Indiana Launches Public Dashboard to Track Federal Grant Spending Across State Agencies
Why It Matters
Indiana has made federal funding transparency a public priority, giving residents, lawmakers, and journalists direct access to data on how billions in federal dollars flow through state government. With federal grants making up a substantial share of Indiana’s budget, the new tool addresses longstanding questions about where that money actually goes once it reaches state agencies.
What Happened
Indiana Comptroller Elise Nieshalla’s office launched the Federal Funding Expenditures Dashboard on Monday, a publicly accessible tool housed within the existing Indiana Transparency Portal. The dashboard allows users to view and sort six years of federal spending data broken down by federal department, federal program, individual state agency, spending category, and specific accounts.
Officials described the dashboard as the first tool in Indiana dedicated specifically to tracking how federal dollars are expended — as opposed to simply awarded — at the state level. The distinction matters: federal databases such as USASpending.gov track grants issued to the state, while the new Indiana tool reflects dollars actually spent by state agencies, drawing from transaction-level data in the state’s PeopleSoft financial system.
The platform updates on a weekly basis. Officials noted the figures are unaudited and may reflect timing delays or later accounting corrections.
“This dashboard gives every Hoosier — from citizens to state legislators, media and federal partners — the clearest view yet of how those dollars move through Indiana government,” Nieshalla said in a statement.
By the Numbers
- $22.6 billion — total federal grant funding received by Indiana in fiscal year 2025
- 42% — share of Indiana’s general revenue derived from federal grants in FY 2025
- 6 years — the span of historical spending data available through the new dashboard
- Weekly — how frequently the dashboard data is updated from agency financial records
How It Works
Users can filter expenditures by the originating federal department — such as the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services or the U.S. Department of Agriculture — or narrow results by spending category, including social service payments, contractual services, and payroll costs. Some vendor-level data is also available.
When a payment combines both federal and state matching funds, the dashboard isolates and displays only the federally funded portion, ensuring the figures reflect actual federal outlays rather than blended appropriations.
The tool mirrors the structure of Indiana’s existing state expenditures dashboard while filtering exclusively for the federal share of spending.
Gov. Mike Braun endorsed the initiative. “Transparency builds trust,” Braun said in a statement, adding that tools of this kind “empower citizens and strengthen confidence in how government manages public resources.”
Nieshalla framed the historical data component as an accountability mechanism, saying it enables officials to identify patterns and flag areas where closer scrutiny may be warranted — including potential fraud, waste, or abuse.
Zoom Out
Indiana’s move reflects a broader push across Republican-led states to improve visibility into how federal dollars are allocated and spent at the agency level. The effort comes as the Trump administration and congressional Republicans have pressed states to audit their use of federal grants, particularly in social services and health programs. Indiana Gov. Mike Braun recently directed the state to stop using federal survivor benefits to offset foster care costs, a separate action also touching on how federal funds interact with state welfare programs.
Increased federal scrutiny of grant compliance has added urgency to state-level transparency tools, as agencies face pressure to document spending clearly and proactively.
What’s Next
Comptroller Nieshalla’s office said it expects to continue refining the platform and adding features as feedback comes in from the public and state agencies. The dashboard is currently live and accessible through the Indiana Transparency Portal. Officials did not announce a specific timeline for additional enhancements.
For context on other recent fiscal actions by Indiana’s executive branch, see Gov. Braun’s gas tax suspension, which paired with an earlier sales tax break to provide relief at the pump for Indiana drivers.