History

• The U.S. government collected an income tax of limited application in 1861 to defray expenses associated with the Civil War. In 1913, the 16th Amendment to the Constitution was enacted which permitted the imposition of an income tax to fund governmental operations generally.
  
  

Types

• In calculating what the government does with income taxes, the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office includes all money collected from a taxpayer, including Social Security, Medicare and basic income tax.
  
  

Defense and Military Spending

• According to the Congressional Budget Office, 20 percent of all income tax collected is allocated for defense and military spending.
  
  

Discretionary Non-Military Programs

• Approximately 18 percent of income tax is used for non-military, discretionary spending that funds such agencies as the Departments of Health and Human Services, Education and Labor.
  
  

Social Security and Medicare

• Social Security and Medicare account for 54 percent of all tax dollars collected.
  
  

Debt

• Between 8 and 10 percent of income tax dollars are used to pay interest on the national debt.