[Analytical Perspectives]
[Other Technical Presentations]
[21. Outlays to the Public, Net and Gross]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



[[Page 387]]


 
                21.  OUTLAYS TO THE PUBLIC, NET AND GROSS

  Table 21-1 shows net and gross outlays, and the relationship between 
them, for all major agencies. Outlays are the measure of Government 
spending. The budget records outlays when the Government makes payment 
for such things as Federal employee salaries, the purchase of supplies 
and equipment, grants to state and local governments, and benefits to 
individuals. The Government's gross outlays are the sum of all these 
payments.
  The outlay totals in the budget, however, whether for the Government 
as a whole or for agencies, programs, and functions (such as national 
defense), are net outlays, unless otherwise specified. Gross outlays, as 
the table shows, equal the net outlays plus offsetting receipts and 
collections from the public. Offsetting receipts and collections 
constitute the income the Government receives from its business-like 
enterprises and other market activities with the public, such as the 
proceeds from selling postage stamps, the fees charged for admittance to 
recreational areas, and the proceeds from selling land or natural 
resources. The budget refers to them as ``offsetting,'' because they are 
subtracted from gross outlays rather than added to taxes and other 
collections from the public resulting from the exercise of the 
Government's sovereign or governmental powers to levy or impose taxes, 
fees, fines, and the like. The budget focuses on net outlay totals in 
order to show outlays and receipts that measure governmental activity 
rather than a combination of governmental and market activity. As a 
result, the budget totals represent the amount of resources allocated 
and distributed by political decision making rather than by private 
choice and the market mechanism. The surplus or deficit is calculated by 
subtracting total outlays from total receipts. It would be the same if 
offsetting collections and receipts were to be included in total 
receipts and not subtracted from gross outlays.
  The table shows that offsetting receipts and collections are 
relatively much more important for some agencies than for others. In 
this table, negative net outlays occur when collections exceed payments, 
for example insurance premiums. The amounts for ``Allowances'' cover 
certain transactions that are expected to increase or decrease outlays 
but are not, for various reasons, attributed to any specific agency. The 
amounts labeled ``undistributed offsetting receipts'' are deducted from 
the Government-wide outlay totals but not from any specific agency. 
Chapter 5, ``User Fees and Other Collections,'' in this volume discusses 
offsetting collections and receipts in more detail.

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                 Table 21-1.  TOTAL OUTLAYS, NET AND GROSS OF OFFSETTING COLLECTIONS AND RECEIPTS FROM THE PUBLIC, BY AGENCY, 2001-2003
                                                                (In millions of dollars)
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                                                        2001                                  2002                                  2003
                                       -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                     Offsetting                            Offsetting                            Offsetting
                                                    Collections    Outlays                Collections    Outlays                Collections    Outlays
      (Department or Other Unit)            Net         and        Gross of       Net         and        Gross of       Net         and        Gross of
                                          Outlays     Receipts   Collections    Outlays     Receipts   Collections    Outlays     Receipts   Collections
                                                      from the     from the                 from the     from the                 from the     from the
                                                       Public       Public                   Public       Public                   Public       Public
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Legislative Branch....................       3,135           94        3,229       3,625          102        3,727       3,970           90        4,060
Judicial Branch.......................       4,519           22        4,541       4,977           24        5,001       5,497           26        5,523
Executive Branch......................
  Agriculture.........................      68,599       21,669       90,268      76,565       21,151       97,716      74,443       19,880       94,323
  Commerce............................       5,137        1,415        6,552       5,495        1,681        7,176       5,670        1,843        7,513
  Defense--Military...................     293,995       10,617      304,612     330,553       10,804      341,357     360,989       10,118      371,107
  Education...........................      35,748        1,554       37,302      47,587        1,399       48,986      53,800        1,222       55,022
  Energy..............................      16,490        6,337       22,827      19,093        6,934       26,027      19,784        6,631       26,415
  Health and Human Services...........     426,767       25,759      452,526     459,366       27,617      486,983     488,794       29,600      518,394
  Housing and Urban Development.......      33,994        3,515       37,509      30,948        4,493       35,441      34,600        2,471       37,071
  Interior............................       8,249        3,759       12,008      10,290        2,926       13,216      10,822        2,816       13,638
  Justice.............................      21,296        2,519       23,815      23,073        3,040       26,113      29,385        3,124       32,509
  Labor...............................      39,367        2,506       41,873      58,579        2,694       61,273      56,554        2,570       59,124
  State...............................       7,524          667        8,191      11,132          620       11,752       9,883          776       10,659
  Transportation......................      54,838          349       55,187      60,788        1,717       62,505      58,843        2,853       61,696
  Treasury............................     390,569       18,078      408,647     382,616       17,347      399,963     398,188       19,199      417,387
  Veteran Affairs.....................      45,839        4,432       50,271      51,451        5,134       56,585      56,513        3,864       60,377
  Corps of Engineers--Civil Works.....       4,834          386        5,220       4,975          395        5,370       4,347          486        4,833
  Other Defense Civil Programs........      34,167           12       34,179      35,537           13       35,550      40,933           15       40,948
  Environmental Protection Agency.....       7,490          231        7,721       7,790          206        7,996       8,061          249        8,310
  Executive Office of the President...         254  ...........          254         464  ...........          464         334  ...........          334
  Federal Emergency Management Agency.       4,426        1,628        6,054       5,789        1,745        7,534       7,550        1,802        9,352
  General Services Administration.....          -1          242          241         586          272          858         -52          537          485
  International Assistance Programs...      11,792       12,128       23,920      13,287       11,851       25,138      12,969       11,609       24,578
  National Aeronautics and Space            14,199           73       14,272      14,484           89       14,573      14,885           75       14,960
   Administration.....................
  National Science Foundation.........       3,696  ...........        3,696       4,564  ...........        4,564       4,886  ...........        4,886
  Office of Personnel Management......      50,919        7,404       58,323      54,277        8,037       62,314      67,940        9,969       77,909
  Small Business Administration.......        -550        1,519          969       1,073          658        1,731         587          421        1,008
  Social Security Administration......     462,026        4,987      467,013     492,671        5,756      498,427     509,655        6,001      515,656
  Export-Import Bank of the United          -1,747        3,411        1,664        -201        1,254        1,053         322          358          680
   States.............................
  Federal Deposit Insurance                 -1,188        2,408        1,220         702        2,642        3,344       1,738        4,302        6,040
   Corporation........................
  Postal Service......................       2,395       64,871       67,266       2,786       67,794       70,580      -1,371       73,727       72,356
  Railroad Retirement Board...........       5,546           25        5,571       4,854          396        5,250       4,605          807        5,412
  Other Independent Agencies..........       8,946        9,715       18,661      11,826       10,266       22,092      11,964       10,488       22,452
Allowances............................  ..........  ...........  ...........      27,000  ...........       27,000       6,356  ...........        6,356
Undistributed Offsetting Receipts.....    -199,344        8,219     -191,125    -206,282        4,336     -201,946    -235,214        3,292     -231,922
                                       -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Total.............................   1,863,926      220,551    2,084,477   2,052,320      223,393    2,275,713   2,128,230      231,221    2,359,451
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