State budget

State checkbook

What state agencies paid out, added up by agency, by kind of spending and by the organizations paid. From the state’s own checkbook, FY14 to FY26.¹ The state budget · The source data

$10.34B

paid to vendors and others, FY18

$9.00B

to organizations we can name (87%)

$1.34B

to individuals and others, unnamed (13%)²

$7.32B

more in transfers between state accounts³

Year by year

Payments to vendors and others by fiscal year, not counting transfers.

$17.02B

Show the numbers

Year	Paid	Individuals and others	Transfers
FY26	$17.02B	$1.24B	$9.20B
FY25	$13.40B	$1.24B	$12.41B
FY24	$13.10B	$1.17B	$11.38B
FY23	$13.05B	$1.19B	$9.89B
FY22	$13.68B	$1.57B	$8.57B
FY21	$12.46B	$1.36B	$8.64B
FY20	$11.09B	$1.18B	$8.87B
FY19	$11.25B	$1.27B	$6.91B
FY18	$10.34B	$1.34B	$7.32B
FY17	$10.20B	$1.26B	$7.34B
FY16	$10.24B	$1.43B	$7.59B
FY15	$9.87B	$1.53B	$7.50B
FY14	$9.42B	$1.61B	$6.83B

By agency, FY18

Education$3.94B38%
Transportation$1.59B15%
Revenue$1.33B13%
Treasurer of State$729.6M7%
Human Services Assistance Payments$616.3M6%
Alcoholic Beverages$220.2M2%
Public Health$157.3M2%
Administrative Services$142.3M1%
Board of Regents$127.6M1%
Management$113.0M1%
Iowa Economic Development Authority$96.3M1%
Homeland Security and Emergency Management$88.4M1%

Every agency

Agency	Paid	Individuals and others	Transfers
Education	$3.94B	$120.8M	$234K
Transportation	$1.59B	$431.7M	$44.3M
Revenue	$1.33B	$22.4M	$11.6M
Treasurer of State	$729.6M	$30.8M	$69.8M
Human Services Assistance Payments	$616.3M	$178.1M	$5.30B
Alcoholic Beverages	$220.2M	$110.9M	$44K
Public Health	$157.3M	$26.1M	$42.1M
Administrative Services	$142.3M	$41.0M	$392.2M
Board of Regents	$127.6M	$10.4M	$472.7M
Management	$113.0M	$7.7M	$3,748
Iowa Economic Development Authority	$96.3M	$16.8M	$358K
Homeland Security and Emergency Management	$88.4M	$15.6M	$104K
Human Rights	$79.8M	$33.2M	$24K
College Aid	$76.0M	$31.0M	$75K
Natural Resources	$75.1M	$13.6M	$2.5M
Iowa Lottery Authority	$64.4M	$31.7M	$20.1M
Regents, Capital Expenditures	$64.4M	$0	$0
Workforce Development	$62.1M	$10.0M	$455.0M
IPERS	$50.3M	$23.7M	$162.7M
State Accounting Trust Accounts	$40.4M	$5.1M	$298.2M
Attorney General	$38.9M	$14.8M	$1.9M
State Public Defender	$38.7M	$21.9M	$18K
Agriculture and Land Stewardship	$36.9M	$18.9M	$274K
Chief Information Officer	$30.1M	$11.2M	$60K
Public Safety	$28.1M	$9.8M	$29.0M
Soybean Promotion Board	$28.0M	$0	$0
Iowa Communications Network	$26.9M	$4.5M	$69K
Corn Promotion Board	$26.7M	$0	$0
Iowa Department on Aging	$24.6M	$7.7M	$21K
General Services Capitals	$23.6M	$4.0M	$0
Public Defense	$22.7M	$4.9M	$873K
Vocational Rehabilitation	$22.2M	$8.9M	$367K
CBC District V	$21.4M	$0	$0
Human Services Community Serv	$20.9M	$3.3M	$86K
Human Services Capitals	$20.0M	$15K	$260
Human Services Administration	$15.9M	$5.7M	$125K
CBC District I	$14.7M	$0	$0
CBC Dictrict VI	$14.6M	$0	$0
Corrections Industries	$14.1M	$4.6M	$556K
Finance Authority	$13.7M	$110K	$1,651
Human Services Woodward	$12.5M	$5.4M	$756K
Racing Commission - Inspect and Appeals	$11.5M	$4.2M	$9,478
CBC Dictrict II	$11.3M	$0	$0
Corrections Iowa Medical and Classification Center	$11.2M	$1.0M	$1.4M
Iowa Veterans Home	$8.9M	$1.7M	$2.6M
CBC District VIII	$8.0M	$0	$0
Corrections Central Office	$7.9M	$818K	$18K
Human Services Glenwood	$7.7M	$2.6M	$1.8M
CBC District VII	$7.7M	$7.7M	$0
CBC District III	$7.1M	$0	$0
Transportation, Capitals	$6.3M	$3.6M	$0
Education, Iowa Public Tv	$5.8M	$4.1M	$25K
CBC District IV	$5.6M	$0	$0
Insurance	$5.2M	$1.2M	$54K
Cultural Affairs	$5.2M	$1.9M	$144K
Corrections Fort Madison	$5.0M	$3.0M	$897K
Corrections Newton	$4.2M	$1.9M	$625K
Treasurer of State Ust	$3.8M	$909K	$0
State Fair	$3.6M	$3.6M	$0
Corrections Anamosa	$3.3M	$1.5M	$1.5M
Corrections Clarinda	$3.2M	$941K	$730K
Corrections Mt Pleasant	$3.0M	$1.5M	$841K
Human Services Independence	$2.7M	$650K	$181K
Corrections Mitchellville	$2.5M	$458K	$620K
Corrections Fort Dodge	$2.5M	$730K	$1.9M
Secretary of State	$2.2M	$524K	$121K
Public Defense, Capitals	$2.2M	$281K	$0
Utilities	$2.1M	$213K	$21K
Inspections and Appeals	$2.0M	$831K	$51K
Executive Council	$2.0M	$456K	$0
Gov Off.of Drug Ctrl Policy	$1.8M	$195K	$725
Human Services Cherokee	$1.7M	$389K	$292K
Ag- Cattle Promotion Board	$1.7M	$0	$0
Veterans Affairs	$1.7M	$352K	$79K
Corrections Rockwell City	$1.6M	$574K	$360K
Department for the Blind	$1.6M	$640K	$121K
DHS Trng School Eldora	$1.3M	$343K	$349K
Ag- Egg Council	$1.2M	$0	$0
Public Safety, Capitals	$1.1M	$0	$0
Civil Commitment Unit for Sexual Offenders	$1.1M	$633K	$50K
Banking	$1.0M	$750K	$120K
State Fair Capitals	$1.0M	$1.0M	$0
Law Enforcement Academy	$882K	$185K	$0
Auditor of State	$829K	$457K	$35K
Corrections Farm Account	$824K	$294K	$256
Trea of St Tobacco Settlement	$607K	$231K	$0
Ag- Loess Hills Soil	$490K	$490K	$0
Ag- Turkey Marketing Council	$356K	$0	$0
Judicial Capitals	$246K	$0	$0
Governor	$216K	$33K	$36K
Credit Union	$194K	$158K	$0
Corrections Capitals	$111K	$0	$0
Professional Licensing/reg	$87K	$47K	$7,514
Parole Board	$84K	$32K	$0
Consumer Advocate	$79K	$20K	$3,403
Public Employment Relations	$79K	$21K	$8,846
Civil Rights Commission	$75K	$32K	$17K
St Historical Society Capitals	$37K	$24K	$0
Public Information Board	$30K	$24K	$0
Ethics and Campaign Disclosure	$27K	$941	$199
Iowa Veterans Home Capitals	$5,580	$680	$0

By kind of spending, FY18

The state’s expense categories. “Aid to individuals” and “State aid” are money passed on to people, schools and local governments.

State Aid$4.50B44%
Capitals$1.27B12%
Refunds-Other$1.25B12%
Refunds-Local Option$772.5M7%
Aid to Individuals$505.7M5%
Prof & Scientific Services$370.7M4%
Outside Services$330.2M3%
Intra-State Transfers$282.2M3%
Inventory$214.2M2%
Other Expenses & Obligations$109.0M1%
Claims$97.5M1%
IT Outside Services$68.6M1%

Organizations paid the most, FY18

Des Moines Independent Community Schools$322.0M 3%
Cedar Rapids CSD$141.1M 1%
Sioux City Comm Sch Dist$138.7M 1%
Davenport Comm Sch Dist$136.1M 1%
Waterloo Comm Sch Dist$97.5M 1%
Area Education Agency 11$92.0M 1%
Iowa City Comm Sch Dist$88.4M 1%
Cedar Rapids City of$87.9M 1%
Dept Human Services$87.2M 1%
Dubuque Comm Sch Dist$83.7M 1%
Polk Co Treasurer$82.9M 1%
Hawkins Construction Co$82.6M 1%
Council Bluffs Comm Schl$81.8M 1%
Ankeny Comm Sch Dist$76.6M 1%
Peterson Contractors Inc$66.9M 1%
Waukee Comm Sch Dist$63.9M 1%
University of Iowa$62.9M 1%
West Des Moines Comm SD$54.6M 1%
Southeast Polk Comm SD$54.5M 1%
Linn-Mar Comm Sch Dist$52.1M 1%

Share of all payments that year. Every agency’s payments added together.

Payments to individuals and others

In FY18, $1.34B (13% of payments) went to payees that aren’t named here: people, and payees whose names don’t show they’re an organization. The state also lists $417.5M of its transfers and other entries under RESTRICTED payees.⁴

Notes

The executive branch’s central accounting system only. It leaves out the Legislature and the courts, and spending recorded in other systems. A fiscal year runs July 1 to June 30, plus payments made in July and August for goods and services received by June 30. Refunds and voided payments count as negative amounts. ↩
Iowa Funnel names a payee only when its name shows it is an organization: a company (Inc, LLC, Corp and the like), a government, a school district, a college, a hospital, a bank, a church or another institution. Payments to everyone else are added into one total for each agency and year. Their names aren’t kept or searchable. When we can’t tell, a payee counts with individuals, so that total also holds some businesses. ↩
The state marks some entries as not a payment to an outside vendor: transfers between state accounts, payroll deductions and similar entries. They count in an agency’s total but not under any payee. ↩
The state removes names it must keep confidential under state or federal law and lists them as RESTRICTED. Among payments to vendors, they count with individuals here; most are recorded as transfers and other entries. Some payments are only recorded as totals in the state’s accounting system, such as Medicaid, IPERS pensions, unemployment benefits and tax refunds, so the people paid aren’t listed at all. ↩

Sources: State of Iowa Executive Branch Checkbook on the Iowa Data Hub (Iowa Department of Administrative Services): the full ledger (dataset 1021), its yearly files, and the last 90 days (1076) for the year still open.