{
  "family": "spending-records",
  "checked": "2026-10-09",
  "scope": "Worked examples from public USAspending records. This is not a complete contractor, agency, national spending or subcontracting database.",
  "id": "contract-ceiling-vs-obligations",
  "title": "A contract’s potential value is not the amount paid.",
  "description": "Compare potential, current, obligated and reported outlay amounts using a real NASA contract, with exact labels and a dated source.",
  "category": "Money reconciliation",
  "answer": "Keep potential value, current value, obligations and outlays in separate columns. In the October 9, 2026 snapshot of NASA’s SpaceX Human Landing System contract, those figures are $5.849 billion, $4.404 billion, $3.229 billion and $2.896 billion respectively. They describe different things, not four competing answers to “how much was spent.”",
  "facts": [
    {
      "label": "Contract",
      "value": "80MSFC20C0034",
      "sourceUrl": "https://api.usaspending.gov/api/v2/awards/CONT_AWD_80MSFC20C0034_8000_-NONE-_-NONE-/"
    },
    {
      "label": "Potential award amount",
      "value": "$5,848,660,420.92",
      "sourceUrl": "https://api.usaspending.gov/api/v2/awards/CONT_AWD_80MSFC20C0034_8000_-NONE-_-NONE-/"
    },
    {
      "label": "Current award amount",
      "value": "$4,403,591,698.62",
      "sourceUrl": "https://api.usaspending.gov/api/v2/awards/CONT_AWD_80MSFC20C0034_8000_-NONE-_-NONE-/"
    },
    {
      "label": "Total obligations",
      "value": "$3,229,285,063.07",
      "sourceUrl": "https://api.usaspending.gov/api/v2/awards/CONT_AWD_80MSFC20C0034_8000_-NONE-_-NONE-/"
    },
    {
      "label": "Reported account-linked outlays",
      "value": "$2,895,827,556.11",
      "sourceUrl": "https://api.usaspending.gov/api/v2/awards/CONT_AWD_80MSFC20C0034_8000_-NONE-_-NONE-/"
    },
    {
      "label": "Latest award modification date reported",
      "value": "October 1, 2026",
      "sourceUrl": "https://api.usaspending.gov/api/v2/awards/CONT_AWD_80MSFC20C0034_8000_-NONE-_-NONE-/"
    }
  ],
  "sections": [
    {
      "heading": "Read four measures without collapsing them",
      "paragraphs": [
        "For this record, the API’s base_and_all_options field is the potential award amount, while base_exercised_options is the current award amount. total_obligation records the cumulative obligation figure. total_account_outlay is the reported account-linked outlay figure. Preserve the original field names in an export so another person can check your translation.",
        "An obligation is a government commitment; an outlay is a payment. The potential value includes a contract’s potential options. It is not a receipt showing that the entire amount has already been paid."
      ],
      "sourceUrls": [
        "https://api.usaspending.gov/api/v2/awards/CONT_AWD_80MSFC20C0034_8000_-NONE-_-NONE-/",
        "https://www.usaspending.gov/data/Federal-Spending-Guide.pdf"
      ]
    },
    {
      "heading": "Why the announcement and today’s record differ",
      "paragraphs": [
        "NASA’s April 16, 2021 announcement described a $2.89 billion firm-fixed-price, milestone-based award. That is a dated announcement, not the full current record several years later. Use the announcement to understand the original selection and scope, then use modifications and the current government record for today’s financial snapshot.",
        "Subtracting two money columns does not, by itself, reveal fraud, recoverable savings, an overdue invoice or a budget available for another purpose. A useful comparison has to establish what each measure covers and what changed over time."
      ],
      "sourceUrls": [
        "https://www.nasa.gov/news-release/as-artemis-moves-forward-nasa-picks-spacex-to-land-next-americans-on-moon/",
        "https://api.usaspending.gov/api/v2/awards/CONT_AWD_80MSFC20C0034_8000_-NONE-_-NONE-/"
      ]
    },
    {
      "heading": "A citation that survives checking",
      "paragraphs": [
        "Write: “USAspending reported $3,229,285,063.07 in cumulative obligations for contract 80MSFC20C0034, checked October 9, 2026.” Avoid: “NASA paid SpaceX $5.85 billion for this contract.” The second sentence silently turns a potential value into a paid amount.",
        "The snapshot is limited to one award key. It is not SpaceX’s total government revenue, the entire Human Landing System program budget, or proof of mission completion. The performance dates in a contract also are not a current launch schedule."
      ],
      "sourceUrls": [
        "https://api.usaspending.gov/api/v2/awards/CONT_AWD_80MSFC20C0034_8000_-NONE-_-NONE-/"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "steps": [
    "Save the unique award key before comparing money values.",
    "Label the potential, current, obligated and outlay columns separately.",
    "Record both the date checked and the latest modification date shown.",
    "Check transaction history before attributing a change to a specific event.",
    "Limit your conclusion to the award and measure actually observed."
  ],
  "caution": "These are dated reported values. Account-linked outlays and historical reporting can have coverage limits. A difference between obligations and outlays is not an audit finding or automatically available funding.",
  "sources": [
    {
      "title": "USAspending: HLS award detail",
      "url": "https://api.usaspending.gov/api/v2/awards/CONT_AWD_80MSFC20C0034_8000_-NONE-_-NONE-/",
      "asOf": "2026-10-09"
    },
    {
      "title": "Public award profile",
      "url": "https://www.usaspending.gov/award/CONT_AWD_80MSFC20C0034_8000_-NONE-_-NONE-",
      "asOf": "2026-10-09"
    },
    {
      "title": "NASA original HLS award announcement",
      "url": "https://www.nasa.gov/news-release/as-artemis-moves-forward-nasa-picks-spacex-to-land-next-americans-on-moon/",
      "asOf": "2021-04-16"
    },
    {
      "title": "Analyst’s Guide: obligations, outlays and award scope",
      "url": "https://www.usaspending.gov/data/Federal-Spending-Guide.pdf",
      "asOf": "2026-10-09"
    }
  ],
  "related": [
    {
      "label": "Search federal contracts and grants",
      "url": "/every-federal-dollar"
    },
    {
      "label": "America’s Public Resource Desk",
      "url": "/resources"
    },
    {
      "label": "Prepare a focused public-records request",
      "url": "/foia-request-builder"
    }
  ],
  "faq": [
    [
      "Is potential award value the same as money paid?",
      "No. Preserve the reported outlay figure separately from potential and current contract values."
    ],
    [
      "Can the difference be reallocated to another project?",
      "The difference alone establishes no recovered cash, savings or legal funding authority."
    ]
  ],
  "award": {
    "id": "CONT_AWD_80MSFC20C0034_8000_-NONE-_-NONE-",
    "piid": "80MSFC20C0034",
    "totalObligation": 3229285063.07,
    "currentAwardAmount": 4403591698.62,
    "potentialAwardAmount": 5848660420.92,
    "reportedAccountOutlay": 2895827556.11,
    "sourceUrl": "https://api.usaspending.gov/api/v2/awards/CONT_AWD_80MSFC20C0034_8000_-NONE-_-NONE-/",
    "publicUrl": "https://www.usaspending.gov/award/CONT_AWD_80MSFC20C0034_8000_-NONE-_-NONE-"
  },
  "checkedAt": "2026-10-09",
  "maintenance": "Dated snapshots, not a real-time feed. Recheck the government record before using a value or status.",
  "attribution": "America.co Public Resource Desk",
  "attributionUrl": "/editorial#desk",
  "metaTitle": "Contract Ceiling vs Obligations vs Outlays | Worked Example",
  "route": "/spending-records/contract-ceiling-vs-obligations",
  "file": "spending-records/contract-ceiling-vs-obligations.html"
}