California vs Kansas on USAspending: $39.5B vs $2.9B

Kansas trails on stock and on the per-person ratio

California’s $39.5B and Kansas’s $2.9B are a scale pair on USAspending.gov obligations. Population is 39,431,263 versus 2,970,606. Spending per capita does not invert: $135.64 versus $67.40. Several smaller states post a hotter intensity reading than California; Kansas does not. Award counts of 639,340 and 71,423 run in the same direction as the dollar stocks. Cite USAspending.gov for the stacked totals and for the latest-year amounts. Cash payments can lag award dates, which is why this page stays on obligations.

FY2026 keeps California ahead on recency: $5.3B versus $200.2M. Treat that year as a slice of the same obligation series, not as Treasury cash. Kansas’s 2,970,606 residents and 71,423 awards sit on $2.9B. California’s 39,431,263 residents and 639,340 awards sit on $39.5B. The Plains Census count does not produce a hotter per-capita reading here. Kansas’s $67.40 remains cooler than California’s $135.64 on the same USAspending.gov series.

That alignment — larger stock, larger row count, hotter per-capita figure — is the setup for this pair. California’s $39.5B, 639,340 awards, and $135.64 per capita all sit above Kansas’s $2.9B, 71,423 awards, and $67.40. FY2026 of $5.3B versus $200.2M follows the same ranking. Cite USAspending.gov. Outlays are not listed.

Construction in California, systems design in Kansas

California’s top industry is commercial and institutional building construction. Kansas’s top industry is computer systems design services. Those peaks sit on $39.5B and $2.9B. A facilities peak on a 39,431,263 Census file is not the same mix as a systems-design peak on a 2,970,606 Census file. Neither label describes every one of 639,340 or 71,423 awards. Mix is a first read, not a full industrial census of either state.

Use the California vs Kansas comparison hub for the side-by-side tables, then the California and Kansas state hubs for agencies and recipients. Both peaks are USAspending.gov obligation mixes. Outlays are not listed. FY2026 of $5.3B versus $200.2M is the same series, cut by year. Computer systems design services on Kansas’s $2.9B file can concentrate professional-services awards; commercial and institutional building construction on California’s $39.5B file is a facilities peak on a much larger Census count.

FY2026: $5.3B versus $200.2M

Fiscal year 2026 obligations are $5.3B in California and $200.2M in Kansas. Recency preserves California’s stacked dollar lead. Kansas’s $200.2M latest-year amount is a thin slice beside California’s $5.3B. Do not divide $5.3B or $200.2M by 639,340 or 71,423 all-years awards. Those award counts cover the stacked files, not a single fiscal year.

Spending per capita of $135.64 and $67.40 already sits beside Census counts of 39,431,263 and 2,970,606 against the $39.5B and $2.9B stocks. FY2026 is a later cut of the same USAspending.gov obligation series. Cash paid is not in the packet. Cite USAspending.gov for both the year slice and the stacked totals.

A cooler $67.40 on 2,970,606 residents

Kansas’s $67.40 per capita on 2,970,606 residents is cooler than California’s $135.64 on 39,431,263. The smaller file also shows the cooler ratio. The stocks are $2.9B versus $39.5B. Award volume of 71,423 versus 639,340 is Kansas’s smaller row count on the same USAspending.gov series. Population of 2,970,606 versus 39,431,263 is the Census side of that ratio.

Keep those per-capita figures labeled as Census-based packet figures on USAspending.gov obligations. They are not outlays per resident and not household income. Cite USAspending.gov. Outlays would require a different series. California’s $39.5B stock and Kansas’s $2.9B stock remain the stacked scoreboard underneath $135.64 and $67.40.

639,340 awards against 71,423

California files 639,340 awards on $39.5B. Kansas files 71,423 awards on $2.9B. Rows and dollars run the same way in this pair. They do not have to: a busy small file can post more actions on fewer dollars. Kansas’s 71,423 actions on $2.9B are still a thinner row count than California’s 639,340 on $39.5B. FY2026 of $5.3B versus $200.2M does not change those all-years counts.

Commercial and institutional building construction leads California. Computer systems design services lead Kansas. FY2026 of $5.3B versus $200.2M keeps California ahead on recency. Cite USAspending.gov for both the stacked stocks and the latest-year amounts. The comparison hub holds the tables; the California and Kansas hubs hold agencies and recipients.

How to read California versus Kansas

Read California first on stacked dollars ($39.5B vs $2.9B), spending per capita ($135.64 vs $67.40), awards (639,340 vs 71,423), and FY2026 ($5.3B vs $200.2M). Note construction versus computer systems design. Kansas’s Census count is 2,970,606 against California’s 39,431,263. Kansas trails on every one of those cuts in this packet.

The comparison hub holds the tables. The California and Kansas hubs hold agencies and recipients. Keep every dollar figure labeled as an obligation. Outlays are a different USAspending.gov series. Per-capita figures of $135.64 and $67.40 use Census population where present.

Questions

Does California or Kansas have more federal spending?

California leads stacked USAspending.gov obligations $39.5B to Kansas’s $2.9B. California also leads spending per capita, $135.64 versus $67.40, on 39,431,263 residents against Kansas’s 2,970,606. Award counts are 639,340 versus 71,423. FY2026 obligations are $5.3B in California and $200.2M in Kansas.

Why is Kansas’s per-capita figure lower than California’s?

The packet reports $135.64 per capita in California on 39,431,263 residents and $67.40 in Kansas on 2,970,606. Stacked stocks are $39.5B versus $2.9B. Award counts are 639,340 versus 71,423. These figures are USAspending.gov obligations, not outlays. FY2026 amounts are $5.3B and $200.2M.

What industries lead in California and Kansas?

California’s top industry is commercial and institutional building construction. Kansas’s is computer systems design services. Those labels are the largest NAICS slices on $39.5B and $2.9B. Award counts are 639,340 in California and 71,423 in Kansas. FY2026 obligations are $5.3B and $200.2M.

Are California vs Kansas figures Treasury outlays?

No. The $39.5B and $2.9B totals, and FY2026 amounts of $5.3B and $200.2M, are USAspending.gov obligations. Outlays are cash payments and can lag. Spending per capita ($135.64 vs $67.40) uses Census population where present. Award counts are 639,340 and 71,423.