> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.scottsantens.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # What America Spends Per Citizen Per Year - URL: https://www.scottsantens.com/what-america-spends-per-citizen-per-year-40000/ - Published: 2015-04-27T22:41:36.000Z - Updated: 2024-04-23T17:46:17.000Z - Author: Scott Santens ***(This is an excerpt from my piece titled "***[***How We Can Transform America’s Broken Economic System to Work for EVERYONE***](https://medium.com/basic-income/how-we-can-transform-americas-broken-economic-system-to-work-for-everyone-ddba38fc328a?ref=scottsantens.com)***". You can read it in full on Medium. Per citizen calculations are based on 92.8% of the US population being legal citizens.)*** The following is a short list of our shared expenditures as a society. On the left is the total cost and on the right is the cost per American citizen. We spend [$2.7 trillion for health care](http://www.commonwealthfund.org/interactives-and-data/us-compare-interactive?ref=scottsantens.com#?ind=1&compare=CAN) — $9,090 per citizen per year We spend over [$1.4 trillion on crime](http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract%5Fid=147911&ref=scottsantens.com) — $4,713 per citizen per year We spend [$1.3 trillion on Social Security](http://www.ssa.gov/oact/trsum/?ref=scottsantens.com) — $4,376 per citizen per year We spend [$1.2 trillion on education](http://www.businessweek.com/ap/2013-06-25/study-us-education-spending-tops-global-list?ref=scottsantens.com) — $4,040 per citizen per year We spend [$840 billion on our military](http://www.usgovernmentspending.com/us%5Fmilitary%5Fspending%5F30.html?ref=scottsantens.com) — $2,828 per citizen per year We spend [$544 billion on the “empty labor” of workers](http://www.inc.com/news/articles/200608/time.html?ref=scottsantens.com) not actually working while at work — $1,831 per citizen per year We spend [$500 billion on welfare](http://www.usgovernmentspending.com/us%5Fwelfare%5Fspending%5F40.html?ref=scottsantens.com) — $1,683 per citizen per year We’ve spent [$260 billion each year since 2001 to wage a “War on Terror”](http://costsofwar.org/article/economic-cost-summary?ref=scottsantens.com) in a way that [has increased terrorism](http://www.washingtonsblog.com/2013/10/u-s-war-on-terror-has-increased-terrorism.html?ref=scottsantens.com) — $875 per citizen per year We spend [$200 billion on work presenteeism](http://jobsearchtech.about.com/od/workplaceissues/a/Presenteeism.htm?ref=scottsantens.com) — $673 per citizen per year We waste [$180 billion on unpurchased food](http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2013-01-10/living-in-the-united-states-of-food-waste?ref=scottsantens.com) — $606 per citizen per year We lose [$160 billion by not using our vacation days](http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2014/05/13/how-unused-vacation-days-are-costing-the-economy-b.aspx?ref=scottsantens.com) — $539 per citizen per year We spend [$110 billion on federal corporate subsidies](http://www.ctj.org/corporatetaxdodgers/CorporateTaxDodgersReport.pdf?ref=scottsantens.com) — $370 per citizen per year We spend [$108 billion on the cost of hunger](http://turkeyclubamerica.com/index.php/our-mission/hunger-facts?ref=scottsantens.com) — $364 per citizen per year We spend at least [$100 billion on a patent system that *decreases* innovation](https://www.techdirt.com/blog/innovation/articles/20111107/03541716657/which-causes-more-harm-copyright-patents.shtml?ref=scottsantens.com) — $337 per citizen per year We spend [$100 billion buying illegal drugs](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/03/13/americans-trillion-dollars-drugs%5Fn%5F4943601.html?ref=scottsantens.com) — $337 per citizen per year We spend [$51 billion fighting our buying illegal drugs](http://www.drugpolicy.org/drug-war-statistics?ref=scottsantens.com) — $172 per citizen per year We spend [$92 billion on gambling](http://www.statisticbrain.com/casino-market-and-revenue-statistics/?ref=scottsantens.com) — $310 per citizen per year We lose [$90 billion commuting](http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2010/07/the-worlds-worst-commutes/59062/?ref=scottsantens.com) to and from work — $303 per citizen per year We spend [$70 billion on the mortgage interest deduction](http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=3948&ref=scottsantens.com) — $236 per citizen per year We lose [$70 billion by not legalizing and taxing marijuana like we do alcohol](http://www.businessweek.com/debateroom/archives/2010/03/legalize%5Fmariju.html?ref=scottsantens.com) — $236 per citizen per year We are spending [$1.5 trillion over 30 years for the F-35](http://gizmodo.com/inside-the-pentagons-trillion-dollar-f-35-embarrassmen-1325863089?ref=scottsantens.com) — $168 per citizen per year We actually *subtract* [$53 billion from the economy by using coal power](http://grist.org/coal/2011-09-30-coal-is-enemy-of-human-race-mainstream-economics-edition/?ref=scottsantens.com) — $178 per citizen per year We lose $40 billion to suicides ([40,000 x $1 million each](http://www.usatoday.com/longform/news/nation/2014/10/09/suicide-mental-health-prevention-research/15276353/?ref=scottsantens.com) but the true cost is incalculable) — $135 per citizen per year We spend [$8 billion the Pentagon can’t account for](http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/11/18/us-usa-pentagon-waste-specialreport-idUSBRE9AH0LQ20131118?ref=scottsantens.com) — $27 per citizen per year We spent about [$4 billion in 2014 on our midterm elections](http://www.opensecrets.org/overview/cost.php?ref=scottsantens.com) — $13 per citizen per year We spend [$2.3 billion](http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2014/08/18/3472568/disturbing-facts-american-hunger/?ref=scottsantens.com) in [volunteering](http://independentsector.org/volunteer%5Ftime?ref=scottsantens.com) over 100 million hours of our time at food banks to feed those of whom [a majority have jobs](http://www.chn.org/2014/11/19/many-working-families-dependent-food-banks-us/?ref=scottsantens.com) but aren’t paid enough to not need food banks — $8 per citizen per year ### Updated: 4/27/2015 We spend [$40-50 billion on financial fraud](http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/magazine/2012/10/protect-yourself-from-the-latest-scams/index.htm?ref=scottsantens.com) — $151 avg per citizen per year We lose [$203 billion on occupational licensing restrictions](http://www.forbes.com/sites/instituteforjustice/2015/01/29/hair-braiding-and-occupational-licensing/2/?ref=scottsantens.com) — $683 per citizen per year We gave away [$130 billion in natural resources to a foreign mining company in 2014](http://www.thenation.com/article/198129/did-gop-just-give-away-130-billion-public-property?ref=scottsantens.com) — $438 per citizen We spend [$229 billion on the costs of gun violence](https://medium.com/mother-jones/what-does-gun-violence-really-cost-382ca589b7e4?ref=scottsantens.com) — $770 per citizen per year We spend [$71 to $277 billion on the costs of air pollution](http://www.oecdobserver.org/news/archivestory.php/aid/2351/Pollution:%5Fcosts%5Fof%5Finaction.html?ref=scottsantens.com) — $586 avg per citizen per year We spend over [$100 billion on state and federal disaster relief payouts](http://www.alternet.org/environment/you-may-be-surprised-how-much-our-climate-inaction-costing-you?ref=scottsantens.com) — $337 per citizen per year We spend [$80 billion on state, county, and city subsidies to corporations](http://www.commondreams.org/views/2013/09/23/add-it-average-american-family-pays-6000-year-subsidies-big-business?ref=scottsantens.com) — $269 per citizen per year We give [$83 billion in interest rate subsidies to the largest banks](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/21/why-its-a-bad-idea-that-w%5Fn%5F2733777.html?ref=scottsantens.com) — $269 per citizen per year We spend [$270 billion more than we need to on the cost of medications](http://www.cepr.net/blogs/beat-the-press/washington-post-and-kaiser-conceal-role-of-government-in-economy?ref=scottsantens.com) — $909 per citizen per year We give [$181 billion to all businesses in the form of special exemptions and exclusions, credits, deductions, deferrals, and preferential tax rates](http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-13-339?ref=scottsantens.com) — $609 per citizen per year We lose [$142 billion to corporate tax havens](http://www.uspirg.org/news/usp/offshore-tax-havens-cost-average-taxpayer-1026-year-small-businesses-3067?ref=scottsantens.com) — $478 per citizen per year We lose [$885 billion in lost GDP (5%) due to not paying women the same as men](https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/sdn/2013/sdn1310.pdf?ref=scottsantens.com) — $2,979 per citizen per year **As a society, we are now spending or throwing away about $11.9 trillion dollars or $40,000 per citizen every year** There exists overlap between some expenditures, but the above also represents only a partial list of all expenditures. This is what we're seemingly entirely okay right now spending or wasting our money on. Somehow, we just don't have a problem with $40,000 per citizen every year. ***To understand how we can reduce these expenditures and losses by more than $12,000 per citizen by spending an additional $12,000 per citizen, next read "***[***How We Can Transform America’s Broken Economic System to Work for EVERYONE***](https://medium.com/basic-income/how-we-can-transform-americas-broken-economic-system-to-work-for-everyone-ddba38fc328a?ref=scottsantens.com)***"*** --- [![Silvrback blog image sb_float](https://storage.ghost.io/c/89/ec/89ec4ff0-b4ab-4e03-8ead-b213c47c6da7/content/images/uploads/54e7cc45-72c7-4a63-bd1a-6aabc0e92926/patreon-20button_medium.png)](https://patreon.com/scottsantens?ref=scottsantens.com) Did you enjoy reading this? 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