WASHINGTON -- October 26 -- While taxpayers in Florida have paid 7.8 billion dollars for the war in Iraq, their state received less than 500 million dollars in 2003 to protect itself from terrorist attacks. Ohio residents have been charged 5.7 billion dollars of the Iraq bill, but they received just one-tenth of that amount in 2003 to fund President Bush’s signature education program, No Child Left Behind. And in Texas, the federal government has contributed just 3.75 billion dollars to fund Homeland Security and No Child Left Behind, while the people of Texas have spent over 11 billion dollars to fund the war in Iraq.

These are some of the highlights of “State-by-State: The Bill for the Iraq War” – an interactive map released this morning by the National Priorities Project and the Center for American Progress that details the cost of the Iraq war from the perspective of the states. The joint-project is based on data compiled by the National Priorities Project earlier this month in a report entitled “Americans Pay High Cost for War.”

“State-by-State” provides each state with the price tag for war in Iraq.Funding for other national priorities, such as federal homeland security spending and federal funding for the No Child Left Behind Initiative, are included to put the Iraq cost into context. The map also estimates the cost of the war for hundreds of American cities.

“Everyday we are reminded of the cost of the war in Iraq. As the tab for the war increases, American taxpayers are the ones getting stuck with the bill,” said Robert O. Boorstin, Senior Vice President for National Security at the Center for American Progress. “From protecting the homeland to supporting education, our urgent national priorities are losing out to pay for this war.”

###