---
title: "How much has federal government spending grown?"  
description: "How much has federal government spending grown?"  
author: "Aarohi Misra"  
published: 2018-02-26  
canonical: https://answers.mindstick.com/qa/34968/how-much-has-federal-government-spending-grown  
category: "history, politics & society"  
tags: ["united states of america(usa)"]  
reading_time: 1 minute  

---

# How much has federal government spending grown?

How much has federal [government spending](https://answers.mindstick.com/qa/103160/how-does-government-spending-affect-the-economy) grown?\
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## Answers

### Answer by Stuti Gupta

> **In absolute terms (dollars not inflation-adjusted), federal expenditure has increased by a factor of 38 over the previous four decades, from $92 billion in 1960 to $3.6 trillion in 2012.**

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The United States [federal government](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_government_of_the_United_States) (also known as the United States government) is the national united states government, a federal republic in North America made up of 50 states, a federal district (the District of Columbia), five major self-governing territories, and several island possessions. The federal government is divided into three branches: legislative, executive, and judicial, which are vested in [Congress](https://answers.mindstick.com/qa/93649/is-the-congress-a-muslim-supporting-party), the president, and the federal courts, respectively, under the United States Constitution. Acts of Congress further clarify the powers and responsibilities of these branches, including the formation of executive agencies and lower courts to the Supreme Court.


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