FY2026's Top Federal Contracts: AMI Metals' $1.45B DHS Award Leads Major Obligations
Federal agencies are executing massive single-award obligations in FY2026, with individual contracts pushing well past the billion-dollar mark. While a typical federal procurement action falls under $1 million, the largest awards this fiscal year involve heavy infrastructure, border security, and nationwide healthcare administration. At the top of the list sits a $1.45 billion materials contract awarded to AMI METALS, INC for bulk steel, alongside several other ten-figure construction and defense awards.
Key takeaway: The Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Veterans Affairs account for the largest individual contract obligations in FY2026, driven by multi-hundred-million-dollar awards for border barrier construction, shipbuilding, and healthcare network management.
Understanding these massive obligations requires looking past the top-line agency budgets and directly at the contractors executing the work. The data reveals a heavy concentration of federal procurement 2026 dollars flowing into specialized construction, logistics, and medical insurance carriers.
The Scale of FY2026's Largest Federal Contracts
Federal procurement at the highest levels operates on a different scale than standard government purchasing. The largest federal contracts FY2026 has to offer are not standard service agreements; they are complex, multi-phase infrastructure and defense acquisitions funded in massive single tranches.
Here is the thing: when a federal agency obligates over $500 million in a single action, it typically signals a major physical infrastructure project or a nationwide service rollout.
The table below outlines the largest single contract obligations executed in the current fiscal year.
| Recipient | Awarding Agency | Industry (NAICS) | Total Obligation |
|---|---|---|---|
| BARNARD CONSTRUCTION COMPANY, INCORPORATED | Department of Homeland Security | 236220 — Commercial and Institutional Building Construction | $1.58B |
| AMI METALS, INC | Department of Homeland Security | 541614 — Process, Physical Distribution, and Logistics Consulting Services | $1.45B |
| BOLLINGER SHIPYARDS LOCKPORT, L.L.C. | Department of Homeland Security | 336611 — Ship Building and Repairing | $921.7M |
| OPTUM PUBLIC SECTOR SOLUTIONS, INC. | Department of Veterans Affairs | 524114 — Direct Health and Medical Insurance Carriers | $782.1M |
| OPTUM PUBLIC SECTOR SOLUTIONS, INC. | Department of Veterans Affairs | 524114 — Direct Health and Medical Insurance Carriers | $723.7M |
| BCCG A JOINT VENTURE | Department of Homeland Security | 236220 — Commercial and Institutional Building Construction | $611.1M |
| OPTUM PUBLIC SECTOR SOLUTIONS, INC. | Department of Veterans Affairs | 524114 — Direct Health and Medical Insurance Carriers | $609.2M |
| SPENCER CONSTRUCTION LLC | Department of Homeland Security | 236220 — Commercial and Institutional Building Construction | $512.0M |
| RAYTHEON COMPANY | Department of Transportation | 334511 — Search, Detection, Navigation, Guidance, Aeronautical, and Nautical System and Instrument Manufacturing | $418.3M |
| WHITING-TURNER CONTRACTING COMPANY, THE | Department of Homeland Security | 236220 — Commercial and Institutional Building Construction | $400.0M |
| SLS FEDERAL SERVICES LLC | Department of Homeland Security | 236220 — Commercial and Institutional Building Construction | $382.3M |
| Source: USAspending.gov FY2026 award data. |
These figures represent single award actions, not cumulative totals over a contractor's lifetime. For companies like Optum and Barnard Construction, multiple massive awards stack together to create billions in total federal backing for the year.
Department of Homeland Security Dominates Major Construction
The federal contracts DHS 2026 portfolio is heavily weighted toward physical security and maritime infrastructure. U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and the U.S. Coast Guard are the primary sub-agencies driving these massive obligations.
The AMI Metals contract FY2026 action stands out for its sheer size in the logistics category. The $1.45 billion award is designated for bulk steel procurement to support Southwest border barrier construction projects. Rather than contracting solely for finished construction, CBP is securing the raw materials at a massive scale through a logistics consulting services NAICS code.
But there is a catch. Securing the steel is only one half of the equation; the agency must also fund the actual construction. This is where the heavy civil contractors step in:
- El Paso Sector Wall: Barnard Construction secured a $1.58 billion obligation for 120 miles of vertical barrier construction in Texas.
- Del Rio Sector Barriers: SLS Federal Services was awarded $382.3 million for waterborne and vertical barrier design-build projects.
- Additional Waterborne Barriers: Spencer Construction received $512.0 million for border wall and waterborne barrier construction.
- Tiered Facility Funding: BCCG A Joint Venture pulled in $611.1 million under commercial building construction codes.
The U.S. Coast Guard is also executing major capital projects this fiscal year. Bollinger Shipyards Lockport secured a $921.7 million letter contract for the production of Arctic Security Cutters. Meanwhile, Whiting-Turner Contracting Company holds a $400.0 million accelerated design-build contract for barracks and training facilities at the Coast Guard Training Center in Cape May, New Jersey.
Healthcare and Infrastructure Investments in Current-FY Federal Spending
Outside of DHS, the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Department of Transportation are responsible for the remaining mega-contracts in the top tier. The VA's spending is entirely focused on healthcare network administration.
Optum Public Sector Solutions, Inc. dominates the VA's major contract actions. The company secured three separate obligations—$782.1 million, $723.7 million, and $609.2 million—all categorized under direct health and medical insurance carriers. These massive tranches fund the VA's community care network operations, allowing veterans to receive care from private providers when VA facilities are unavailable.
The result? A single contractor pulled down over $2.1 billion in obligations from a single agency in just three contract actions.
On the infrastructure side, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is funding major technological upgrades. Raytheon Company secured a $418.3 million contract for radar system replacements. This award is part of a broader mandate to build a next-generation air traffic control system, replacing aging legacy equipment with modern search and detection manufacturing.
Geographic Footprint of Top FY2026 Recipients
Federal spending of this magnitude reshapes local economies. The primary recipients of these top contracts are distributed across the country, routing billions of federal dollars into specific state economies.
- MT (Montana): Home to Barnard Construction, bringing in nearly $1.95 billion across just two border construction awards.
- TN (Tennessee): Base of operations for AMI Metals and its $1.45 billion bulk steel contract.
- WI (Wisconsin): Headquarters for Optum Public Sector Solutions, processing over $2.1 billion in VA healthcare administration funds.
- LA (Louisiana): Where Bollinger Shipyards is executing its $921.7 million Coast Guard cutter contract.
- MA (Massachusetts): Home to Raytheon Company, managing the $418.3 million FAA radar overhaul.
Other major recipients are based in TX (SLS Federal Services), AL (BCCG), MD (Whiting-Turner), and AZ (Spencer Construction). While the work itself—such as border construction in Texas or barracks building in New Jersey—happens on-site, the corporate revenue flows back to these headquarters states.
Top Sub-Agencies Driving Federal Obligations in FY2026
To understand the full scope of federal procurement 2026, we have to look beyond individual contracts and examine the top federal sub-agencies 2026 data. Sub-agencies are the actual operational units doing the spending—the Federal Highway Administration within DOT, or the Indian Health Service within HHS.
While massive single contracts make headlines, the highest total obligations belong to sub-agencies that distribute millions of smaller payments, grants, and formula funds.
| Awarding Agency | Sub-Agency | Total Awards | Total Obligated |
|---|---|---|---|
| Social Security Administration | Social Security Administration | 180,382 | $991.7B |
| Department of Transportation | Federal Highway Administration | 39,203 | $74.5B |
| Department of Health and Human Services | Administration for Children and Families | 4,605 | $72.4B |
| Department of Housing and Urban Development | Assistant Secretary for Public and Indian Housing | 44,923 | $41.1B |
| Department of Transportation | Federal Transit Administration | 2,129 | $18.8B |
| Railroad Retirement Board | Railroad Retirement Board | 67,478 | $8.5B |
| Department of Transportation | Federal Aviation Administration | 5,186 | $7.1B |
| General Services Administration | Federal Acquisition Service | 757,403 | $6.1B |
| National Aeronautics and Space Administration | National Aeronautics and Space Administration | 1,649 | $5.1B |
| Department of Health and Human Services | Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration | 301 | $2.3B |
| Department of Agriculture | Forest Service | 5,378 | $1.7B |
| Department of Transportation | Immediate Office of the Secretary | 718 | $1.5B |
| Department of Justice | Federal Prison System / Bureau of Prisons | 10,870 | $1.1B |
| Department of Health and Human Services | Indian Health Service | 3,080 | $1.1B |
| Department of Agriculture | Natural Resources Conservation Service | 4,134 | $1.0B |
| Source: USAspending.gov FY2026 sub-agency data. |
The Social Security Administration dwarfs all other entities, obligating $991.7 billion across more than 180,000 individual award actions. This represents the mandatory spending required to keep the nation's primary safety net operational.
Infrastructure and social services follow close behind. The Federal Highway Administration obligated $74.5 billion across 39,203 awards, pushing federal dollars down to state and local transportation departments. The Administration for Children and Families obligated $72.4 billion, funding block grants and social programs nationwide.
Notice the sheer volume of transactions handled by the General Services Administration's Federal Acquisition Service. They processed 757,403 individual awards to obligate $6.1 billion. This highlights a stark contrast in federal spending: while DHS issues single $1.45 billion contracts for steel, the GSA executes hundreds of thousands of micro-purchases and standard supply orders to keep federal offices running.
Quick Takeaways
- DHS leads infrastructure spending: CBP and the Coast Guard issued the largest individual contracts in FY2026, entirely focused on border barriers, facilities, and shipbuilding.
- Materials over labor: The single largest DHS contract wasn't for construction labor, but a $1.45 billion logistics award to AMI Metals for bulk steel.
- Healthcare administration is highly concentrated: Optum Public Sector Solutions secured over $2.1 billion in VA obligations through just three contract actions.
- Mandatory spending dominates sub-agencies: The Social Security Administration remains the largest single obligating entity by volume and dollar amount, pushing nearly $1 trillion out the door in FY2026.