How Much of Your Taxes Are Helping People in Need?

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A medical augmentee of the U.S.Navy gives medication to a child during USAID disaster relief efforts in Haiti in 2008.

Image: Flickr, Marion Doss

By Matt Petronzio2014-04-16 15:30:40 UTC

Americans scrambled to meet the IRS' deadline on Tuesday to file their tax returns. While the annual process can be tedious and hits many where it really hurts (in the pocketbook), there's a social good silver lining: A chunk of that money went toward helping people in serious need around the world.

ONE, the grassroots campaign of more than 3 million people fighting against extreme poverty and preventable diseases, created a web calculator to measure how much impact your taxes have on the good of the planet. Just type in your annual income below, and based on the average tax rate, you can see how much of your money supports foreign aid.

See also: 64% of World's Extreme Poor Live in Just 5 Countries

According to the Office of Management and Budget's estimates for the 2014 fiscal year, only 1% of your taxes go toward foreign assistance. The largest chunks are devoted to social security (23.5%) and national defense (17%). They will also support unemployment, Medicare and Medicaid, and interest on the U.S. national debt.

While the percentage that goes to foreign aid is tiny compared to those programs and entitlements, it still accounts for a great deal. The calculator tells you specifically how many vaccines, days of HIV treatment or bed nets you're helping to support.

"There is a common misconception that a large chunk of American tax dollars are spent overseas," Tom Hart, ONE’s U.S. executive director, told Mashable. "When you boil it down, the average American only spends about $84 dollars per year in the fight against extreme poverty. That $84 — what we might spend on dinner and a movie — can purchase 211 days of HIV treatment, 48 life-saving vaccines or eight bed nets to protect against malaria."

You can calculate your contribution below:

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Topics: foreign aid, Social Good, taxes, U.S., US & World, US & World, World