National Priorities Project

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The United States federal budget is a powerful resource: at $4 trillion, it’s about a fifth of the U.S. economy. What’s more, those resources come from us: a government for and by the people.

There is enormous power in these shared resources. We can harness that power to make our lives better, to create a more just and humane society. On the other hand, that power can be used to perpetuate destructive cycles of war, militarism, violence and oppression that go back to our nation’s founding and before.

Budgets are moral documents. It’s our responsibility as Americans to create a federal budget that upholds our most cherished values.

The National Priorities Project works to inspire and inform movements and individuals so that our federal resources prioritize peace, shared prosperity, and economic prosperity for all. We are the only nonprofit, non-partisan federal budget research organization in the nation with the mission to make the federal budget accessible to the American public.

We empower people to affect change through the creation of understandable, down to earth trainings, analysis, graphics and reports to illustrate how the federal budget affects us all, from the local level to the international.

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Latest Work

The U.S. Spends More on Its Military Than 144 Countries Combined

The numbers are stark increases from last year’s differences.

Ten Good Things About the House’s (Too-Big) Military Budget

While the funding level is much higher than we need, the NDAA the House just passed takes important steps toward ending wars, preventing dangerous military conflicts, and protecting human rights.

We Need These Amendments to the 2020 NDAA

While we debate the enormous Pentagon budget, let’s also keep an eye on these four critical amendments to the National Defense Authorization Act.

Trump’s 4th of July Fiasco Is a Salute to Pentagon Waste

Trump is turbo-charging D.C.’s annual 4th of July celebration into an even more garish extravaganza of U.S. militarism than usual.

We Need More Discussion of Demilitarization During the Second Democratic Debate

The Pentagon budget didn’t come up at all during the first Democratic debate – even as Congress haggles over a $750 billion NDAA.

$750 Billion National Defense Authorization Act Steamrolls Ahead

And the Senate is going along for the ride, against the better advice of a coalition including NPP.

The Pentagon’s Climate Impact Is a Threat to Our Planet

The U.S. military is a driving force behind climate change. Congress needs to cut military spending in half and use that money to build a green future.

Q+A with Lindsay Koshgarian on the US’ Abhorrent Military Budget

The United States is spending $750 billion on its war machine. That money should be going to food, education, health care, and shelter for working people.

Seven Surprising Tax Facts for 2019

Tax Day is April 15, 2019. Americans will file their tax returns for all income received in 2018. Want to know what your taxes pay for, and who pays what?

For Military Contractors, Tax Day is Pay Day

Lockheed Martin’s CEO took home $20 million while enlisted soldiers got just $20,000. Why? Because corporations have hijacked the military.

Tax Day 2019: Where Your Personal Income Taxes Were Spent in 2018

How Enriching the 1% Widens the Racial Wealth Divide

Trump Wants to Give 62 cents of Every Dollar to the Military — That’s Immoral

A budget shows our values more clearly than any tweet, campaign speech, or political slogan.

Trump’s $174 Billion Budget Lie

Trump tells us we can’t afford PBS funding or preserve affordable housing, but his budget doesn’t have any trouble finding billions of dollars for the endlessly expanding Pentagon budget.

Trump Budget Ends Medicaid Expansion, Axes Affordable Housing Programs

Trump has signaled his priorities. Now it’s up to Congress to intervene on behalf of the people.

Trump’s Militarized Budget Slashes Medicare, Medicaid, and Clean Energy

Trump’s federal budget proposal is the largest in history. It includes a massive military budget, funded through cuts to programs that help poor and middle-class Americans.

Trump Budget Would Cut Spending for Nearly Every Agency Except Pentagon

Trump is requesting an unprecedented level of military spending.

Trump’s FY2020 Budget Request Bloats Militarized Spending — and Slashes Programs Humans Actually Need

While funding for the Pentagon and nuclear weapons programs soars, investment in the Department of Education and Veteran’s Affairs plummet.

Will the Longest Shutdown in US History End in a Power Grab?

If Trump declares a national emergency, he can fund his wall against the wishes of Democrats. Will he?

Trump’s $5 Billion Wall Is a Waste

Here’s what we could spend it on instead.

Stop Wasting Money on the Pentagon

Military leaders literally don’t know what they’re doing with our money, but they want more. People on the left and right have had enough.