Congressional district · 119th Congress boundaries
Federal spending in AR-03: Arkansas's 3rd congressional district
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, $4.9B in federal awards named Arkansas's 3rd congressional district as the primary place of performance, $6,364 per resident.
That is below the Arkansas rate of $10,445 per resident and below the national rate of $14,744; it ranks 4 of 4 districts in the state.
The FY2026 mix was 83% direct payments, 10% grants.
Obligations were about level on FY2025, and the five-year total since FY2023 is $18B.
Over FY2022–FY2025, the largest awarding agencies were Social Security Administration ($13B), Department of Veterans Affairs ($2.1B) and Department of Transportation ($547M).
Per resident, by award type FY2026
- Contracts $274M
- Grants $496M
- Direct payments $4.1B
- Loans (subsidy cost) −$4.2M
- Other assistance $42M
| Per resident | This district | Arkansas | United States |
|---|---|---|---|
| All award obligations | $6,364 | $10,445 | $14,744 |
| Contracts | $358 | $356 | $2,007 |
| Grants | $647 | $3,559 | $3,528 |
| Direct payments | $5,310 | $6,460 | $9,185 |
| Loans (subsidy cost) | −$6 | −$1 | −$16 |
| Other assistance | $55 | $71 | $40 |
| Rank by per-resident rate | 4 of 4 in state · 194 of 436 US | 43 of 51 states | — |
District attribution follows the congressional district USAspending records for the primary place of performance; awards carrying only a state-level location are counted in the state but in no district. Medicare payments are attributed to the district of the administrative contractor.
Obligations by fiscal year
Recipients that dominate the district FY2022–FY2025
| # | Recipient organisation | Obligations | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arkansas Department of Transportation | $440M | 3% |
| 2 | University of Arkansas | $312M | 2% |
| 3 | Serco Inc | $258M | 2% |
| 4 | Shaver Foods LLC | $91M | 1% |
| 5 | Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport AUTH | $69M | 0% |
| 6 | Division of Agriculture of the University of Arkansas | $57M | 0% |
| 7 | Kimball & Thompson Produce Company | $57M | 0% |
| 8 | University of Arkansas-Fort Smith | $52M | 0% |
| 9 | Gilbane Federal JV | $43M | 0% |
| 10 | Hurley JV, LLP | $43M | 0% |
| 11 | Pono Aina Management LLC | $40M | 0% |
| 12 | Housing AUTH of City of FT Smith | $40M | 0% |
| 13 | Stryten Energy LLC | $39M | 0% |
| 14 | Cerris Builders, Inc | $37M | 0% |
| 15 | Northwest Arkansas Community College | $35M | 0% |
| 16 | Project Enhancement Corporation | $32M | 0% |
| 17 | Veterans' Affairs, Arkansas Department of | $28M | 0% |
| 18 | Senn Bros., Inc. | $25M | 0% |
| 19 | Burns & McDonnell Engineering Company, Inc. | $25M | 0% |
| 20 | Fayetteville Housing Authority | $25M | 0% |
| 21 | Ahtna-CDM Smith JV | $23M | 0% |
| 22 | Fort Smith Regional Airport | $20M | 0% |
| 23 | ST. Francis House Nwa, Inc. | $20M | 0% |
| 24 | Benton County | $20M | 0% |
| 25 | Economic Opportunity Agency of Washington County, Inc. | $19M | 0% |
A further $15B among the top 40 went to recipients not shown: individuals, aggregated records and names USAspending withholds.
Who funds the district FY2022–FY2025
Awarding agencies
Assistance programs
Contract industries by NAICS sector
Largest awards performed in the district
| Recipient | Awarding agency | Type | Award value | Begun | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carroll Electric Cooperative Corp | Department of AgricultureRural Utilities Service | LoanDirect Loan (e) | $432Mloan face value | 21 Aug 2024 | USAspending |
| Arkansas Department of Transportation | Department of TransportationFederal Highway Administration | GrantFormula Grant (a) | $68M | 28 May 2026 | USAspending |
| BL Harbert International LLC | Department of DefenseDepartment of the Army | ContractDefinitive Contract | $61M | 11 Dec 2025 | USAspending |
| Arkansas Department of Transportation | Department of TransportationFederal Highway Administration | GrantProject Grant (B) | $59M | 9 Sep 2026 | USAspending |
| Gilbane Federal JV | Department of DefenseDepartment of the Army | ContractDelivery Order | $44M | 28 Sep 2024 | USAspending |
| Arkansas Department of Transportation | Department of TransportationFederal Highway Administration | GrantFormula Grant (a) | $44M | 5 Jun 2024 | USAspending |
| Hurley JV, LLP | Department of Veterans Affairs | ContractDefinitive Contract | $43M | 19 Sep 2025 | USAspending |
| BL Harbert International LLC | Department of DefenseDepartment of the Army | ContractDefinitive Contract | $41M | 3 Apr 2026 | USAspending |
| Arkansas Department of Transportation | Department of TransportationFederal Highway Administration | GrantFormula Grant (a) | $39M | 13 Jan 2025 | USAspending |
| Cerris Builders, Inc | Department of DefenseDepartment of the Army | ContractDelivery Order | $38M | 27 Sep 2024 | USAspending |
Counties in the district
- Benton County 100% of county area
- Carroll County 100% of county area
- Crawford County 100% of county area
- Madison County 100% of county area
- Washington County 100% of county area
- Sebastian County 60% of county area
Other districts in Arkansas
Questions and answers
How much federal spending goes to Arkansas's 3rd congressional district?
$4.9B in award obligations in FY2026 and $18B since FY2023, counting awards whose primary place of performance is in the district. Obligations are commitments, not payments.
How much federal spending per person is that?
$6,364 per resident in FY2026 (population 766,477), against $10,445 for Arkansas 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 Arkansas's 3rd congressional district?
By obligations over FY2022–FY2025: Arkansas Department of Transportation ($440M), University of Arkansas ($312M), Serco Inc ($258M), Shaver Foods LLC ($91M) and Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport AUTH ($69M). Individuals are never listed.
Which agencies fund Arkansas's 3rd congressional district?
Social Security Administration ($13B), Department of Veterans Affairs ($2.1B), Department of Transportation ($547M), Department of Defense ($531M) and Department of Health and Human Services ($412M), 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, congressional district layer, current districts) by fiscal year and award type, loaded 30 Sep 2026; district population as returned by the same endpoint; recipient and agency cross-tabulations for FY2022–FY2025, fetched 18 Sep 2026. Boundaries and county overlap: Census cartographic boundary and relationship files for the 119th Congress. Errors in processing are corrected at the next build; see corrections.