Module 2 · Utilization
Where the dollars go
Utilization is the numerator: the share of public spending that reaches diverse firms. Fairfax County publishes its own figures each year in the SWaM report, the most authoritative public read of County and FCPS purchase-order spend by supplier ownership.
FY23 spend by supplier category
Share of County + FCPS purchase-order spend, fiscal year 2023
Source: Fairfax County FY23 SWaM Report (DPMM, updated Dec 2023). Combined SWaM spend was 29.0%.
Spend mosaic by size and ownership
Every segment of FY23 County + FCPS purchase-order spend. Hover for detail.
Source: Fairfax County FY23 SWaM Report, Proportion of Spend by Supplier Size and Ownership.
What the County reports about its own data
The FY23 report is candid about its limits, which is exactly why a primary-data study is needed.
- The County does not certify firms; suppliers self-report size and ownership on formal solicitations.
- The data exclude P-card and non-PO spend, including capital construction managed through an earmarked fund.
- The County is roughly 70% of total PO spend; FCPS makes up the rest, with similar SWaM performance.
- Year-over-year gains were attributed partly to a data-cleanup that reclassified previously unclassified vendors.
eVA spend distribution by cluster
Share of statewide Virginia eVA purchase-order dollars by industry cluster, 2024
Source: Virginia eVA Procurement Data 2024 (data.virginia.gov). Statewide, used as a category-mix signal because Fairfax routes most spend outside eVA.