States › Pennsylvania › Lehigh County
County · Pennsylvania · FIPS 42077
Federal spending in Lehigh County, PA
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.
In FY2026, $2.6B in federal awards named Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, as the primary place of performance, $6,659 per resident.
That is below the Pennsylvania rate of $20,939 per resident (32% of it) and below the national rate of $14,744; it ranks 58 of 67 counties in the state.
The FY2026 mix was 83% direct payments, 10% contracts.
Obligations were about level on FY2025, and the five-year total since FY2023 is $9.8B.
Over FY2022–FY2025, the largest awarding agencies were Social Security Administration ($7.2B), Department of Veterans Affairs ($641M) and Department of Transportation ($345M).
Per resident, by award type FY2026
- Contracts $246M
- Grants $176M
- Direct payments $2.1B
- Loans (subsidy cost) −$222K
- Other assistance $1.8M
| Per resident | This county | Pennsylvania | United States |
|---|---|---|---|
| All award obligations | $6,659 | $20,939 | $14,744 |
| Contracts | $641 | $1,839 | $2,007 |
| Grants | $459 | $3,910 | $3,528 |
| Direct payments | $5,556 | $15,191 | $9,185 |
| Loans (subsidy cost) | −$1 | −$21 | −$16 |
| Other assistance | $5 | $20 | $40 |
| Rank by per-resident rate | 58 of 67 in state · 2,310 of 3,144 US | 10 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 | Mack Defense LLC | 30 | $380M | 37% |
| 2 | Pennsylvania Department of Transportation | 38 | $279M | 27% |
| 3 | Olympus America Inc | 61 | $133M | 13% |
| 4 | PPL Electric Utilities Corporation | 1 | $49M | 5% |
| 5 | Lehigh Northampton Airport Authority | 9 | $49M | 5% |
| 6 | Allentown City Hall | 17 | $42M | 4% |
| 7 | Community Services for Children Inc | 1 | $40M | 4% |
| 8 | Air Products and Chemicals, Inc | 7 | $38M | 4% |
| 9 | Bethlehem Housing Authority | 7 | $15M | 1% |
| 10 | Allentown Housing Authority | 5 | $15M | 1% |
Largest awards performed in the county
| Recipient | Awarding agency | Type | Award value | Begun | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PPL Electric Utilities Corporation | Department of Energy | GrantProject Grant (B) | $49M | 30 Sep 2024 | USAspending |
| Mack Defense LLC | Department of DefenseDepartment of the Army | ContractDelivery Order | $46M | 27 Apr 2026 | USAspending |
| Pennsylvania Department of Transportation | Department of TransportationFederal Highway Administration | GrantFormula Grant (a) | $43M | 13 Feb 2024 | USAspending |
| Mack Defense LLC | Department of DefenseDepartment of the Army | ContractDelivery Order | $41M | 26 Jun 2025 | USAspending |
| Mack Defense LLC | Department of DefenseDepartment of the Army | ContractDelivery Order | $41M | 26 Jun 2025 | USAspending |
| Pennsylvania Department of Transportation | Department of TransportationFederal Highway Administration | GrantProject Grant (B) | $41M | 10 Sep 2026 | USAspending |
| Community Services for Children Inc | Department of Health and Human ServicesAdministration for Children and Families | GrantProject Grant (B) | $40M | 19 Mar 2024 | USAspending |
| Mack Defense LLC | Department of DefenseDepartment of the Army | ContractDelivery Order | $39M | 27 Apr 2026 | USAspending |
| Pennsylvania Department of Transportation | Department of TransportationFederal Highway Administration | GrantFormula Grant (a) | $32M | 3 Sep 2024 | USAspending |
| Mack Defense LLC | Department of DefenseDepartment of the Army | ContractDelivery Order | $28M | 4 Jun 2024 | USAspending |
Congressional districts
| District | Share of county land area | District FY2026 obligations | Per resident |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pennsylvania's 7th congressional district | 100% | $5.2B | $6,689 |
Other counties in Pennsylvania
- Cumberland County $369,066
- Allegheny County $21,654
- Philadelphia County $8,369
- Montgomery County $13,478
- Delaware County $10,184
- Dauphin County $18,444
- Bucks County $7,441
- York County $9,872
- Chester County $6,608
- Lancaster County $6,422
- Westmoreland County $7,842
- Luzerne County $8,153
- Berks County $6,151
- Northampton County $6,523
- Erie County $7,602
- Montour County $98,880
- Lackawanna County $7,762
- Washington County $7,921
- Centre County $10,488
- Butler County $7,571
- Cambria County $11,570
- Beaver County $8,121
- Franklin County $8,238
- Monroe County $7,809
- Lebanon County $7,001
- Schuylkill County $6,866
- Blair County $8,002
- Fayette County $7,690
- Lycoming County $7,259
- Adams County $7,592
- Mercer County $7,542
- Lawrence County $7,470
- Northumberland County $6,938
- Crawford County $7,483
- Indiana County $6,695
- Clearfield County $7,077
- Somerset County $7,497
- Pike County $8,146
- Armstrong County $7,949
- Columbia County $7,628
- Carbon County $7,388
- Bradford County $7,286
- Wayne County $8,377
- Venango County $8,062
- Jefferson County $8,825
- Bedford County $7,841
- Warren County $9,063
- Susquehanna County $8,359
- Perry County $6,622
- Tioga County $7,593
- Mifflin County $6,640
- McKean County $7,698
- Huntingdon County $6,812
- Greene County $7,851
- Clinton County $7,018
- Clarion County $7,030
- Union County $6,038
- Elk County $7,799
- Snyder County $5,874
Per-resident rate, FY2026. All counties in Pennsylvania.
Questions and answers
How much federal spending goes to Lehigh County, Pennsylvania?
$2.6B in award obligations in FY2026 and $9.8B 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?
$6,659 per resident in FY2026 (population 384,383), against $20,939 for Pennsylvania 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 Lehigh County, Pennsylvania?
By the value of $1.0M-plus awards begun since FY2023: Mack Defense LLC ($380M), Pennsylvania Department of Transportation ($279M), Olympus America Inc ($133M), PPL Electric Utilities Corporation ($49M) and Lehigh Northampton Airport Authority ($49M). Individuals are never listed.
Which agencies fund Lehigh County, Pennsylvania?
Social Security Administration ($7.2B), Department of Veterans Affairs ($641M), Department of Transportation ($345M), Department of Defense ($344M) and Department of Housing and Urban Development ($267M), 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.