Federal assistance programmes by obligations
Social Security Retirement Insurance obligated more than any other federal assistance programme in FY2026, $1.1 trillion.
American Factbook Research
The 100 assistance programmes with the most obligations · FY2026
| Rank | Name | USD |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Social Security Retirement Insurance | $1,141,274,564,962 |
| 2 | Grants to States for Medicaid | $722,912,092,189 |
| 3 | Medicare Supplementary Medical Insurance | $534,958,472,971 |
| 4 | Medicare Hospital Insurance | $398,954,801,729 |
| 5 | Medicare Prescription Drug Coverage | $178,695,385,153 |
| 6 | Veterans Compensation for Service-Connected Disability | $177,844,033,496 |
| 7 | Social Security Disability Insurance | $133,085,734,280 |
| 8 | Social Security Survivors Insurance | $98,246,718,745 |
| 9 | Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program | $71,154,186,126 |
| 10 | Supplemental Security Income | $59,630,309,518 |
| 11 | Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers | $35,782,770,340 |
| 12 | Federal Pell Grant Program | $29,471,530,796 |
| 13 | National School Lunch Program | $27,831,691,969 |
| 14 | Children's Health Insurance Program | $22,719,074,157 |
| 15 | Disaster Grants - Public Assistance (Presidentially Declared Disasters) | $19,780,839,110 |
| 16 | Title I Grants to Local Educational Agencies | $18,440,156,783 |
| 17 | Temporary Assistance for Needy Families | $17,027,228,454 |
| 18 | Project-Based Rental Assistance (PBRA) | $14,755,966,018 |
| 19 | Special Education Grants to States | $14,309,643,418 |
| 20 | National Highway Performance Program (NHPP) | $13,249,024,878 |
| 21 | Highway Planning and Construction | $13,226,311,891 |
| 22 | 1332 State Innovation Waivers | $11,850,455,412 |
| 23 | Head Start | $11,235,473,752 |
| 24 | Social Insurance for Railroad Workers | $11,041,615,527 |
| 25 | Surface Transportation Block Grant Program | $11,014,119,569 |
| 26 | Veterans Dependency and Indemnity Compensation for Service-Connected Death | $10,011,228,897 |
| 27 | Rural Health Transformation Program | $10,000,000,000 |
| 28 | Post-9/11 Veterans Educational Assistance | $9,012,696,091 |
| 29 | Child Care and Development Block Grant | $8,381,461,673 |
| 30 | WIC Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children | $8,315,529,410 |
| 31 | Federal Transit Formula Grants | $7,077,921,651 |
| 32 | Supplemental Disaster Relief Program | $7,024,371,759 |
| 33 | State Administrative Matching Grants for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program | $6,100,419,313 |
| 34 | Foster Care Title IV-E | $5,742,523,141 |
| 35 | Health Center Program | $5,311,699,345 |
| 36 | National Railroad Passenger Corporation Grants | $5,126,658,639 |
| 37 | Bridge Formula Program | $5,105,488,946 |
| 38 | Tribal Self-Governance Program: IHS Compacts/Funding Agreements | $4,677,947,606 |
| 39 | Child Support Services | $4,672,663,683 |
| 40 | Basic Health Program (Affordable Care Act) | $4,442,255,415 |
| 41 | Adoption Assistance | $4,150,159,116 |
| 42 | Public Housing Operating Fund | $4,048,532,929 |
| 43 | Rehabilitation Services Vocational Rehabilitation Grants to States | $4,024,515,727 |
| 44 | State of Good Repair Grants Program | $4,019,543,844 |
| 45 | Pension Plan Termination Insurance | $3,994,939,444 |
| 46 | Low-Income Home Energy Assistance | $3,818,349,100 |
| 47 | Allergy and Infectious Diseases Research | $3,753,122,412 |
| 48 | Aging Research | $3,499,654,288 |
| 49 | Child Care Mandatory and Matching Funds of the Child Care and Development Fund | $3,420,624,188 |
| 50 | UNIVERSAL SERVICE FUND - SCHOOLS and LIBRARIES | $3,186,911,961 |
| 51 | Public Housing Capital Fund | $3,129,056,821 |
| 52 | Community Development Block Grants/State's program and Non-Entitlement Grants in Hawaii | $3,083,332,626 |
| 53 | Nutrition Assistance For Puerto Rico | $2,978,782,575 |
| 54 | Survivors and Dependents Educational Assistance | $2,939,188,654 |
| 55 | Biomedical Research and Research Training | $2,903,760,313 |
| 56 | Cardiovascular Diseases Research | $2,739,686,097 |
| 57 | Drinking Water State Revolving Fund | $2,441,901,426 |
| 58 | Airport Improvement Program | $2,428,367,497 |
| 59 | Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP) | $2,361,211,944 |
| 60 | National Guard Military Operations and Maintenance (O&M) Projects | $2,354,383,999 |
| 61 | Airport Infrastructure Grants | $2,286,416,799 |
| 62 | Supporting Effective Instruction State Grants (formerly Improving Teacher Quality State Grants) | $2,209,916,841 |
| 63 | Contributions to International Organizations- CIO | $2,186,720,550 |
| 64 | Summer Electronic Benefit Transfer Program for Children | $2,043,366,503 |
| 65 | UNIVERSAL SERVICE FUND - HIGH COST | $1,996,289,233 |
| 66 | Diabetes, Digestive, and Kidney Diseases Extramural Research | $1,981,972,333 |
| 67 | Global Health Security and Transition of Life-saving Services | $1,963,006,075 |
| 68 | Refugee and Entrant Assistance State/Replacement Designee Administered Programs | $1,952,633,594 |
| 69 | Buses and Bus Facilities Formula, Competitive, and Low or No Emissions Programs | $1,895,418,464 |
| 70 | Veterans State Nursing Home Care | $1,873,349,289 |
| 71 | Block Grants for Prevention and Treatment of Substance Abuse | $1,872,955,024 |
| 72 | Continuum of Care Program | $1,815,880,879 |
| 73 | Nationally Significant Freight and Highway Projects | $1,778,922,117 |
| 74 | International Disaster and Humanitarian Response | $1,759,361,796 |
| 75 | Extramural Research Programs in the Neurosciences and Neurological Disorders | $1,758,752,232 |
| 76 | Bridge Investment Program | $1,711,156,236 |
| 77 | Hazard Mitigation Grant | $1,679,555,316 |
| 78 | Mental Health Research Grants | $1,627,304,829 |
| 79 | Overseas Refugee Assistance Programs for Africa | $1,614,616,861 |
| 80 | Social Services Block Grant | $1,604,045,520 |
| 81 | Impact Aid | $1,600,234,130 |
| 82 | Emergency Relief (ER) Program | $1,595,172,429 |
| 83 | Clean Water State Revolving Fund | $1,563,231,309 |
| 84 | Federal Transit Capital Investment Grants | $1,555,875,870 |
| 85 | Opioid STR | $1,487,609,280 |
| 86 | Pension for Non-Service-Connected Disability for Veterans | $1,478,901,687 |
| 87 | Drug Use and Addiction Research Programs | $1,386,775,583 |
| 88 | Student Support and Academic Enrichment Program | $1,349,893,432 |
| 89 | Rural Rental Assistance Payments | $1,332,541,975 |
| 90 | Twenty-First Century Community Learning Centers | $1,327,959,629 |
| 91 | Veteran Readiness and Employment | $1,319,859,287 |
| 92 | National Infrastructure Investments | $1,277,703,589 |
| 93 | Indian Self-Determination | $1,222,603,213 |
| 94 | Tribal Self-Governance | $1,202,844,677 |
| 95 | Mathematical and Physical Sciences | $1,180,671,061 |
| 96 | Federal Work-Study Program | $1,174,385,789 |
| 97 | Child Health and Human Development Extramural Research | $1,147,159,254 |
| 98 | HIV Care Formula Grants | $1,125,841,453 |
| 99 | National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure | $1,120,485,368 |
| 100 | Indian Housing Block Grants | $1,112,169,491 |
What this data cannot show
- The fiscal year is not over. These are obligations recorded so far, and a figure here is not comparable with a full year.
- An obligation is a binding commitment to pay, not money paid. Outlays are reported separately and the two are never equal in the same year.
- Assistance only. An Assistance Listing number is carried by grants, loans, direct payments and insurance, and not by contracts, so these figures do not add to the hub’s headline total.
- A programme is an administrative heading, not a benefit. The programme that obligates the most is the one the most money is routed through, which is not the same as the one reaching the most people.
- Programmes are renumbered and merged between years. A programme that changes its listing number appears under the new number with no history attached to it.
Related
Sources
- USAspending API v2 — dimension aggregations — U.S. Department of the Treasury, Bureau of the Fiscal Service · U.S. Government work, public domain (17 U.S.C. 105) · retrieved September 19, 2026
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