Colorado vs Louisiana on USAspending: $8.1B vs $4.7B

Close award files, unmatched dollars

These figures are USAspending.gov obligations, not Treasury outlays. Colorado’s $8.1B stock sits $3.3 billion above Louisiana’s $4.7B. Place of performance in the award file is the scoring rule. Award counts are closer than the stocks: 91,723 in Colorado and 72,577 in Louisiana. Populations of 5,957,493 and 4,597,740 are also in a similar band.

Matched-order rows with unmatched dollars imply a heavier typical booking in Colorado on the stacked total. Louisiana’s $4.7B on 72,577 actions is still a heavy book. Dollars favor Colorado; intensity and FY2026 favor Louisiana. The $8.1B versus $4.7B ranking is a dollar ranking, not a recency ranking.

Colorado’s 91,723 awards and Louisiana’s 72,577 awards are in the same paperwork band. FY2026 of $579,929,386 versus $1,232,995,601 is not. Stacked dollars of $8,052,957,089 versus $4,707,913,049 still favor Colorado. People of 5,957,493 versus 4,597,740 produce $97.34 versus $268.17. Chartered freight air versus shipyards is mix. Similar row counts do not make similar latest years.

Louisiana’s $268.17 versus Colorado’s $97.34

Colorado’s 5,957,493 residents against $8.1B produce $97.34 per capita. Louisiana’s 4,597,740 residents against $4.7B produce $268.17. Intensity in Louisiana is more than 2.7 times Colorado’s even though Colorado holds the larger stacked total and a similar Census count.

A $268.17 per-person reading is an intensity fact attached to $4.7B, not a household payment. Colorado’s $97.34 is attached to $8.1B. This table scores USAspending place of performance, not GDP. Similar people and similar rows can still hide a wide per-resident split when FY2026 already favors Louisiana.

Chartered freight air versus shipyards

Colorado’s top industry is nonscheduled chartered freight air transportation. Louisiana’s is ship building and repairing. Those NAICS labels mark the largest grouping in each state’s file. Charter-freight awards and shipyard awards are different lead products sitting on $8.1B and $4.7B stocks.

A chartered-freight lead can concentrate transportation awards inside Colorado’s 91,723-award file. A ship-building lead inside Louisiana’s 72,577-award file can concentrate yard work without making Louisiana a single-product state. Mix differs even while row counts stay in the same band. Neither label is the entire stock.

FY2026: $579.9M in Colorado vs $1.23B in Louisiana

FY2026 obligations are $579,929,386 in Colorado and $1,232,995,601 in Louisiana. Louisiana’s latest year is more than double Colorado’s, reversing a stacked ranking that favors Colorado by $3.3 billion. Recency questions belong in FY2026. The $8.1B and $4.7B totals remain the full USAspending.gov aggregate this comparison uses. Both years are obligations, not outlays.

Do not divide those FY figures by Colorado’s 91,723 or Louisiana’s 72,577 all-years awards. Per capita of $97.34 on 5,957,493 residents versus $268.17 on 4,597,740 residents is the intensity comparison. FY2026 is the cut that most clearly favors Louisiana. Stacked totals still favor Colorado.

Louisiana’s $1,232,995,601 FY2026 versus Colorado’s $579,929,386 already reverses $4,707,913,049 versus $8,052,957,089. 72,577 awards versus 91,723 awards stay in the same paperwork band. 4,597,740 residents versus 5,957,493 residents produce $268.17 versus $97.34. Close rows do not make a recency tie. Both years are USAspending.gov obligations.

Stacked lead, inverted year

Colorado leads stacked dollars ($8.1B vs $4.7B), award count (91,723 vs 72,577), and population (5,957,493 vs 4,597,740). Louisiana leads per capita ($268.17 vs $97.34) and FY2026 ($1.23B vs $579.9M). Those splits are why freight air versus ships cannot be reduced to one ranking.

Nonscheduled chartered freight air transportation versus ship building and repairing is mix inside files that contain many other industries. Use the Colorado and Louisiana hubs for agencies and recipients. Keep both stocks labeled as USAspending.gov obligations.

Close rows, doubled latest year

Colorado’s 91,723 awards and Louisiana’s 72,577 awards are in the same band. FY2026 of $579,929,386 versus $1,232,995,601 is not. Stacked dollars of $8,052,957,089 versus $4,707,913,049 still favor Colorado. Per capita of $97.34 on 5,957,493 residents versus $268.17 on 4,597,740 residents favors Louisiana. Those cuts should be read separately.

Nonscheduled chartered freight air transportation versus ship building and repairing is mix. Do not treat similar award counts as evidence the files are the same size in dollars or in the latest year. Both stocks are USAspending.gov obligations, not Treasury outlays. Place of performance is the scoring rule.

Questions

Which state has more federal spending, Colorado or Louisiana?

Colorado leads in stacked USAspending.gov obligations: $8,052,957,089 versus Louisiana’s $4,707,913,049. Award counts are closer (91,723 vs 72,577). Populations are 5,957,493 and 4,597,740. Spending per capita is $97.34 in Colorado and $268.17 in Louisiana. FY2026 obligations are $579.9M and $1.23B. These are obligations, not Treasury outlays.

Does Louisiana outpace Colorado in FY2026?

Yes. FY2026 obligations are $1,232,995,601 in Louisiana versus $579,929,386 in Colorado. The stacked ranking still favors Colorado ($8.1B vs $4.7B). Per capita is $268.17 versus $97.34. Award counts are 72,577 and 91,723. Populations are 4,597,740 and 5,957,493.

What industries lead Colorado and Louisiana federal awards?

Colorado’s top industry is nonscheduled chartered freight air transportation. Louisiana’s is ship building and repairing. Those slices sit on $8.1B and $4.7B obligation stocks. They mark the largest grouping in each file, not every award in either state. Award counts are 91,723 in Colorado and 72,577 in Louisiana.

Are Colorado vs Louisiana figures Treasury outlays?

No. SpendingVault uses USAspending.gov obligations. Outlays are cash payments and can lag. The $8.1B and $4.7B stacked totals and FY2026 amounts of $579.9M and $1.23B measure award commitments by place of performance, not Monthly Treasury Statement payments.