How is the Pie Sliced?
Each year Congress and the President must approve spending for the
fiscal year (September-August). The first pie shows the total budget.
A large part of the budget is spent on fixed costs (mandatory spending)
such as Social Security, Medicare, entitlement programs like AFDC (welfare),
and interest on the federal debt. The second pie shows the distribution
of the non-mandatory part of the budget (discretionary) that is the
major focus of the budget debates in Congress each year. Fifty percent
of this discretionary spending still goes to the military.
[Figures from Office of Management and Budget]
Women's Budget Intro | How Is the Pie Sliced?
| What Do Women Want? | Military
Budget Cuts Overdue
What Are the Trade-Offs? | What
You Can Do
|
