Congressional district · 119th Congress boundaries
Federal spending in MN-08: Minnesota's 8th 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, $6.5B in federal awards named Minnesota's 8th congressional district as the primary place of performance, $8,994 per resident.
That is below the Minnesota rate of $38,998 per resident (23% of it) and below the national rate of $14,744; it ranks 2 of 8 districts in the state.
The FY2026 mix was 72% direct payments, 24% grants.
Obligations were up 20% on FY2025, and the five-year total since FY2023 is $22B.
Over FY2022–FY2025, the largest awarding agencies were Social Security Administration ($15B), Department of Veterans Affairs ($1.9B) and Department of Transportation ($849M).
Per resident, by award type FY2026
- Contracts $230M
- Grants $1.5B
- Direct payments $4.7B
- Loans (subsidy cost) $1.9M
- Other assistance $17M
| Per resident | This district | Minnesota | United States |
|---|---|---|---|
| All award obligations | $8,994 | $38,998 | $14,744 |
| Contracts | $320 | $337 | $2,007 |
| Grants | $2,158 | $3,765 | $3,528 |
| Direct payments | $6,490 | $34,784 | $9,185 |
| Loans (subsidy cost) | $3 | −$9 | −$16 |
| Other assistance | $24 | $120 | $40 |
| Rank by per-resident rate | 2 of 8 in state · 79 of 436 US | 4 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
A further $17B 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
Counties in the district
- Aitkin County 100% of county area
- Beltrami County 100% of county area
- Carlton County 100% of county area
- Cass County 100% of county area
- Chisago County 100% of county area
- Clearwater County 100% of county area
- Cook County 100% of county area
- Crow Wing County 100% of county area
- Isanti County 100% of county area
- Itasca County 100% of county area
- Kanabec County 100% of county area
- Koochiching County 100% of county area
- Lake County 100% of county area
- Lake of the Woods County 100% of county area
- Mahnomen County 100% of county area
- Mille Lacs County 100% of county area
- Pine County 100% of county area
- St. Louis County 100% of county area
- Hubbard County 67% of county area
- Washington County 39% of county area
- Becker County 36% of county area
Other districts in Minnesota
Questions and answers
How much federal spending goes to Minnesota's 8th congressional district?
$6.5B in award obligations in FY2026 and $22B 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?
$8,994 per resident in FY2026 (population 718,176), against $38,998 for Minnesota 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 Minnesota's 8th congressional district?
By obligations over FY2022–FY2025: Minnesota Department of Transportation ($619M), Talon Nickel (USA) LLC ($117M), J. F. Brennan Company, Inc. ($97M), Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe ($95M) and Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe ($82M). Individuals are never listed.
Which agencies fund Minnesota's 8th congressional district?
Social Security Administration ($15B), Department of Veterans Affairs ($1.9B), Department of Transportation ($849M), Department of Housing and Urban Development ($406M) and Railroad Retirement Board ($371M), 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.