Consultants Hurt as Civilian Agencies Lower Annual Spending (1)

Jan. 26, 2026, 10:00 AM UTCUpdated: Jan. 26, 2026, 4:42 PM UTC

Most of the top federal consulting firms saw their annual contracting dollars fall in fiscal 2025 as federal agencies were advised to cut back on procurement.

Total governmentwide contract obligations in the management advisory services market dipped by 19% to its lowest level in the last five fiscal years. That drop was a result of a year-over-year one-third decline to $26 billion in market spending with consultants by civilian agencies and a 1% decrease, to $24 billion, at the Defense Department.

The downward shift in spending follows the Trump administration’s efforts last year to scrutinize contracts for some of the ...

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