$75 billion in annual domestic security spending: By the numbers
In the ten years since the 9/11 attacks, the government has shelled out hundreds of billions of dollars — some of it on rather bizarre purchases

A free daily digest of the biggest news stories of the day - and the best features from our website
Thank you for signing up to TheWeek. You will receive a verification email shortly.
There was a problem. Please refresh the page and try again.
Nearly 10 years after the 9/11 attacks, state and federal governments continue to spend tens of billions of dollars every year on domestic security, from surveillance cameras to airport screeners to emergency response equipment. Those expenditures have helped states and cities cope with all sorts of disasters, but still, some of the outlays have been rather "dubious," says Kim Murphy in the Los Angeles Times. Here, a brief guide, by the numbers:
$75 billion
Approximate amount federal and state governments spend annually on homeland security
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
$636 billion
Total amount, adjusted for inflation, that the U.S. government has spent on homeland security since the Sept. 11 attacks
$16 billion
Amount requested for domestic security in the 2001 budget
Amount requested for homeland security in the 2012 budget. Less than $37 billion goes to the Department of Homeland Security. The rest will be divided among the Defense, Health and Human Services, and Justice departments
$557,400
Amount spent on rescue and communications gear to protect the 1,500 people who live in North Pole, Alaska
$42,000
Amount of money the federal Department of Homeland Security gave Keith County, Neb., (population 8,370) to purchase "state-of-the-art dive gear" to protect Lake McConaughy and the surrounding area from terrorist attacks
$205,000
Amount of a Homeland Security grant used to purchase a 9-ton BearCat armored vehicle for Glendale, Calif., a suburb of Los Angeles that's home to DreamWorks Animation and some Disney facilities
300
Number of BearCats, many purchased with cash from the feds, now in use by police forces across the U.S. "The arrests of methamphetamine dealers and bank robbers these days often look much like a tactical assault on insurgents in Baghdad," writes Murphy.
$3,000
Amount West Virginia spent on lapel pins for homeland security purposes
$750,000
Cost of an "anti-terrorism fence" built around a VA hospital near Asheville, N.C.
$1 billion
Cost of attempting to build a 2,000-mile long "virtual" barrier on the U.S. border with Mexico, complete with surveillance cameras and high-tech sensors. The project was to be completed in 2009, but after a number of delays, it was abandoned earlier this year.
Up to 10,000
Number of jobs a $1.5 billion National Security Agency cyber-security center being built in Utah will generate. While many complain that huge sums of Homeland Security money have been squandered, the "spending has also acted as a cash-rich economic stimulus program for many states at a time when other industries are foundering," says Murphy.
14
Number of Americans who have been killed in incidents of Islamic terrorism outside of war zones since 2001
At least 30
Number of terrorist plots U.S. authorities say they have foiled since Sept. 11, 2001
Sources: Heritage Foundation, LA Times, Salon, Whitehouse.gov
Continue reading for free
We hope you're enjoying The Week's refreshingly open-minded journalism.
Subscribed to The Week? Register your account with the same email as your subscription.
Sign up to our 10 Things You Need to Know Today newsletter
A free daily digest of the biggest news stories of the day - and the best features from our website
-
'The United States needs to up its game'
Instant opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass Published
-
'Accepting defeat is Rishi Sunak's only hope of victory'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By The Week Staff Published
-
Royal family website attacked by Russian hackers
Speed Read Pro-Kremlin group claim responsibility just two weeks after King Charles condemns invasion of Ukraine
By The Week Staff Published
-
Dianne Feinstein, history-making Democratic US senator, dies at 90
The Explainer Her colleagues celebrate her legacy as a trailblazer who cleared the path for other women to follow
By Theara Coleman Published
-
Will the cannabis banking bill get the Senate's green light?
Talking Point The SAFER Banking Act is advancing to the US Senate for the first time, clearing a major hurdle for legal cannabis businesses. Does it stand a chance?
By Theara Coleman Published
-
Trump surrenders in Georgia election subversion case
Speed Read
By Catherine Garcia Published
-
Rep. Hakeem Jeffries chosen to succeed Pelosi as leader of House Democrats
Speed Read
By Brigid Kennedy Published
-
GOP leader Kevin McCarthy's bid for House speaker may really be in peril
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
Are China's protests a real threat for Beijing?
opinion The sharpest opinions on the debate from around the web
By Harold Maass Published
-
Who is Nick Fuentes, the white nationalist who dined with Trump and Kanye?
Speed Read From Charlottesville to Mar-a-Lago in just five years
By Rafi Schwartz Published
-
Jury convicts Oath Keepers Stewart Rhodes, Kelly Meggs of seditious conspiracy in landmark Jan. 6 verdict
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published