The Department of Homeland Security told the public that cancelling contracts would save more than $10.5 billion. A Government Accountability Office report published September 3 says most of that money will never materialize, because DHS can buy much of the same work through contracts it already holds.
The campaign began in early 2025, when the Trump administration told federal agencies to review contracts and consider ending some to cut spending. DHS went through more than 17,000 of them, judging each against the agency’s mission, in consultation with the Department of Government Efficiency.
What the procurement data shows
GAO looked at federal procurement records from January 20 through September 30, 2025. DHS terminated 438 contracts in that period and deobligated a net total of just over $92 million. Before termination, it had obligated more than $1.6 billion on the same contracts.
The details are uneven. Of the 438 contracts, 261 saw deobligations since termination, totaling $249,158,880. Another 32 picked up new obligations of $156,791,323. The remaining 145 showed no movement either way.
DHS keeps its own books, and they differ. The department reported 521 terminations between late January and September 30, 2025, with an obligated value at termination above $1.2 billion and nearly $181 million deobligated since. GAO said the gap between 521 and 438 comes from how each side categorized and counted terminations.
Why $10.5 billion overstates the savings
GAO gave two reasons. The figure is the ceiling of what could have been obligated on the contracts, not a forecast of what would have been spent. And if DHS still needs the goods and services and gets them under other contracts, it has not avoided the cost. It has moved it.
The concentration is striking. Ninety-five percent of the $10.5 billion came from 30 terminated indefinite delivery, indefinite-quantity contracts for information technology, each running over 10 years from fiscal 2025 through 2034. In fiscal 2025 alone, DHS obligated more than $1.7 billion through existing government-wide contracts to cover the same IT requirements.
Approval rules
In March 2025 DHS began requiring Deputy Secretary sign-off on every contract termination regardless of value, and on any new award worth $25 million or more. The termination requirement was rescinded in April 2026.
Net deobligations of $92 million sit against a claimed $10.5 billion. The savings case rests on the second number, and GAO says the first is closer to reality.
