Washington DC - April is here, which means it's almost time to submit your tax return or extension request. Have you ever wondered where your hard-earned cash is going? A new study has the answer!

The National Priorities Project at the Institute for Policy Studies on Tuesday released an analysis showing how the average American's federal income tax dollars are spent.

According to the tax receipt, the average taxpayer in 2023 contributed $5,109 toward US militarism and its support systems, including wars abroad and veterans' programs, as well as Southern border militarization, deportations, and policing and prisons.

The study notes that of the $2,974 for the Pentagon, more than half went to corporate contractors, including:

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• $1,748 toward Pentagon contractors, more than the average taxpayer's monthly rent;
  
• $249 to Lockheed Martin, more than the average American's weekly food expenses;
• $87 to contracts with Boeing, more than the average American would spend on two tanks of gas; and
• $12 to contracts with Elon Musk's SpaceX, more than the average American would spend on three gallons of milk.

"It's outrageous that the average taxpayer is giving the equivalent of a month's rent to Pentagon contractors," National Priorities Project Program Director Lindsay Koshgarian said in a press release.

"These big corporations are already not paying their fair share in taxes. Instead, ordinary people are subsidizing those corporations' profits and multi-million dollar CEO pay packages."

In many cases, taxpayer money to social programs pales in comparison to funds used to boost the military and prison-industrial complexes.

The average American taxpayer contributes:

• $4,308 for Medicare and Medicaid,
  
• $346 for K-12 education,
  
• $516 for food stamps,
  
• $110 for the Child Tax Credit,
  
• $58 for diplomacy,
  
• $31.69 for substance use disorder support and mental health programs,
  
• $23 for the Federal Aviation Administration,
  
• $14 for wildfire management, and
  
• $10.84 for energy efficiency and renewable energy programs.
  

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"Right now, millions of Americans are struggling to stay afloat – it's become so expensive to live, eat, and have a home," said Alliyah Lusuegro, the National Priorities Project's outreach coordinator.

"A far greater portion of our tax dollars goes toward militarism at home and abroad, and toward harming and separating immigrant families, when we should be investing instead in safe and healthy conditions for our communities and our futures."