California vs Pennsylvania

1.47 million Pennsylvania awards on $28.1B

California logs 639,340 awards on $39.5B. Pennsylvania logs 1,468,918 awards on $28.1B. Row volume and dollar stock are different rankings in this pair. A busier file is not automatically the heavier file, and a heavier file is not automatically the busier one. These figures are USAspending.gov obligations by place of performance, not Treasury outlays. Cash payments can lag award dates. Headquarters can differ from the state coded on the award.

Readers who sort only by award count will miss $39.5B versus $28.1B. Readers who sort only by dollars will miss 639,340 versus 1,468,918. Hold both. Typical booking size moves with that split: fewer rows on more dollars means a heavier average action, not a moral grade. Pennsylvania’s 1,468,918 awards are the row story; California’s $39.5B is the stock story.

Medicinal manufacturing vs building construction

Census counts are 39,431,263 in California and 13,078,751 in Pennsylvania. Spending per capita is $135.64 versus $239.68. That ratio uses stacked obligations, not FY2026 alone and not GDP. A higher per-person reading means a thicker federal-award intensity on the Census denominator, nothing else.

Medicinal and botanical manufacturing on a 1,468,918-row Pennsylvania file is a different peak from commercial and institutional building construction on 639,340 California awards. Rows and mix both refuse to copy the dollar ranking. Population can lead while dollars trail, or the reverse. The table reports both. It does not convert either into outlays.

Questions

Which has more federal spending, California or Pennsylvania?

California shows $39.5B in USAspending.gov obligations; Pennsylvania shows $28.1B. Award counts are 639,340 and 1,468,918. Populations are 39,431,263 and 13,078,751. Spending per capita is $135.64 versus $239.68. FY2026 obligations are $5.3B and $3.1B. These are obligations, not Treasury outlays. These figures are USAspending.gov obligations, not Treasury outlays.

What industries lead California and Pennsylvania federal awards?

California’s top industry is commercial and institutional building construction. Pennsylvania’s top industry is medicinal and botanical manufacturing. Those slices sit on $39.5B and $28.1B in USAspending.gov obligations and on 639,340 versus 1,468,918 awards. They mark the largest grouping in each file, not every award.

How do California and Pennsylvania compare on spending per capita?

Spending per capita is $135.64 in California on 39,431,263 residents and $239.68 in Pennsylvania on 13,078,751 residents. Those ratios use stacked USAspending.gov obligations of $39.5B and $28.1B, not FY2026 alone and not GDP. These figures are USAspending.gov obligations, not Treasury outlays.

Are California vs Pennsylvania figures Treasury outlays?

No. The $39.5B and $28.1B stacked totals, and FY2026 amounts of $5.3B and $3.1B, are USAspending.gov obligations by place of performance. Outlays are cash payments and can lag. Award counts are 639,340 and 1,468,918. These figures are USAspending.gov obligations, not Treasury outlays.