US spy agencies spent nearly $68 billion in 2014

Washington: US spy agencies spent nearly $68 billion in fiscal year 2014, about the same level of spending on intelligence gathering in the previous year, the government has said. Funding for the country’s 17 intelligence agencies reached a peak of about $80 billion in 2011 and has gradually declined since, according to figures released every year by the office of the director of national intelligence (ODNI) and the Defense Department. [caption id=“attachment_1781241” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Representational Image. Getty Images.[/caption] The numbers released yesterday reflected the total funds approved by Congress in the fiscal year that ended in September, with the national intelligence program – including the Central Intelligence Agency – spending at $50.5 billion and military intelligence program funds at USD 17.4 billion. Total spending for fiscal year 2013 was also about $68 billion. The proposed intelligence budget for 2013 had been higher but automatic spending cuts mandated by Congress scaled back funding by several billion dollars. Officials declined to provide a breakdown of the intelligence budget or any further details about how the money was spent. AFP