Department of Education federal obligations

Nearly $398 billion on 110,653 Education awards

The precise total is $398,145,700,789.94. Across 110,653 awards the implied mean is about $3.60 million per award. Title-style grants to states and large student-aid related actions can occupy the right tail; smaller discretionary grants occupy the left. This packet does not split the 110,653 rows by CFDA program, so the mean is blended.

Fiscal year 2026 is the latest year. Student-aid and K–12 formula vehicles can span fiscal years, so $398,145,700,789.94 is not a single school year’s cash disbursement. USAspending.gov is the source.

That mix is the research takeaway from the two packet facts together. 110,653 awards at a mean near $3.60 million blend formula grants to states with smaller discretionary actions. A later extract can change both the dollar total and the award count as student-aid and K–12 vehicles can remain open across the FY 2026 window.

CGAC 091 on award records

SpendingVault’s Education hub is /agencies/091/, keyed to CGAC 091. That code identifies the Department of Education as awarding agency. Offices inside the department may appear on individual USAspending rows while still summing into $398,145,700,789.94. The 110,653 figure counts awards, not school districts or students.

What obligation totals leave out

Federal student loans and grants have multiple official scorekeeping systems. This page cites only the USAspending obligation sum of $398,145,700,789.94 through FY 2026. Amounts that never appear as award rows in this extract are omitted. Outlays, subsidy estimates, and cohort default rates are not in the packet and are not stated here.

Researchers sometimes treat an agency obligation total as cash already paid. For Department of Education, that reading is wrong. Student-aid outlays, cohort default rates, or a count of school districts belong in other publications. The USAspending figure on this hub remains an obligation sum through FY 2026. Student-aid and K–12 vehicles can remain open across the FY 2026 window.

State geography for Education awards

Place-of-performance for formula grants often follows the grantee’s state. A national contractor can still concentrate a slice of $398,145,700,789.94 in one jurisdiction. The state table is a coding view of the 110,653 awards, not a ranking of school quality.

Place-of-performance is a coding field, not a complete economic-impact model. On this agency, formula grants often follow the grantee state while a national contractor can concentrate a slice in one cell. Read the state table after the agency hub, not instead of it. Use CGAC 091 for the award rollup; do not treat it as a school-quality ranking.

Using the all-agencies comparison

Compare $398,145,700,789.94 and 110,653 awards only with other obligation totals from this extract through FY 2026. The hub offers no advice on applying for grants and no judgment of curriculum.

The all-agencies list is useful only inside this extract’s obligation definition and FY 2026 cap. 110,653 awards at a mean near $3.60 million blend formula grants to states with smaller discretionary actions. Ranking on dollars alone hides that mix. Use CGAC 091 for the award rollup; do not treat it as a school-quality ranking.

Keeping Education’s award file inside its facts

The packet states $398,145,700,789.94 on 110,653 awards tagged 091 through FY 2026. Federal student-aid scorekeeping has other official systems. This page cites only the USAspending obligation sum. Amounts that never appear as award rows are omitted.

The 110,653 figure counts records, not students. One district can appear on multiple rows. Rank Education on the all-agencies list only against other obligation totals from this extract and the same year cap. CGAC 091 is the awarding-agency identifier on every row in this rollup, and the overlay path stays /agencies/091/. The award population is 110,653 records. Those rows still sum to the same obligation total through fiscal year 2026. Readers who need place-of-performance should open the state table from that hub; readers who need peer context should open the all-agencies list. Neither view converts obligations into outlays. CGAC 091 is the awarding-agency identifier on every row in this rollup, and the overlay path stays /agencies/091/. The award population is 110,653 records. Those rows still sum to the same obligation total through fiscal year 2026. Readers who need place-of-performance should open the state table from that hub; readers who need peer context should open the all-agencies list. Neither view converts obligations into outlays.

Questions

How much has the Department of Education obligated through FY 2026?

Education awarding-agency records (CGAC 091) sum to $398,145,700,789.94 across 110,653 awards in this USAspending extract. That figure is an obligation total through fiscal year 2026, not a student-aid outlay and not a count of schools.

What is CGAC 091?

CGAC 091 is the USAspending awarding-agency code for the Department of Education. SpendingVault keys the Education hub to that identifier. The $398,145,700,789.94 obligation total and 110,653 award count roll up rows carrying 091 through FY 2026.

Does the award count equal the number of school districts funded?

No. The 110,653 figure counts award records in the extract, including grants and contracts. One district can appear on multiple rows; some rows are not districts at all. Dollar volume on those records is $398,145,700,789.94.

Where can I see Education spending by state?

The state table from the CGAC 091 agency page splits the same obligation extract by place of performance. Geography rows still sit under $398,145,700,789.94 and 110,653 awards through FY 2026.