A letter to our readers
A letter to the country’s shareholders while the nation is at a crossroadsCorporate income tax collections fell 31% from 2017 to 2018, but federal tax revenue held.The number of Americans receiving government food assistance grew by 12% in 2020.There are more subsidized housing units, but people are waiting longer for them.More Americans are living alone and unmarried.The child poverty rate is falling, but that’s not the whole story.The senior population is growing faster than the general population.The US is increasingly a nation of immigrants.Small roads and key train infrastructure are in poor condition.Data for the road ahead
Share the 10-k
Newsletter
Data delivered to your inbox
Keep up with the latest data and most popular content.
Visit the government structure and finance topic page for an up to date view of government in the US.
The US is a constitutional republic and representative democracy. Our Government is regulated by a system of checks and balances defined by the US Constitution, which serves as the country’s supreme legal document. In the US, citizens are usually subject to three levels of government: federal, state, and local. The original text of the Constitution establishes the structure and responsibilities of the federal government and its relationship with the individual states. The Constitution has been amended 27 times, including the first 10 amendments, the Bill of Rights, which forms the central basis of Americans’ individual rights.
Federal government structure
TheConstitution divides the federal government into three branches to ensure a central government in which no individual or group gains too much control:
- Legislative – Makes laws (Congress)
- Executive – Carries out laws (President, Vice President, Cabinet)
- Judicial – Evaluates laws (Supreme Court and other courts)
Each branch of government can change acts of the other branches as follows:
- The president can veto legislative bills passed by Congress before they become law (subject to Congressional override).
- Congress confirms or rejects the president’s appointments and can remove the president from office in exceptional circ*mstances.
- The justices of the Supreme Court, who can overturn unconstitutional laws, are appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate.
Legislative
The legislative branch enacts legislation, confirms or rejects presidential appointments, and has the authority to declare war. This branch comprises Congress (the Senate and House of Representatives) and several agencies that provide support services to Congress.
Executive
Theexecutive branchcarries out and enforces laws. It includes the president, vice president, the Cabinet, 15 executive departments, independent agencies, and other boards, commissions, and committees.
Judicial
Thejudicial branchinterprets the meaning of laws, applies laws to individual cases, and decides if laws violate the Constitution. The judicial branch comprises the Supreme Court and other federal courts.
THE UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT
THE CONSTITUTION
LEGISLATIVE BRANCH | EXECUTIVE BRANCH | JUDICIAL BRANCH | ||
THE CONGRESS | THE PRESIDENT | THE SUPREME COURT OF | ||
SENATE|HOUSE | THE VICE PRESIDENT | THE UNITED STATES | ||
100 Senators | EXECUTIVEOFFICEOFTHEPRESIDENT | 9 Justices | ||
435Representatives Architectof the Capitol UnitedStates Botanic Garden GovernmentAccountability Office GovernmentPrinting Office Libraryof Congress CongressionalBudget Office USCapitol Police | 15Cabinet Members WhiteHouse Office Officeof the Vice President Councilof Economic Advisers Councilon Environmental Quality NationalSecurity Council Officeof Administration Officeof Management and Budget Officeof National Drug Control Policy Officeof Policy Development Officeof Science and Technology Policy Officeof the US Trade Representative | UnitedStates Courts of Appeals UnitedStates District Courts TerritorialCourts UnitedStates Court of International Trade UnitedStates Court of Federal Claims AdministrativeOffice of theUnited States Courts FederalJudicial Center UnitedStates Sentencing Commission |
SIGNIFICANT REPORTING ENTITIES (15)
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE | DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE | DEPARTMENTOFDEFENSE | DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION | DEPARTMENTOFENERGY |
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES | DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY | DEPARTMENTOFHOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT | DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR | DEPARTMENTOFJUSTICE |
DEPARTMENTOF LABOR | DEPARTMENTOF STATE | DEPARTMENTOF TRANSPORTATION | DEPARTMENTOF THE TREASURY | DEPARTMENTOF VETERANS AFFAIRS |
OTHER SIGNIFICANT REPORTING ENTITIES
EnvironmentalProtection Agency GeneralServices Administration NationalAeronautics and Space Administration NationalScience Foundation Officeof Personnel Management SmallBusiness Administration SocialSecurity Administration US Agency for InternationalDevelopment | USNuclear Regulatory Commission DefenseSecurity Cooperation Agency Export-ImportBank of the United States FarmCredit System Insurance Corporation FederalCommunications Commission FederalDeposit Insurance Corporation GeneralFund of the US Government Millennium ChallengeCorporation | NationalCredit Union Administration OverseasPrivate Investment Corporation PensionBenefit Guaranty Corporation RailroadRetirement Board Securitiesand Exchange Commission SmithsonianInstitution TennesseeValley Authority US Postal Service |
IN CONSERVATORSHIP
Fannie MaeFreddie Mac
SIGNIFICANT RELATEDENTITIES | |||||||||||
TheFederalReserve | TheFarmCreditSystem | ||||||||||
FederalHomeLoanBanks | |||||||||||
For a discussion of each of the federal government departments and offices, please see The United States Government Manual at https://www.govinfo.gov/app/collection/GOVMAN.
State government structure1
Under the Tenth Amendment to the US Constitution, all powers not granted to the federal government are reserved to the states and the people. All state governments are modeled after the federal government and consist of three branches: executive, legislative, and judicial. The US Constitution mandates that states uphold a “republican form” of government, although the three-branch structure is not required.
Legislative
All 50 states have legislatures made up of elected representatives, who consider matters brought forth by the governor or introduced by its members to create legislation that becomes law. The legislature also approves a state’s budget and initiates tax legislation and articles of impeachment. The latter is part of a system of checks and balances among the three branches of government that mirrors the federal system and prevents any branch from abusing its power.
Every state except one has a bicameral legislature made up of two chambers: a smaller upper house and a larger lower house. Together the two chambers make state laws and fulfill other governing responsibilities. The smaller upper chamber is always called the Senate, and its members generally serve longer terms, usually four years. The larger lower chamber is most often called the House of Representatives, but some states call it the Assembly or the House of Delegates. Its members usually serve shorter terms, often two years. Nebraska is the lone state that has just one chamber in its legislature.
Executive
In every state, the executive branch is headed by a governor who is directly elected by the people. In most states, other leaders in the executive branch are also directly elected, including the lieutenant governor, the attorney general, the secretary of state, and auditors and commissioners. States reserve the right to organize in any way, so they often vary greatly with regard to executive structure. No two state executive organizations are identical.
Judicial
Most states have a supreme court that hears appeals from lower-level state courts. Court structures and judicial appointments/elections are determined either by legislation or by the state constitution. The state supreme court usually focuses on correcting errors made in lower courts and therefore holds no trials. Rulings made in state supreme courts are normally binding; however, when questions are raised regarding consistency with the US Constitution, matters may be appealed directly to the United States Supreme Court.
STATE GOVERNMENTS (50)
LEGISLATIVE BRANCH | EXECUTIVE BRANCH | JUDICIAL BRANCH |
ELECTEDREPRESENTATIVES TOUPPER AND LOWER HOUSES: SENATE HOUSE (ExceptNebraska) | GOVERNOR Moststates also elect: LIEUTENANTGOVERNOR ATTORNEYGENERAL SECRETARYOF STATE AUDITORSANDCOMMISSIONERS | STATESUPREME COURT AppellateCourts TrialCourts |
Local government structure2
A government is an organized entity that, in addition to having governmental character, has sufficient discretion in the management of its own affairs to distinguish it as separate from the administrative structure of any other governmental unit.
To be counted as a government, any entity must possess all three of the following attributes:
- Existence as an organized entity – the presence of some form of organization and the possession of some corporate powers, such as perpetual succession, the right to sue and be sued, have a name, make contracts, acquire and dispose of property, and the like.
- Governmental character – In essence, an organization can only be considered to be a government if it provides services, wields authority, or bears accountability that is of a public nature.
- Substantial autonomy – This requirement is met when, subject to statutory limitations and any supervision of local governments by the state, an entity has considerable fiscal and administrative independence.
LOCAL GOVERNMENTS (90,075)
GENERALPURPOSE GOVERNMENTS | SPECIAL DISTRICTGOVERNMENTS | ||
(38,779) | (51,296) | ||
County(3,031) | Independent SchoolDistricts (12,754) | ||
Municipality (19,495) | Other Special Districts (38,542) | ||
Township (16,253) | Air transportation | Libraries | |
Cemeteries | Mortgage credit | ||
Corrections | Natural resources | ||
Electric power | Parking facilities | ||
Fire protection | Parks and recreation | ||
Gas supply | Sea and inland port facilities | ||
Health | Sewerage | ||
Highways | Solid waste management | ||
Hospitals | Transit | ||
Housing and community development | Water supply | ||
Industrial development | |||
Insular area government structure
The US has many insular areas, or jurisdictions that are neither a state nor a federal district, including any commonwealth, freely associated state, possession, or territory. Five of the insular areas–Puerto Rico, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, US Virgin Islands, and American Samoa–are self-governing, each with a non-voting member of the House of Representatives and permanent populations. The remaining areas are small islands, atolls, and reefs in the Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea. US possession of certain of these areas is disputed by other countries. The population of these areas are excluded from our reported population figures. However, these individuals may contribute to the revenues, expenditures, and other figures included in this report.
American Indian tribal government structure
Our Government officially recognizes 574Indian tribes in the contiguous 48 states and Alaska. The US observes tribal sovereignty of the American Indian nations to a limited degree, as it does with the states’ sovereignty. American Indians are US citizens and tribal lands are subject to the jurisdiction of the US Congress and the federal courts. Like the states, the tribal governments have a great deal of autonomy with respect to their members, including the power to tax, govern, and try them in court, but also like the states, tribes are not allowed to make war, engage in their own foreign relations, or print and issue currency.
Continue exploring
Download the 10-K PDF
