Think-Tank: Americans More Reliant on Government Aid

"That support is especially critical in economically stressed communities throughout the U.S., many of which lean Republican and are concentrated in swing states crucial in deciding the presidential election," said the report. "Neither party has much incentive to dial back the spending."

More counties came to count on this government backing for a significant share of their total income, said the bipartisan think tank Economic Innovation Group (EIG). By 2022, 53 percent, more than half of all U.S. counties, drew at least a quarter of their income from government aid.

By 2000, roughly one in 10 counties drew a significant share of their income from federal and state safety-net and social programs. In 1970, government safety-net money accounted for significant income in fewer than 1 percent of America's counties, according to EIG.

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