The Security State, by the Numbers
Fiscal year 2014 through 2026. National Defense (Budget Function 050) plus civilian federal law enforcement (DOJ + DHS), with the FY25–29 OBBBA reconciliation layered on. Nominal budget authority in $B; use the indexed view for real-terms comparisons.
Nominal spending, FY14–FY26
Enacted budget authority in $B, nominal. Use the range above to zoom.
Real growth, indexed to window start
Window start = 100. CPI-U (FY averages) overlays the nominal-rebased lines; the gap is the real-terms shift.
DOJ LE components (stacked)
FBI, DEA, ATF, USMS S&E, BOP.
DHS LE components (stacked)
CBP, ICE, USSS.
OBBBA reconciliation — FY25–29 allocations
Cumulative mandatory authority by program. Total $170.7B.
| FY | Defense (050) | Fed LE (effective) | Combined | CPI (FY14=100) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY14 | $608B | $43B | $651B | 100.0 |
| FY15 | $586B | $45B | $631B | 100.7 |
| FY16 | $615B | $46B | $661B | 102.8 |
| FY17 | $634B | $48B | $682B | 104.9 |
| FY18 | $700B | $49B | $749B | 107.5 |
| FY19 | $716B | $51B | $767B | 109.4 |
| FY20 | $757B | $53B | $810B | 110.8 |
| FY21 | $741B | $52B | $793B | 115.4 |
| FY22 | $778B | $55B | $833B | 123.4 |
| FY23 | $858B | $59B | $917B | 131.3 |
| FY24 | $886B | $61B | $947B | 135.8 |
| FY25 | $892B | $90B | $982B | 138.9 |
| FY26 | $1010B | $100B | $1110B | 142.5 |
| FY | FBI | DEA | ATF | USMS (S&E) | BOP | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY14 | $8.36B | $2.02B | $1.18B | $1.16B | $6.88B | $19.60B |
| FY15 | $8.48B | $2.02B | $1.20B | $1.23B | $7.00B | $19.93B |
| FY16 | $8.80B | $2.46B | $1.24B | $1.23B | $6.95B | $20.68B |
| FY17 | $9.45B | $2.49B | $1.26B | $1.25B | $7.14B | $21.59B |
| FY18 | $9.01B | $2.10B | $1.26B | $1.30B | $7.10B | $20.77B |
| FY19 | $9.41B | $2.23B | $1.32B | $1.37B | $7.25B | $21.58B |
| FY20 | $9.30B | $2.40B | $1.35B | $1.45B | $7.79B | $22.29B |
| FY21 | $9.70B | $2.50B | $1.45B | $1.50B | $7.90B | $23.05B |
| FY22 | $10.40B | $3.10B | $1.60B | $1.55B | $7.80B | $24.45B |
| FY23 | $10.80B | $2.50B | $1.75B | $1.70B | $8.30B | $25.05B |
| FY24 | $10.70B | $2.70B | $1.63B | $1.71B | $8.40B | $25.13B |
| FY25 | $10.70B | $3.00B | $1.61B | $1.71B | $8.30B | $25.32B |
| FY26 | $10.67B | $3.01B | $1.57B | $1.75B | $8.40B | $25.40B |
| FY | CBP | ICE | USSS | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY14 | $11.80B | $5.20B | $1.66B | $18.66B |
| FY15 | $12.60B | $5.96B | $1.67B | $20.23B |
| FY16 | $12.40B | $6.10B | $1.92B | $20.42B |
| FY17 | $13.60B | $6.20B | $2.00B | $21.80B |
| FY18 | $14.06B | $7.10B | $2.01B | $23.17B |
| FY19 | $14.30B | $7.60B | $2.18B | $24.08B |
| FY20 | $18.12B | $8.37B | $2.40B | $28.89B |
| FY21 | $15.30B | $8.30B | $2.40B | $26.00B |
| FY22 | $15.50B | $8.10B | $2.40B | $26.00B |
| FY23 | $17.50B | $8.40B | $2.90B | $28.80B |
| FY24 | $17.40B | $9.70B | $3.10B | $30.20B |
| FY25 | $20.20B | $10.40B | $3.20B | $33.80B |
| FY26 | $21.00B | $11.00B | $3.30B | $35.30B |
| Program | Amount | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Border Wall Construction | $46.6B | 27.3% |
| ICE Detention Capacity | $45.0B | 26.4% |
| Other DHS Mandatory | $30.2B | 17.7% |
| ICE Enforcement & Deportation | $29.9B | 17.5% |
| CBP Personnel (BP agents + FLETC) | $7.8B | 4.6% |
| Border Security Technology | $6.2B | 3.6% |
| CBP Facilities & Checkpoints | $5.0B | 2.9% |
Methodology & sources
National Defense (Budget Function 050): Includes 051 DoD Military (enacted discretionary + OCO/supplementals), 053 NNSA atomic-energy defense activities, and 054 other defense-related (defense-related activities at other agencies). Totals are reported by CBO and the Treasury Monthly Statement of Budget Authority. FY2026 reflects the base DoD appropriations plus the P.L. 119-21 (OBBBA) reconciliation add-on for DoD ($151B, allocated primarily to FY26).
Federal Law Enforcement (effective): A bmrlabs construct summing enacted regular appropriations for DOJ law-enforcement components (FBI, DEA, ATF, USMS S&E, BOP) and DHS law-enforcement components (CBP, ICE, USSS). FY2025 onward adds scored OBBBA reconciliation outlays attributable to each fiscal year (primarily DHS border and immigration enforcement). Excludes state/local grants, asset forfeiture, and Federal Prisoner Detention.
CPI: CPI-U FY averages (BLS), chained to FY2014 = 100. Used for real-terms comparisons in the Real Growth (Indexed) view.
OBBBA reconciliation: One Big Beautiful Bill Act (P.L. 119-21) — FY25 through FY29 cumulative authority. Line-item allocations from CBO scoring tables and conference-report breakdowns. Breakdown includes border wall, ICE detention capacity, other DHS mandatory, ICE enforcement and deportation, CBP personnel (Border Patrol agents and FLETC), border security technology, and CBP facilities/checkpoints.
All figures: nominal budget authority in billions of U.S. dollars unless explicitly indexed. Data compiled April 2026 from CRS reports, enacted public laws, and DoD/DHS/DOJ Congressional Budget Justifications. See /data for the machine-readable CSV and /report for the full source bibliography.