The following table presents state and local spending on welfare from fiscal year (FY) 2015 to 2021. Figures get updated periodically by the federal government and may not be final [i]:
The negative figure for housing in 2021 is due to the federal government transferring billions of dollars to the states, which the states have not yet spent.
The following chart shows the details of total welfare spending at the state and local level for FY 2021, the transfers from the federal government, and the net expenditures at the state and local level [ii].
Overall welfare spending at the federal, state, and local levels totaled $927.3 billion in FY 2021, five times the expenditure necessary to move all Americans out of poverty, totaling $170 billion (See Poverty Gap).
[i] USGovernmentSpending.com [Internet]. Total for expenditure captions. Amounts represent the best estimate of state and local spending and are not yet final. Retrieved August 15, 2023. Available here.
[ii] Ibid.