States › Alabama › Tuscaloosa County
County · Alabama · FIPS 01125
Federal spending in Tuscaloosa County, AL
USAspending caveat. Figures are obligations reported by federal agencies to USAspending.gov, not payments. In USAspending's words: "An outlay occurs when federal money is actually paid out, not just promised to be paid ('obligated')." "Every agency has a Senior Accountable Official who must officially certify that the quarterly financial data submitted by their agency is accurate and complete." "If there are any discrepancies in procurement data, FPDS is the authoritative source." Contract data for the Department of Defense and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is published with a 90-day delay. Data loaded 30 Sep 2026.
Federal agencies obligated $1.5B for work and payments in Tuscaloosa County, Alabama, in FY2026, or $6,231 per resident.
That is below the Alabama rate of $12,988 per resident (48% of it) and below the national rate of $14,744; it ranks 62 of 67 counties in the state.
The FY2026 mix was 77% direct payments, 19% grants.
Obligations were about level on FY2025, and the five-year total since FY2023 is $5.9B.
Over FY2022–FY2025, the largest awarding agencies were Social Security Administration ($3.5B), Department of Veterans Affairs ($704M) and Department of Education ($374M).
Per resident, by award type FY2026
- Contracts $68M
- Grants $281M
- Direct payments $1.2B
- Loans (subsidy cost) −$764K
- Other assistance $1.4M
| Per resident | This county | Alabama | United States |
|---|---|---|---|
| All award obligations | $6,231 | $12,988 | $14,744 |
| Contracts | $283 | $3,128 | $2,007 |
| Grants | $1,163 | $2,599 | $3,528 |
| Direct payments | $4,782 | $7,239 | $9,185 |
| Loans (subsidy cost) | −$3 | $6 | −$16 |
| Other assistance | $6 | $17 | $40 |
| Rank by per-resident rate | 62 of 67 in state · 2,605 of 3,144 US | 24 of 51 states | — |
Direct payments include Social Security, Medicare and similar benefit records that USAspending attributes to a county; Medicare payments are attributed to the county of the administrative contractor, which can lift or lower a county's rate a great deal. Loans count the subsidy cost, not the face value.
Obligations by fiscal year
Who funds the county FY2022–FY2025
Awarding agencies
Assistance programs
Contract industries by NAICS sector
Cross-tabulations cover the four closed fiscal years FY2022–FY2025 (the 24 largest agencies, 40 largest listings and all NAICS sectors), fetched 18 Sep 2026.
Recipients with the largest awards performed here $1.0M+ awards since FY2023
| # | Recipient organisation | Awards | Award value | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alabama Department of Transportation | 47 | $328M | 43% |
| 2 | University of Alabama | 49 | $218M | 29% |
| 3 | Hurley JV, LLP | 1 | $45M | 6% |
| 4 | Aaecon General Contracting LLC | 4 | $34M | 4% |
| 5 | City of Tuscaloosa | 3 | $29M | 4% |
| 6 | C. J. Mahan Construction Company, LLC | 1 | $28M | 4% |
| 7 | Northport Housing Authority | 10 | $19M | 2% |
| 8 | Tuscaloosa Housing Authority | 8 | $16M | 2% |
| 9 | International Business Sales and Services Corp | 1 | $14M | 2% |
| 10 | Inland Dredging Company, L.L.C. | 3 | $12M | 2% |
A further $10M went to recipients not shown: individuals, aggregated records and names USAspending withholds.
Largest awards performed in the county
Congressional districts
| District | Share of county land area | District FY2026 obligations | Per resident |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama's 4th congressional district | 62% | $3.7B | $5,097 |
| Alabama's 7th congressional district | 38% | $2.6B | $3,654 |
Other counties in Alabama
- Madison County $33,381
- Jefferson County $12,312
- Mobile County $9,472
- Montgomery County $17,114
- Baldwin County $8,665
- Shelby County $6,435
- Lee County $6,320
- Dale County $22,981
- Calhoun County $9,400
- Houston County $7,410
- Morgan County $6,462
- Etowah County $7,646
- Limestone County $6,444
- St. Clair County $7,067
- Lauderdale County $6,838
- Elmore County $7,157
- Talladega County $7,883
- Marshall County $5,975
- Cullman County $6,477
- Russell County $9,630
- Coffee County $8,949
- Walker County $7,666
- Colbert County $7,228
- Chilton County $8,910
- Autauga County $6,581
- DeKalb County $5,031
- Jackson County $6,786
- Tallapoosa County $8,687
- Blount County $5,829
- Dallas County $9,352
- Covington County $7,734
- Chambers County $8,273
- Escambia County $7,344
- Pike County $7,751
- Macon County $13,675
- Cherokee County $8,296
- Geneva County $7,854
- Lawrence County $6,321
- Marion County $7,303
- Barbour County $7,816
- Franklin County $5,623
- Clarke County $8,224
- Randolph County $7,568
- Winston County $6,869
- Monroe County $7,965
- Bibb County $6,658
- Marengo County $8,092
- Henry County $8,034
- Butler County $8,110
- Pickens County $7,881
- Hale County $8,503
- Washington County $8,255
- Sumter County $10,298
- Fayette County $6,969
- Choctaw County $9,081
- Conecuh County $9,503
- Clay County $7,263
- Crenshaw County $7,683
- Cleburne County $6,163
Per-resident rate, FY2026. All counties in Alabama.
Questions and answers
How much federal spending goes to Tuscaloosa County, Alabama?
$1.5B in award obligations in FY2026 and $5.9B since FY2023, counting awards whose primary place of performance is in the county. Obligations are commitments, not payments.
How much federal spending per person is that?
$6,231 per resident in FY2026 (population 241,368), against $12,988 for Alabama and $14,744 nationally. Direct payments such as Social Security and Medicare are included; the table on this page splits the rate by award type.
Which recipients dominate Tuscaloosa County, Alabama?
By the value of $1.0M-plus awards begun since FY2023: Alabama Department of Transportation ($328M), University of Alabama ($218M), Hurley JV, LLP ($45M), Aaecon General Contracting LLC ($34M) and City of Tuscaloosa ($29M). Individuals are never listed.
Which agencies fund Tuscaloosa County, Alabama?
Social Security Administration ($3.5B), Department of Veterans Affairs ($704M), Department of Education ($374M), Department of Transportation ($320M) and Department of Commerce ($229M), over FY2022–FY2025.
What does "place of performance" mean here?
USAspending records where the work is done or the payment is directed, as reported by the awarding agency. Some awards, especially grants to state governments, carry only a state-level location and are not attributed to any county or district; Medicare payments are attributed to the county of the administrative contractor.
Provenance
Source: USAspending.gov API v2, spending-by-geography (place of performance, county layer) by fiscal year and award type, loaded 30 Sep 2026; award lists from the award search endpoint; cross-tabulations for FY2022–FY2025. Population: U.S. Census Bureau Vintage 2025 county estimates (USAspending's population figure where the Census file has none, as for Connecticut's former counties). Boundaries: Census cartographic boundary files (1:20m). Errors in processing are corrected at the next build; see corrections.