Social welfare expenditures, fiscal year 1979

In fiscal year 1979, social welfare expenditures under public programs amounted to $428.3 billion, an increase of 8.6 percent over the previous year. In constant 1979 dollars, however, 1979 expenditures decreased 0.2 percent from their 1978 level. Per capita social welfare spending also declined in "real" terms, falling 1 percentage point between 1978 and 1979. Social welfare expenditures as a proportion of the gross national product continued the declining trend that began in 1977. From a 1976 high of 20.4 percent, such expenditures fell to 18.5 percent in 1979.