May 27, 2015
Tracking Federal Funds to States and Congressional Districts
using USAspending.gov

Finding accurate data on federal funds received by states
Figure 1. Federal Grant Dollars, FY2000-FY2015
and congressional districts (CD) may present challenges.
Largest Percentage goes to State, Local Governments
The official website USAspending.gov is available to the
public at http://www.USAspending.gov and posts federal
agency-submitted data on obligations, including grants,
loans, assistance, and contracts. The database will
eventually include Treasury Department expenditures data.
A redesigned website was launched in March 2015 and
includes the following:
USAspending.gov homepage enables search by
Recipient, Awards in Your Neighborhood (by zip code),
and Awards by State for the most current FY.
Where Is the Money Going, Spending Map option
enables filtering by state, zip, county, CD, and agency.
Summary listings of recipients may be displayed one
fiscal year at a time back to FY2008. Details of an
individual transaction may be viewed by double-

clicking on the Award ID. Data from transactions
displayed may not be downloaded.
Source: USAspending.gov, Trends, Type of Recipients, FY2000-2015.
Advanced Data Search of prime and sub-award data
Figure 2. State Administering Agencies (SAAs)
allows filtering by various criteria, including CD.
Sub-grant or Sub-contract Federal Funds
Generally, search place of performance (where project
is located) over recipient location. Results Summary is
given and summary data may be downloaded.
Download Center allows export of full transaction
details. Filters limit searches by department or agency
(or All), state, and fiscal year back to FY2000. CD is
indicated in column BJ or AH in spreadsheets.
State-level data include formula and block grant funds
(80%-90% of federal grant funding, see Figure 1) that
may be passed through to local jurisdictions or sub-
awarded through sub-grants, contracts, or subcontracts
(see Figure 2).
Congressional District data may be incomplete or
inaccurate when comparing several years. Over time,
many CD boundaries can change with decennial
redistricting, or CD numbers can change. CDs that
include state capitals will appear to receive more federal
funds because state administering agencies (SAAs) pass

Source: Jerry Brito, George Washington Univ., 2009; and CRS 2014.
through funds under block and formula grants for

projects throughout the state. Select place of

performance in Advanced Data Search or Download
Related CRS Products: CRS Report R44027, Tracking
Center; or search by zip code or county, although these
Federal Funds: USAspending.gov and Other Data Sources;
may not align completely with CD borders.
and CRS Report IN10101, Transparency in Grants
Administration: Implementing Relevant Provisions of the
DATA Act
.

www.crs.gov | 7-5700

Tracking Federal Funds to States and Congressional Districts using USAspending.gov
Key Source: USAspending.gov
• For example, a grant award may pass through different
jurisdictions in a state (located in different CDs) before
The Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act
reaching the final place of performance.
of 2006 (FFATA; P.L. 109-282) required the Office of
• Federal grant monies may first go to the state (the state
Management and Budget (OMB) to create a public database
capital, in one CD), then be distributed to a city or
of all federal funds awarded to the final recipient level. This
county government (in one or more additional CDs),
can be challenging because much federal funding is
which then may sub-award funds to an organization that
awarded to states and may then be passed through or sub-
spends the money in other CDs.
awarded to local entities, including nonprofits.
• Procurement awards may be given to a corporation
Because of continued data quality problems in
headquartered in one state (and one CD). The company
USAspending.gov, information in the database may still be
may spend the money manufacturing the purchased
incomplete, inaccurate, or misleading (for example, see
product at one or more of its manufacturing facilities in
Government Accountability Office Report GAO-14-476 on
one or more additional states (and CDs).
data transparency, available at http://www.gao.gov/
assets/670/664536.pdf).
Congressional District Data
Under requirements of P.L. 113-101, the Digital
Congressional offices should be aware that for some
Accountability and Transparency Act of 2014 (DATA Act),
congressional districts, information in USAspending.gov
responsibility for the database passed to the U.S.
may be incomplete, inaccurate, or misleading.
Department of the Treasury. Over a three-year period, the
• Special care should be taken when comparing CD data
act requires that Treasury together with OMB set uniform
over time. Due to the redistricting process, the
data standards to be used across all federal agencies and to
provide additional guidance to agencies for posting data on
geographic area within the boundaries of a CD in the
114th or 113th Congress may be partially or wholly
USAspending.gov.
different than the geographic area of a CD with the same
number in the 112th and earlier Congresses. Other
Treasury launched a redesigned website on March 31, 2015.
geographic search options, such as by zip code or
The current database enables searching data from FY2008
county, could be used to track funds within a CD,
to the present. Various search options enable displays and
listings of summary information (see previous page). Users
although borders may not exactly align.
may search by the name of a contractor or grant recipient.
• Congressional Districts that include state capitals will
An Advanced Data Search allows users to limit results by
appear to receive more federal funds because state
recipient location, place of performance including CD, or
administering agencies (SAAs) pass through funds
federal contracting or granting agency.
under block and formula grants for projects throughout
the state.
At the Download Center tab, detailed data information can
• Federal grant or procurement funds may pass through
be exported into spreadsheets by prime award or sub-award;
various administrative levels (i.e., to states via block
by contracts, grants, loans, or “other financial assistance”;
by department or agency (or All); by state recipient or place
grants, then to local jurisdictions including different
CDs) before they are actually spent. Choose place of
of performance; and by fiscal year back to FY2000.
performance rather than recipient location when
Spreadsheets downloaded include column indicating an
award’s CD (if known): for Contracts, see column BJ; for
searching USAspending.gov for awards to a CD.
Grants and other funding, see column AH.
• Recipients of grant or procurement awards prior to
FY2007 were not always identified by CD in federal
Current records are added as soon as they become available
sources. Departments and agencies are now required
from federal agencies, generally within 30 days. There may
under P.L. 109-282 to furnish CD information when
be a longer lag-time with data from the Departments of
they award grants or contracts. Searches of
Defense and Homeland Security, generally 90 days.
USAspending.gov data prior to FY2007 or exported at
the USAspending.gov Download Center may not always
States: Where Awarded or Where Spent
include CD.
Federal grant or procurement awards may have a where
Congressional staffers who need help searching
awarded or where spent component that is not always fully
USAspending.gov may place a request via CRS.gov.
identified in grant or procurement records. Most federal
grants funding is awarded to states, which then pass-
Merete F. Gerli, mgerli@crs.loc.gov, 7-7109
through funds to eligible recipients elsewhere in the state.

Funds may then be further sub-awarded or subcontracted.
This sub-level location may be a project’s place of
IF10231
performance as opposed to the initial recipient location.
www.crs.gov | 7-5700