Your Guide to America’s Finances (2024)

FAQs

How much money does the US treasury take in a year? ›

In fiscal year 2024¹, the federal government has collected $4.08 trillion in revenue. The federal government collects revenue from a variety of sources, including individual income taxes, payroll taxes, corporate income taxes, and excise taxes.

Federal Revenue Overview

If you lived or worked in the United States in 2023, your tax contributions are likely part of the $4.44 trillion collected in revenue. The federal government also collects revenue from services like admission to national parks and customs duties on foreign imports and exports.

Budget The federal government collected nearly $4.5 trillion in revenue in fiscal year 2023 (FY 2023). The federal government spent almost $6.2 trillion in FY 2023, including funds distributed to states. Federal revenue decreased 15.5% in FY 2023 but remained almost 8% higher than in FY 2019.

WASHINGTON, Sept 12 (Reuters) - The U.S. budget deficit reached $1.897 trillion for the first 11 months of the 2024 fiscal year, the Treasury Department said on Thursday, as annual interest costs on the public debt topped $1 trillion for the first time.

In total, other territories hold about $7.4 trillion in U.S. debt. Japan owns the most at $1.1 trillion, followed by China, with $859 billion, and the United Kingdom at $668 billion. In isolation, this $7.4 trillion amount is a lot, said Scott Morris, a senior fellow at the Center for Global Development.

The Federal Income Tax was established in 1913 with the ratification of the 16th Amendment. Though barely 100 years old, individual income taxes are the largest source of tax revenue in the U.S. is the federal government's largest source of revenue.

Most of the government's federal income tax revenue comes from the nation's top income earners. In 2021, the top 5% of earners — people with incomes $252,840 and above — collectively paid over $1.4 trillion in income taxes, or about 66% of the national total.

Ten so-called donor states pay more in taxes to the federal government than they receive back in funding for things like Medicaid or education. Connecticut tops the list of donor states. Residents there receive just 74 cents back for every $1 they pay in federal taxes.

CBO: U.S. Federal spending and revenue components for fiscal year 2023. Major expenditure categories are healthcare, Social Security, and defense; income and payroll taxes are the primary revenue sources. During FY2022, the federal government spent $6.3 trillion.

What makes the US government the most money? ›

What are the sources of revenue for the federal government? Over half of federal revenue comes from individual income taxes, 9 percent from corporate income taxes, and another 30 percent from payroll taxes that fund social insurance programs (figure 1). The rest comes from a mix of sources.

How the Federal Government Borrows Money. The federal government borrows money from the public by issuing securities—bills, notes, and bonds—through the Treasury. Treasury securities are attractive to investors because they are: Backed by the full faith and credit of the United States government.

In the last 50 years, the federal government budget has run a surplus 4 times, most recently in 2001. To pay for government programs while operating under a deficit, the federal government borrows money by selling U.S. Treasury bonds, bills, and other securities.

To balance the federal budget, government revenue must meet or exceed government spending. That's happened only twice in the past half-century: President Lyndon Johnson did it in 1969, and President Bill Clinton from 1998 to 2001.

The balance of the state budget supports other key public services – including wildland fire prevention and control, environmental protection, and state parks – and the institutions that comprise the state's system of governance, such as the courts, the Legislature, the Governor's Office, and other statewide • $12.6 ...

The $35 trillion (and growing) gross federal debt equals debt held by the public plus debt held by federal trust funds and other government accounts.

How much money is printed each day? The Bureau of Engraving and Printing produces 38 million notes a day with a face value of approximately $541 million.

Annual totals are based on data from April of each year. Inflation adjusted to the 2023 calendar year. As of April 2024, the five countries owning the most US debt are Japan ($1.1 trillion), China ($749.0 billion), the United Kingdom ($690.2 billion), Luxembourg ($373.5 billion), and Canada ($328.7 billion).

The Federal Government receives money to fund its operations from many sources. The major source of revenue is from individual income taxes. Other revenue is received through social insurance taxes and contributions, excise taxes, trust funds, estate and gift taxes, and Customs duties.