Delaware vs Montana on USAspending: $478.5M vs $1.2B

Nearly matched populations, unmatched $1.2B and $478.5M stocks

Montana’s 1,137,233 residents and Delaware’s 1,051,917 residents are among the closer Census pairs in this slice. The obligation stocks are not close. Montana’s $1.2B is more than double Delaware’s $478.5M. Intensity follows the dollar gap, not the population near-tie: $187.18 per capita versus $37.43. Cite those packet ratios beside the Census counts rather than treating them as a restatement of the headline stocks.

Award volume leans Montana as well, 21,487 versus 16,329. That gap is milder than the dollar gap. Row count is not average award size. Do not divide $1.2B by 21,487 or $478.5M by 16,329. Cite USAspending.gov for both the dollar file and the award file.

Armored-vehicle manufacturing versus commercial building construction

Delaware’s lead NAICS is military armored vehicle, tank, and tank component manufacturing. Montana’s is commercial and institutional building construction. An armored-vehicle peak is a defense-manufacturing first read on Delaware’s $478.5M mix. A commercial-building peak is a construction first read on Montana’s $1.2B mix. The labels do not make the two stocks interchangeable.

The 16,329 Delaware awards and 21,487 Montana awards include many actions outside those two industries. Use the Delaware and Montana state hubs for agencies and recipients. Both peaks are USAspending.gov obligation mixes. Outlays are not in the packet.

FY2026: Montana’s $212.9M versus Delaware’s $39.4M

Fiscal year 2026 obligations are $212.9M in Montana and $39.4M in Delaware. Recency preserves Montana’s stacked dollar lead and stretches it. Treat the year as a recency slice of obligations still being recorded, not as Treasury cash already paid and not as a claim that $1.2B and $478.5M will finish the year in that same ratio.

Do not divide $212.9M or $39.4M by 21,487 or 16,329 all-years awards. Spending per capita of $187.18 and $37.43 already sits beside Census counts of 1,137,233 and 1,051,917. Cite USAspending.gov for both cuts.

What $187.18 looks like when population almost matches

Montana’s $1.2B on 1,137,233 people produces $187.18 per capita. Delaware’s $478.5M on 1,051,917 people produces $37.43. Because the Census files are close, the intensity ranking is almost a restatement of the dollar ranking. The construction peak sits on the hotter ratio and on 21,487 awards. The $212.9M FY2026 slice is the recency cut on the larger stock.

Delaware’s armored-vehicle peak, 16,329 awards, and $39.4M latest-year amount remain the smaller file on a cooler ratio. Read a Mid-Atlantic state against a Mountain West state as a mix contrast. Keep every dollar figure labeled as a USAspending.gov obligation.

How to read Delaware versus Montana

Read Montana first on stacked dollars ($1.2B vs $478.5M), spending per capita ($187.18 vs $37.43), awards (21,487 vs 16,329), and FY2026 ($212.9M vs $39.4M). Population is the ranking that is close: 1,137,233 versus 1,051,917. Note military armored vehicle, tank, and tank component manufacturing versus commercial and institutional building construction.

The comparison hub holds the tables. The Delaware and Montana hubs hold agencies and recipients. Outlays are a different series. Cite USAspending.gov. Keep $37.43 and $187.18 labeled as Census-based obligation ratios.

Why close Census files still produce unmatched intensity

Delaware’s 1,051,917 residents and Montana’s 1,137,233 residents look like neighbors on a Census map. $478.5M versus $1.2B does not. Because the populations are close, $37.43 versus $187.18 is almost a restatement of the dollar ranking rather than a population story. FY2026 of $39.4M versus $212.9M then stretches the gap again. Award counts of 16,329 versus 21,487 are the milder ranking.

Delaware’s military armored vehicle, tank, and tank component manufacturing peak is a defense-manufacturing first read. Montana’s commercial and institutional building construction peak is a construction first read. Neither label is an outlay series. Cite USAspending.gov. Use the Delaware and Montana hubs for agencies and recipients. Use the comparison hub for the tables. Do not invent a mean from 16,329 or 21,487.

Questions

Does Delaware or Montana have more federal spending?

Montana leads stacked USAspending.gov obligations $1.2B to Delaware’s $478.5M, spending per capita $187.18 to $37.43, awards 21,487 to 16,329, and FY2026 obligations $212.9M to $39.4M. Population is close: 1,051,917 in Delaware and 1,137,233 in Montana.

What industries lead in Delaware and Montana?

Delaware’s top industry is military armored vehicle, tank, and tank component manufacturing. Montana’s is commercial and institutional building construction. Those labels are the largest NAICS slices on $478.5M and $1.2B. Award counts are 16,329 in Delaware and 21,487 in Montana.

Are Delaware and Montana similar on a per-capita basis because populations are close?

No. The packet reports $37.43 per capita in Delaware on 1,051,917 residents and $187.18 in Montana on 1,137,233. Stacked stocks are $478.5M versus $1.2B. These figures are USAspending.gov obligations, not outlays. Close Census counts do not produce close intensity here.

Are Delaware vs Montana figures Treasury outlays?

No. The $478.5M and $1.2B totals, and FY2026 amounts of $39.4M and $212.9M, are USAspending.gov obligations. Outlays are cash payments and can lag. Spending per capita ($37.43 vs $187.18) uses Census population where present. This packet does not publish outlays or average award size.