# Government expenses
**Government expenses** are **cash payments** made to support various activities and services. These include:
- **Employee wages**
- **Interest**
- **Subsidies**
- **Grants**
- **Social benefits**
- **Other costs** like **rent** and **dividends**
The data consolidate all **central government finances** into one account, but some only include **budgetary central government accounts**, omitting units like **social security funds**. This can provide an incomplete picture, especially in **federal states**.
Data on **government revenue and expenses** are collected by the **IMF** and the **OECD** through **member country questionnaires**.
The figure shows the amount of government expenses in **France**, the **United States**, and **Germany** in **2019**, **2020**, and **2021**.