Tennessee vs Virginia

A peer-sized state with a $3.6B file

Treat the $3.6B and $110.8B figures as USAspending.gov obligations, not Treasury outlays. Tennessee is large enough that a casual reader might expect its federal award total to sit nearer Virginia’s. The table does not cooperate. Award counts are 63,616 in Tennessee and 1,116,647 in Virginia.

Population (7,227,750 vs 8,811,195) is the wrong explanation for a thirty-fold dollar gap. Tennessee’s economy includes major private employers and federal facilities; those facts still do not produce a $110.8B obligation stock in this aggregate. Virginia’s file is a different species of federal-award density.

Ninety-eight dollars per person vs $1,344

Spending per capita of $97.50 in Tennessee and $1,344.24 in Virginia already divides out headcount. After that division, Virginia remains more than thirteen times as intensive. The $3.6B versus $110.8B ranking and the per-capita ranking agree on order; per capita is the one that survives the “but Tennessee is a big state” objection.

Readers comparing Southern states to Virginia should keep that $97.50 figure in view. It is not a rounding of Virginia’s rate. It is a different obligation intensity.

Questions

How do Tennessee and Virginia compare on federal spending?

Tennessee has $3.6B in USAspending.gov obligations and 63,616 awards; Virginia has $110.8B and 1,116,647 awards. Populations are 7,227,750 and 8,811,195. Spending per capita is $97.50 versus $1,344.24. FY2026 obligations are $704.7M and $11.8B. All of those figures are obligations, not Treasury outlays.

Is Tennessee close to Virginia in population but not in federal awards?

Yes. Tennessee’s 7,227,750 residents are about 82 percent of Virginia’s 8,811,195, while obligations are $3.6B versus $110.8B. Award counts (63,616 vs 1,116,647) follow the dollars more than the people. Per capita of $97.50 versus $1,344.24 is the compact statement of that mismatch.

What industry leads Tennessee’s federal awards vs Virginia’s?

Tennessee’s top industry is couriers and express delivery services. Virginia’s is other computer related services. Those labels are the largest industry slices on $3.6B and $110.8B in obligations. They do not inventory every NAICS code in either state. Those figures remain USAspending.gov obligations by place of performance, not Treasury outlays and not a score of which state deserves more work.

Are Tennessee vs Virginia spending figures outlays?

No. SpendingVault’s comparison uses USAspending.gov obligations. Treasury outlays are cash that has been paid and can lag obligations. The $3.6B and $110.8B totals, and FY2026 amounts of $704.7M and $11.8B, are commitment figures, not Monthly Treasury Statement payments. Those figures remain USAspending.gov obligations by place of performance, not Treasury outlays and not a score of which state deserves more work.