States › Nebraska › Lancaster County
County · Nebraska · FIPS 31109
Federal spending in Lancaster County, NE
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 $2.4B for work and payments in Lancaster County, Nebraska, in FY2026, or $7,299 per resident.
That is below the Nebraska rate of $13,358 per resident (55% of it) and below the national rate of $14,743; it ranks 55 of 93 counties in the state.
The FY2026 mix was 65% direct payments, 21% grants, 13% contracts.
Obligations were down 21% on FY2025, and the five-year total since FY2023 is $10B.
Over FY2022–FY2025, the largest awarding agencies were Social Security Administration ($5.0B), Department of Education ($2.4B) and Department of Veterans Affairs ($688M).
Per resident, by award type FY2026
- Contracts $322M
- Grants $521M
- Direct payments $1.6B
- Loans (subsidy cost) $52K
- Other assistance $8.9M
| Per resident | This county | Nebraska | United States |
|---|---|---|---|
| All award obligations | $7,299 | $13,358 | $14,743 |
| Contracts | $964 | $626 | $2,007 |
| Grants | $1,561 | $3,234 | $3,526 |
| Direct payments | $4,747 | $9,423 | $9,185 |
| Loans (subsidy cost) | $0 | $2 | −$16 |
| Other assistance | $27 | $73 | $40 |
| Rank by per-resident rate | 55 of 93 in state · 1,239 of 3,143 US | 22 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 Nebraska | 53 | $899M | 38% |
| 2 | Nebraska Department of Transportation | 27 | $505M | 21% |
| 3 | Nelnet Servicing LLC | 4 | $368M | 16% |
| 4 | Department of Military Nebraska | 30 | $224M | 9% |
| 5 | Board of Regents of the University of Nebraska | 69 | $170M | 7% |
| 6 | Nebraska Department of Economic Development | 9 | $53M | 2% |
| 7 | Lincoln Airport Authority | 3 | $45M | 2% |
| 8 | Nebraska Department of Health & Human Services | 5 | $34M | 1% |
| 9 | Nebraska Commission on Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice | 10 | $31M | 1% |
| 10 | Lincoln City of | 11 | $29M | 1% |
A further $7.5M 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nebraska's 1st congressional district | 100% | $4.1B | $6,171 |
Other counties in Nebraska
- Douglas County $16,410
- Sarpy County $7,044
- Buffalo County $6,408
- Hall County $5,034
- Madison County $7,936
- Lincoln County $8,038
- Scotts Bluff County $7,503
- Dodge County $6,036
- Cass County $7,327
- Adams County $6,452
- Platte County $5,462
- Gage County $7,255
- Saunders County $6,258
- Washington County $6,606
- Dawson County $4,812
- Seward County $6,464
- Dakota County $5,286
- Otoe County $6,758
- Custer County $9,810
- Thurston County $15,250
- York County $6,432
- Box Butte County $8,600
- Nemaha County $12,373
- Saline County $5,333
- Knox County $9,162
- Red Willow County $7,360
- Cuming County $8,353
- Keith County $8,911
- Holt County $6,951
- Cheyenne County $7,265
- Hamilton County $6,776
- Butler County $7,700
- Dawes County $8,291
- Cedar County $7,650
- Clay County $10,365
- Phelps County $6,883
- Burt County $8,924
- Antelope County $9,278
- Merrick County $7,255
- Fillmore County $10,465
- Thayer County $11,632
- Jefferson County $7,772
- Richardson County $7,188
- Kimball County $14,805
- Colfax County $4,518
- Dixon County $8,658
- Wayne County $4,805
- Polk County $8,531
- Kearney County $6,618
- Sheridan County $9,000
- Howard County $6,586
- Boone County $7,925
- Pierce County $5,723
- Cherry County $7,030
- Harlan County $12,959
- Furnas County $8,398
- Nuckolls County $8,932
- Morrill County $8,306
- Sherman County $10,543
Per-resident rate, FY2026. All counties in Nebraska.
Questions and answers
How much federal spending goes to Lancaster County, Nebraska?
$2.4B in award obligations in FY2026 and $10B 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?
$7,299 per resident in FY2026 (population 334,049), against $13,358 for Nebraska and $14,743 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 Lancaster County, Nebraska?
By the value of $1.0M-plus awards begun since FY2023: Department of Education Nebraska ($899M), Nebraska Department of Transportation ($505M), Nelnet Servicing LLC ($368M), Department of Military Nebraska ($224M) and Board of Regents of the University of Nebraska ($170M). Individuals are never listed.
Which agencies fund Lancaster County, Nebraska?
Social Security Administration ($5.0B), Department of Education ($2.4B), Department of Veterans Affairs ($688M), Department of Homeland Security ($479M) and Department of Commerce ($444M), 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.