PlainSpending

Hughes County

$397.9M in FY2025 federal spending, $22,396 per capita.

South Dakota · FIPS 46065

In FY2025, Hughes County in South Dakota received $397.9M in federal spending - $22,396 per capita for a population of 17,765. This is 43.1% above the national average and 73.0% above the South Dakota average. The leading federal agency by spending share is Department of Commerce. By per-capita federal spending, it ranks #5 of 66 South Dakota counties.

Total spending
$397.9M
Per capita
$22,396
vs. national avg
+43.1%
Fiscal year
FY2025

The verdict

Hughes County posts top-5% federal per-capita spending nationally, with spending led by Department of Commerce, among several agencies.

National per-capita rank
Top 4%
of 3,232 US counties
Per-capita spending
$22,396
Leading agency
Department of Commerce
46.6% of tracked spending
South Dakota rank
#5 of 66

How Hughes County Compares

Per-capita federal spending: Hughes County vs. South Dakota and the nation

Top 4% nationally
Hughes County$22,396South Dakota avg$12,944National avg$15,647

Source: USASpending.gov FY2025 + U.S. Census Bureau population estimates.

Population: 17,765 (U.S. Census Bureau estimate) - the denominator behind the per-capita figures above.

Leading Federal Agencies in Hughes County

Top awarding agencies in Hughes County, FY2025

Department of Commerce$204.7MDepartment of Education$154.1MSocial Security Administration$80.6M

Source: USASpending.gov FY2025, aggregated by awarding agency.

Among the 1,150 US counties with agency-level spending data, Department of Commerce is a comparatively unusual leading agency, topping only 0.8% of agency-tracked counties nationally -- often a sign of a single large federal facility rather than broad-based spending.

These 3 agencies together account for $439.4M (100%) of Hughes County's $397.9M in total tracked federal spending.

All 3 individually-tracked agencies are shown above - Hughes County has no smaller residual awarding agencies broken out beyond this set, a compact agency footprint rather than a long tail of minor awardees.

Read the agency breakdown as a table
Agency Spending Share
Department of Commerce $204.7M 46.6%
Department of Education $154.1M 35.1%
Social Security Administration $80.6M 18.3%

How Hughes County Ranks Nationally

Per-capita federal spending vs. all US counties

All 3,232 US counties, FY2025

$22,396 Top 4% higher than 96% of 3,224 US counties

This county $0 $20K+ all US counties, per-capita spending, bucketed by value

Each bar is a $1K-wide band; taller bars hold more US counties. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source USASpending.gov FY2025 + U.S. Census Bureau population estimates

Hughes County Among South Dakota's Largest Counties

Population vs. per-capita spending: South Dakota's biggest counties

The 15 largest-population counties in South Dakota by FY2025 federal spending, plotted by population against spending per resident. Bubble size tracks total spending; Hughes County is highlighted. 2×2 strategic matrix plotting 15 entities by Population (X) and Spending per capita ($) (Y), with a crosshair dividing the plot into four quadrants. 050,000100,000150,000200,000250,000 $5,000$10,000$15,000$20,000$25,000$30,000 Population Spending per capita ($) Large and spending-intensiveSmall population, outsized spendingLarge population, modest per-residentSmaller footprint both ways
The 15 largest-population counties in South Dakota by FY2025 federal spending, plotted by population against spending per resident. Bubble size tracks total spending; Hughes County is highlighted.
Read the chart as a table
County Population Per capita Total spending
Minnehaha County 197,214 $8,232 $1.6B
Pennington County 109,222 $11,308 $1.2B
Lincoln County 65,161 $6,414 $418.0M
Brown County 38,301 $7,602 $291.2M
Brookings County 34,375 $6,805 $233.9M
Meade County 29,852 $12,098 $361.1M
Codington County 28,325 $7,324 $207.5M
Lawrence County 25,768 $11,168 $287.8M
Yankton County 23,310 $8,007 $186.6M
Davison County 19,956 $6,820 $136.1M
Beadle County 19,149 $7,558 $144.7M
Hughes County (this county) 17,765 $22,396 $397.9M
Union County 16,811 $14,158 $238.0M
Clay County 14,967 $7,186 $107.6M
Oglala Lakota County 13,672 $27,398 $374.6M

Nearby Counties With Similar Federal Spending

Counties with per-capita federal spending closest to Hughes County's $22,396 - prioritizing South Dakota peers first.

Compare states side-by-side in the compare tool →

Frequently Asked Questions

How much federal spending did Hughes County, South Dakota receive?
Hughes County received $397.9M in total federal spending during Fiscal Year 2025. This equates to $22,396 per capita for the county's population of 17,765.
How does Hughes County's per capita spending compare to the national average?
Hughes County's per capita federal spending of $22,396 is 43.1% above the national average of $15,647. Compared to the South Dakota average of $12,944, it is 73.0% above.
What is the population of Hughes County, South Dakota?
Hughes County has a population of 17,765 according to Census Bureau estimates. This population figure is used to calculate the per capita federal spending of $22,396.
Data Source: USASpending.gov (U.S. Department of the Treasury), Fiscal Year 2025. Population denominators are U.S. Census Bureau vintage estimates. County-level spending includes all federal awards with place of performance in this county; OMB budget categorizations are reflected at the agency level.

Every figure on PlainSpending is computed directly from USASpending.gov award-transaction data, no number is typed in by an editor. This page aggregates every federal award with a place-of-performance in this county, live from the dataset. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.