programs, i.e., annual spending for particular benefits is determined by the number of legally eligible veterans — not by annual appropriations decisions. Total mandatory spending for veterans is $104 billion. | ||
Law Enforcement, Prisons, Administration of Justice (Budget Function 750) |
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| Border and Transportation Security | $21 billion | |
| Federal Litigation (Civil and Criminal) | $5.8 billion | |
| Judicial Activities | $7.1 billion | |
| Federal Prison System | $7.5 billion | |
| Criminal Investigations (FBI, DEA, DHS) | $6.5 billion | |
| State and Local Law Enforcement Grants | $1.4 billion | |
| Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) | $1.2 billion | |
| US Secret Service | $2 billion | |
General Government (Budget Function 800)
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| Internal Revenue Service Budget | $11 billion | |
| Legislative Branch: House, Senate, Government Accountability Office, Architect of the Capitol, Government Printing Office | $4 billion | |
| Executive Office of the President funding | $0.4 billion | |
Net Interest (Budget Function 900) is mandatory spending, i.e., it is determined by the amount of public debt and interest rates, not by annual appropriations decisions. |
N/A | |
