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The United States federal budget contains a number of expenditures, which include mandatory programs such as the Medicare and Social Security programs, military spending, and discretionary funding for Cabinet Departments (e.g., United States Department of Justice) and agencies (e.g., Securities & Exchange Commission). During FY2014, the federal government spent $3.504 trillion on a budget or cash basis, up $50 billion or 1% vs. FY2013 spending of $3.455 trillion. Major categories of FY 2014 spending included: Social Security ($845B or 24% of spending), Healthcare such as Medicare and Medicaid ($831B or 24%), Defense Department ($596B or 17%), non-defense discretionary spending used to run federal Departments and Agencies ($583B or 17%), other mandatory programs such as food stamps and unemployment compensation ($420B or 12%) and interest ($229B or 6.5%).〔(CBO-Budget and Economic Outlook 2015-2025-January 2015 )〕 Expenditures are classified as mandatory, with payments required by specific laws, or discretionary, with payment amounts renewed annually as part of the budget process. Expenditures averaged 20.4% GDP over the past 40 years, generally ranging +/-2% GDP from that level. The 2014 spend was 20.3% GDP, versus 2013 spend of 20.8% GDP and a recent 2009 peak of 24.4% GDP.〔 CBO projects that spending for Social Security, Healthcare programs and interest costs will rise relative to GDP over the 2015-2025 period, while defense and other discretionary spending will decline relative to GDP.〔 Over the past 40 years, mandatory spending for programs such as Medicare and Social Security has grown as a share of the budget and relative to GDP, while other discretionary categories have declined. Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security grew from 4.3% of GDP in 1971 to 10.1% of GDP in 2012.〔 In the long-run, expenditures related to Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid are growing considerably faster than the economy overall as the population matures.〔(Charlie Rose Show-Senators Bayh, Gregg and Roger Altman-February 1, 2010 )〕〔(Center on Budget and Policy Priorities-The Right Target: Stabilize the Federal Debt January 2010 )〕 The Congressional Budget Office estimates that Social Security spending will rise from 4.8% of GDP in 2009 to 6.2% of GDP by 2035, where it will stabilize. However, CBO expects Medicare and Medicaid to continue growing, rising from 5.3% GDP in 2009 to 10.0% in 2035 and 19.0% by 2082. CBO has indicated healthcare spending per beneficiary is the primary long-term fiscal challenge.〔(CBO Long Term Budget Outlook – June and August 2010 )〕〔(CBO Testimony – June 2008 )〕 Further, multiple government and private sources have indicated the overall expenditure path is unsustainable.〔(Social Security Trustees Report – 2009 Summary )〕〔(GAO Briefing – January 2008 )〕〔(Peter G. Peterson Foundation – Citizen's Guide 2010 )〕 == Discretionary vs. mandatory spending == Discretionary spending requires an annual appropriation bill, which is a piece of legislation. Discretionary spending is typically set by the House and Senate Appropriations Committees and their various subcommittees. Since the spending is typically for a fixed period (usually a year), it is said to be under the ''discretion'' of the Congress. Some appropriations last for more than one year (see Appropriation bill for details). In particular, multi-year appropriations are often used for housing programs and military procurement programs. Direct spending, also known as mandatory spending, refers to spending enacted by law, but not dependent on an annual or periodic appropriation bill. Most mandatory spending consists of entitlement programs such as Social Security benefits, Medicare, and Medicaid. These programs are called "entitlements" because individuals satisfying given eligibility requirements set by past legislation are entitled to Federal government benefits or services. Many other expenses, such as salaries of Federal judges, are mandatory, but account for a relatively small share of federal spending. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) reports the costs of mandatory spending programs in a variety of annual and special topic publications.〔(CBO – The Budget and Economic Outlook: Fiscal Years 2013 to 2023 – February 2013 )〕 Congress can affect spending on entitlement programs by changing eligibility requirements or the structure of programs. Certain entitlement programs, because the language authorizing them are included in appropriation bills, are termed "appropriated entitlements." This is a convention rather than a substantive distinction, since the programs, such as Food Stamps, would continue to be funded even if the appropriation bill were to be vetoed or otherwise not enacted. The share of Federal spending for mandatory programs has been increasing as the U.S. population ages, while the discretionary spending share has fallen.〔(CBO Historical Tables-Retrieved November 2015 )〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Expenditures in the United States federal budget」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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