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Trends in the components of government spending have significantly shifted in the past 40 years and look to become increasingly occupied by spending on mandatory programs—such as Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid—and interest payments on the national debt. This week’s chart gives a comparative look at trends in the composition of government spending through snapshots from the 1970 budget, today’s budget, and the projected 2040 budget. 

The federal budget consists of three broad categories in the chart above: discretionary (blue portion), mandatory (green portion), and net interest (red portion). Today, discretionary spending accounts for 36 percent of total spending, which is a small minority compared to 62 percent in 1970. 

In contrast, mandatory spending on Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, and other such programs has doubled as a portion of total spending, from 31 percent of the budget in 1970 to 58 percent of the budget in 2012. 

Interest payment on the national debt is the