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Tracking your tax dollars

October 25, 2009

It's a fair question: Just where do our tax dollars go?

One
of my Twitter pals, @LaniAR, found this interesting tax
flow chart, a snippet of which appears below, that tracks what is says the average man got for his tax dollars.

Taxes-flowchart-snippet_The-Toilet-Paper

I
must point out that there's no attribution for the numbers. It was
posted by The Toilet Paper (I'm not kidding) back in April, but that
doesn't necessarily mean the figures are from this year.

And to be
fair, TP makes no claims as to the graphic's fiscal accuracy.

Still, it's a creative look at our taxes. And the comments are worth a read, too.

Update 11-21-09: Jess of  Wall Stats (cited in the next section) dropped me a note to claim credit for the graphic posted by TP. In that case, I trust the numbers. To find out why, keep reading.

Another graphic look at taxes: This flow chart immediately brought to mind Jess Bachman's  "Death & Taxes" poster. I blogged about this annual budgetary art exercise back in August.

Death_and_taxes_poster2010

The representation above
of the two-feet-by-three-feet original is a bit hard to read. You can
take a closer look at Bachman's artful displays of the national priorities in the president's fiscal
budget (essentially a wish list) at, you got it,  Wall Stats.

And regardless of how how they are presented, do keep asking how your tax dollars are spent. Maybe we'll eventually get a clearer, if not prettier, picture.

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The More Tax Posts tab at the top of this page will take you to, well, more tax posts. You also can search below for a tax topic. 

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TAX-SAVVY WAYS 
TO WRAP UP 2026

It’s over! With October’s extended filing deadline behind us, it is now time to focus on year-end moves to reduce your 2026 tax bill. 

You’ll find ways to do just that on the Tax Tips page (see the More Tax Posts drop-down menu at the top of the blog), as well as the separate tax tip pages for each month, notably October through December. If you’re on the Tax Tips page, you’ll find a monthly list at the end of this column. If you’re on another blog page, you can head straight to the October tips; at the bottom of that tips page you’ll find links to all the other 11 months’ collections of tax advice.

Not to spoil what you’ll find in that tax advice, but it does cover such things as tax deductions for charitable donations, investment moves that could reduce tax due, and ways to max out your tax-favored retirement savings. 

Finally, as the year winds down, things get hectic. There are lots of other things to occupy our time, like the much more fun upcoming holidays. But don’t lose sight of taxes, since timing is key. To be of use, most tax moves must be made by the end of the tax year. That’s Thursday, Dec. 31, which also is the last business day of the year. 

So that you don’t miss that final tax year deadline, also keep an eye on the countdown clock below. It will keep you on top of just how much time is left to make important, tax-saving moves. (Note: I’m in the Central Time Zone, so adjust accordingly for where you live.)

Credits/Deductions
Disasters
Family
Filing and Paying Taxes
Politics/Laws
Refunds
State Taxes
Tax Brackets/Inflation
Tax Tips
Comments
  • Greg Hollingsworth
    17 years ago Reply

    Just wanted to mention quickly that TaxACT (my employer) provides you with a breakdown (called TaxWatch) of where your tax dollars are going after you complete your return.
    It’s a neat little feature that gives you a personalized detail of where your tax dollars are being put by the Fed.

  • Jess
    17 years ago Reply

    Hey there, I run wallstats.com and actually created both of the graphics you mention here. yes the one for the toilet paper too.

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