GOV422
HTTP 422: the server understood your request, but the data was wrong.
Government data is full of errors. We document the ones we find: bad records, impossible values, silent schema changes, and the quiet ways federal data breaks downstream systems.
GOV422
Unprocessable entity
#0004
Record detail
"subawardee": "TOWN OF VAN BUREN"
"subaward_amount": "$1,000,000,000,000,000,100"
"description": "CONTRACT AMENDMENT TO ADD FUNDS."
"prime_award_total": "$11,645,252"
"source": "USAspending"
"subaward_amount": "$1,000,000,000,000,000,100"
"description": "CONTRACT AMENDMENT TO ADD FUNDS."
"prime_award_total": "$11,645,252"
"source": "USAspending"
HUD awarded Maine $11.6 million in Community Development Block Grants, split across 62 subawards to small towns. The Town of Van Buren initially received $350,000 for public infrastructure. Then a contract amendment came through to "add funds" to the tune of one quintillion dollars. That's roughly 10,000 times global GDP, for a town of ~2,000 people. A quintillion here, a quintillion there, and pretty soon you're talking about real money.
GOV422
Unprocessable entity
#0003
Record detail
"number_of_offers_received": "999"
"total_obligation": "$325.32"
"description": "UNDER DESK CABLE MANAGEMENT TRAY"
"award_type": "Delivery Order"
"source": "USAspending"
"total_obligation": "$325.32"
"description": "UNDER DESK CABLE MANAGEMENT TRAY"
"award_type": "Delivery Order"
"source": "USAspending"
GSA placed a $325.32 delivery order for an under-desk cable management tray and reportedly received 999 offers. That's roughly 3 vendors per dollar. In reality, the government uses 999 as a default placeholder when the actual number of offers isn't recorded. I got 999 offers but validation ain't one.
GOV422
Unprocessable entity
#0002
Record detail
"status": "Case Currently Open"
"filed_date": "2020-02-10"
"due_date": "2020-05-20"
"file_number": "B-418462.1"
"source": "GAO"
"filed_date": "2020-02-10"
"due_date": "2020-05-20"
"file_number": "B-418462.1"
"source": "GAO"
Goldschmitt & Associates filed a bid protest in February 2020. GAO set a due date of May 20, 2020. Six years later, the case is still listed as Currently Open on the GAO website. To be fair, a lot of things stopped getting resolved in mid-March 2020.
GOV422
Unprocessable entity
#0001
Record detail
"period_of_performance_start": "0226-10-31"
"calculated_fiscal_year": "227"
"source": "forecasts"
"calculated_fiscal_year": "227"
"source": "forecasts"
This federal forecast has a period of performance starting October 31, 0226 AD. That's not a typo; the government listed the year as 0226. Might need a DeLorean to meet that government requirement.