As Marylanders filed their income tax returns this week or asked for extensions, a national tally showed where some of their tax dollars have been spent in the past year.

War and weaponry remain top federal expenses, with the average tax filer paying more than $3,700 to maintain the United States' military arsenal. Maryland alone is home to 20 military installations.

Lindsay Koshgarian, director of the National Priorities Project at the Institute for Policy Studies, said the cost could increase for 2025, since President Donald Trump has said he wants a $1 trillion military budget.

"We've been expecting to see it hit $1 trillion sometime in the near future," Koshgarian acknowledged. "I don't think we were expecting it quite so soon as this."

She pointed out the military budget decreased slightly after the 2008 recession but has been noticeably increasing the past few years. A $1 trillion military budget would be the largest on record.

The average tax filer paid under $18,000 in federal taxes last year, with the greatest share supporting Americans' health through Medicaid, Medicare, the National Institutes of Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Trump and his billionaire adviser Elon Musk have vowed to cut at least $1 trillion in spending.

Koshgarian warned eliminating smaller agencies, which work to alleviate homelessness, for example, will not reap much reward.

"I think what we're likely to see next year is a lot less money for things like that, without necessarily any appreciable savings for most of us," Koshgarian projected.

Americans on average pay just one penny to help keep people off the streets. The average cost for deportations and border enforcement is just under $100. Koshgarian noted the cost could jump next year as well, as Trump continues to call for the deportation of millions of undocumented immigrants.

Maryland News Connection