County · Iowa · FIPS 19153
Federal spending in Polk County, IA
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 $3.6B for work and payments in Polk County, Iowa, in FY2026, or $7,048 per resident.
That is below the Iowa rate of $10,109 per resident and below the national rate of $14,744; it ranks 64 of 99 counties in the state.
The FY2026 mix was 70% direct payments, 27% grants.
Obligations were down 15% on FY2025, and the five-year total since FY2023 is $15B.
Over FY2022–FY2025, the largest awarding agencies were Social Security Administration ($7.9B), Department of Education ($1.7B) and Department of Veterans Affairs ($1.1B).
Per resident, by award type FY2026
- Contracts $92M
- Grants $989M
- Direct payments $2.5B
- Loans (subsidy cost) −$2.6M
- Other assistance $24M
| Per resident | This county | Iowa | United States |
|---|---|---|---|
| All award obligations | $7,048 | $10,109 | $14,744 |
| Contracts | $178 | $580 | $2,007 |
| Grants | $1,915 | $3,299 | $3,528 |
| Direct payments | $4,913 | $6,192 | $9,185 |
| Loans (subsidy cost) | −$5 | $2 | −$16 |
| Other assistance | $47 | $36 | $40 |
| Rank by per-resident rate | 64 of 99 in state · 1,997 of 3,144 US | 47 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 | Department of Education Iowa | 45 | $1.1B | 37% |
| 2 | Iowa Department Management | 1 | $415M | 14% |
| 3 | Iowa Department of Transportation | 68 | $354M | 12% |
| 4 | Iowa Homeland Security and Emergency Management Department | 28 | $354M | 12% |
| 5 | Economic Development Authority Iowa | 7 | $233M | 8% |
| 6 | Des Moines Airport Authority | 21 | $148M | 5% |
| 7 | Workforce Development Center | 8 | $148M | 5% |
| 8 | Ace American Insurance Co. | 7 | $98M | 3% |
| 9 | Telligen, Inc | 2 | $76M | 2% |
| 10 | Collins Engine Nozzles, Inc | 6 | $75M | 2% |
A further $36M 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Iowa's 3rd congressional district | 100% | $5.6B | $6,957 |
Other counties in Iowa
- Linn County $10,460
- Scott County $6,490
- Johnson County $6,718
- Black Hawk County $6,970
- Story County $7,683
- Dubuque County $7,508
- Woodbury County $6,242
- Pottawattamie County $6,854
- Dallas County $4,361
- Des Moines County $13,132
- Cerro Gordo County $8,308
- Warren County $6,028
- Clinton County $7,323
- Muscatine County $6,828
- Marshall County $6,857
- Webster County $6,939
- Jasper County $6,284
- Lee County $7,323
- Wapello County $6,234
- Marion County $6,265
- Sioux County $5,540
- Bremer County $7,272
- Benton County $7,045
- Boone County $6,787
- Plymouth County $6,644
- Carroll County $8,266
- Dickinson County $9,152
- Winneshiek County $8,235
- Washington County $7,027
- Poweshiek County $8,405
- Fayette County $7,970
- Cedar County $8,255
- Jones County $6,947
- Buchanan County $7,047
- Tama County $8,406
- Clayton County $8,156
- Clay County $8,476
- Mahaska County $6,274
- Jackson County $6,816
- Henry County $6,762
- Kossuth County $9,115
- Buena Vista County $6,226
- Jefferson County $8,254
- Iowa County $7,487
- Delaware County $6,917
- Crawford County $7,454
- Floyd County $8,098
- Mills County $8,114
- Butler County $8,520
- Allamakee County $8,394
- Hardin County $7,154
- Harrison County $8,006
- Hamilton County $7,702
- Monona County $12,941
- Shelby County $9,440
- Hancock County $10,133
- Page County $7,013
- Madison County $5,998
- Cherokee County $9,097
Per-resident rate, FY2026. All counties in Iowa.
Questions and answers
How much federal spending goes to Polk County, Iowa?
$3.6B in award obligations in FY2026 and $15B 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?
$7,048 per resident in FY2026 (population 516,546), against $10,109 for Iowa 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 Polk County, Iowa?
By the value of $1.0M-plus awards begun since FY2023: Department of Education Iowa ($1.1B), Iowa Department Management ($415M), Iowa Department of Transportation ($354M), Iowa Homeland Security and Emergency Management Department ($354M) and Economic Development Authority Iowa ($233M). Individuals are never listed.
Which agencies fund Polk County, Iowa?
Social Security Administration ($7.9B), Department of Education ($1.7B), Department of Veterans Affairs ($1.1B), Department of Agriculture ($1.0B) and Department of Homeland Security ($744M), 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.