States › Montana › Custer County
County · Montana · FIPS 30017
Federal spending in Custer County, MT
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.
Custer County, Montana, received $94M in federal award obligations in FY2025: $7,784 for each of its 12,034 residents.
That is below the Montana rate of $13,422 per resident and below the national rate of $15,158; it ranks 49 of 56 counties in the state.
The FY2025 mix was 84% direct payments, 10% grants.
Obligations were about level on FY2024, and the five-year total since FY2022 is $454M, with $86M so far in FY2026.
Over FY2022–FY2025, the largest awarding agencies were Social Security Administration ($211M), Department of Transportation ($48M) and Department of Agriculture ($42M).
Per resident, by award type FY2025
- Contracts $4.3M
- Grants $9.4M
- Direct payments $78M
- Loans (subsidy cost) −$59K
- Other assistance $1.7M
| Per resident | This county | Montana | United States |
|---|---|---|---|
| All award obligations | $7,784 | $13,422 | $15,158 |
| Contracts | $359 | $1,001 | $2,164 |
| Grants | $780 | $5,047 | $3,542 |
| Direct payments | $6,511 | $7,141 | $9,398 |
| Loans (subsidy cost) | −$5 | $102 | $1 |
| Other assistance | $139 | $130 | $53 |
| Rank by per-resident rate | 49 of 56 in state · 1,803 of 3,144 US | 26 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 FY2022
| # | Recipient organisation | Awards | Award value | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Montana Department of Transportation | 9 | $42M | 74% |
| 2 | Copper Creek, LLC | 1 | $6.0M | 11% |
| 3 | Eastern Montana Community Mental Health Center | 1 | $4.0M | 7% |
| 4 | Agri Industries Inc | 1 | $2.6M | 5% |
| 5 | Youderian Construction Inc | 2 | $2.2M | 4% |
Largest awards performed in the county
| Recipient | Awarding agency | Type | Award value | Begun | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Montana Department of Transportation | Department of TransportationFederal Highway Administration | GrantFormula Grant (a) | $13M | 23 Apr 2024 | USAspending |
| Montana Department of Transportation | Department of TransportationFederal Highway Administration | GrantFormula Grant (a) | $6.6M | 1 Sep 2022 | USAspending |
| Montana Department of Transportation | Department of TransportationFederal Highway Administration | GrantFormula Grant (a) | $6.2M | 5 Dec 2024 | USAspending |
| Copper Creek, LLC | Department of Veterans Affairs | ContractDefinitive Contract | $6.0M | 16 Jun 2026 | USAspending |
| Montana Department of Transportation | Department of TransportationFederal Highway Administration | GrantFormula Grant (a) | $5.9M | 22 May 2024 | USAspending |
| Eastern Montana Community Mental Health Center | Department of Health and Human ServicesSubstance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration | GrantProject Grant (B) | $4.0M | 23 Sep 2022 | USAspending |
| Montana Department of Transportation | Department of TransportationFederal Highway Administration | GrantFormula Grant (a) | $3.2M | 5 Jul 2022 | USAspending |
| Agri Industries Inc | Department of AgricultureAgricultural Research Service | ContractDefinitive Contract | $2.6M | 2 Apr 2024 | USAspending |
| Montana Department of Transportation | Department of TransportationFederal Highway Administration | GrantFormula Grant (a) | $2.3M | 29 Apr 2022 | USAspending |
| Montana Department of Transportation | Department of TransportationFederal Highway Administration | GrantFormula Grant (a) | $1.9M | 27 Feb 2023 | USAspending |
Congressional districts
| District | Share of county land area | District FY2025 obligations | Per resident |
|---|---|---|---|
| Montana's 2nd congressional district | 100% | $6.6B | $12,073 |
Other counties in Montana
- Lewis and Clark County $22,898
- Yellowstone County $6,873
- Cascade County $11,994
- Flathead County $8,293
- Missoula County $7,279
- Gallatin County $6,516
- Lake County $15,537
- Ravalli County $10,230
- Silver Bow County $10,164
- Hill County $16,273
- Lincoln County $11,093
- Glacier County $12,398
- Park County $9,126
- Big Horn County $12,925
- Sanders County $10,710
- Fergus County $12,275
- Roosevelt County $13,124
- Rosebud County $15,756
- Blaine County $18,617
- Jefferson County $8,734
- Richland County $9,799
- Beaverhead County $10,831
- Chouteau County $18,405
- Carbon County $9,298
- Stillwater County $10,975
- Dawson County $11,445
- Valley County $13,212
- Mineral County $18,564
- Deer Lodge County $9,680
- Madison County $8,600
- Daniels County $43,769
- Sheridan County $17,698
- Pondera County $9,691
- Teton County $8,925
- McCone County $32,040
- Broadwater County $6,389
- Powell County $7,110
- Toole County $9,571
- Phillips County $11,616
- Musselshell County $8,461
- Prairie County $31,789
- Granite County $9,125
- Liberty County $16,889
- Garfield County $28,334
- Sweet Grass County $8,500
- Carter County $23,014
- Judith Basin County $12,259
- Fallon County $7,780
- Meagher County $10,370
- Wheatland County $9,987
- Powder River County $10,008
- Golden Valley County $11,421
- Wibaux County $9,645
- Treasure County $10,179
- Petroleum County $5,533
Per-resident rate, FY2025. All counties in Montana.
Questions and answers
How much federal spending goes to Custer County, Montana?
$94M in award obligations in FY2025 and $454M since FY2022, counting awards whose primary place of performance is in the county. Obligations are commitments, not payments.
How much federal spending per person is that?
$7,784 per resident in FY2025 (population 12,034), against $13,422 for Montana and $15,158 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 Custer County, Montana?
By the value of $1.0M-plus awards begun since FY2022: Montana Department of Transportation ($42M), Copper Creek, LLC ($6.0M), Eastern Montana Community Mental Health Center ($4.0M), Agri Industries Inc ($2.6M) and Youderian Construction Inc ($2.2M). Individuals are never listed.
Which agencies fund Custer County, Montana?
Social Security Administration ($211M), Department of Transportation ($48M), Department of Agriculture ($42M), Department of Veterans Affairs ($36M) and Department of the Interior ($15M), 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.