My Tax Recepts
← All budget categories

Federal budget · FY2024

Where does federal income-security spending go?

$703 billionin FY2024 · 10.4% of all federal spending

Income Security covers everything outside Social Security that helps people afford the basics — about $703 billion in FY2024. The biggest lines: federal civilian employee retirement pensions (FERS + CSRS, ~$130B), refundable Child Tax Credit payments (~$123B), military retirement (~$60B), SNAP / food stamps (~$110B serving ~41M people), refundable Earned Income Tax Credit (~$74B), Supplemental Security Income for low-income elderly/disabled (~$65B), and Section 8 housing vouchers plus public housing (~$55B).

Other significant pieces: the federal share of unemployment insurance (~$43B, varies with the business cycle), TANF + child care + foster care (~$26B), and WIC + school meals + LIHEAP energy assistance (~$17B).

Where the money goes inside income security

Agency- and program-level breakdown for FY2024.

  • Federal Civilian Employee Retirement$130 billion

    FERS, CSRS pensions + retiree health subsidies for former federal workers.

  • Military Retirement$60 billion

    Pensions for retired uniformed service members.

  • Refundable Child Tax Credit$123 billion

    Portion of CTC that's refundable (paid to families with little or no tax owed).

  • SNAP (Food Stamps)$110 billion

    Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. ~41M Americans receive benefits.

  • Refundable Earned Income Tax Credit$74 billion

    Refundable portion of EITC — tax credit for low-to-moderate income working families.

  • Supplemental Security Income (SSI)$65 billion

    Need-based program for low-income elderly and disabled (separate from SS Disability).

  • Section 8 Housing Vouchers + Public Housing$55 billion

    Federal rental assistance for low-income households.

  • Unemployment Insurance (federal share)$43 billion

    Joint federal-state program. Federal portion of regular UI + extended benefits.

  • TANF + child care + foster care$26 billion

    Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, Child Care Block Grant, Title IV-E foster care.

  • Other income support (WIC, school meals, energy aid)$17 billion

    WIC nutrition for women/infants/children, free & reduced school meals, LIHEAP heating aid.

See how much of your tax bill went here

Plug in your salary and filing status — we’ll compute your personal share of income security and the other 16 budget categories.

Compute your receipt →

Other budget categories