# Reported issues for usaspending-mcp-server Pod holds 19 of 19 GitHub reports that passed its relevance review. This can include external user reports, maintainer-confirmed bugs, and concrete feature gaps. Treat them as evidence to inspect, not a count of distinct defects. Back to [usaspending-mcp-server](/mcp/usaspending-mcp-server). ## Most discussed ### bug(service): api_timeout and api_unavailable never reach the wire with reason or recovery ### Server version 0.4.2 ### mcp-ts-core version 0.12.3 ### Runtime Bun ### Runtime version Bun 1.4.0 ### Transport HTTP (Streamable HTTP) ### Description All 18 tools declare `api_timeout` and `api_unavailable` (`thrownBy: 'service'`), but `USASpendingService.request()` attaches no `reason`, `retryable`, or `recovery`, so neither `structuredContent.error` nor `content[]` carries the declared hint. `usaspending_disaster_spending`'s hint (fewer DEF codes or a smaller limit) would… [Read the thread](https://github.com/cyanheads/usaspending-mcp-server/issues/57) · 2026-09-12 · closed · 3 comments ### bug(usaspending_disaster_spending): recipient id is comma-joined when upstream sends several ### Server version 0.4.3 ### mcp-ts-core version 0.13.6 ### Runtime Bun ### Transport HTTP (Streamable HTTP) ### Description `disaster/recipient/spending/` returns each row's `id` as an array of recipient hash IDs. The tool maps it with `String(r.id)`, so a recipient that has both a child-level and a recipient-level ID comes back as one comma-joined string. That string is not a valid `recipient_id` for `usaspending_get_recipient`. Related: #63. ### Steps to reproduce 1. Call… [Read the thread](https://github.com/cyanheads/usaspending-mcp-server/issues/65) · 2026-09-25 · closed · 1 comment ### bug(date-filters): an inverted date range is sent upstream and surfaces as api_unavailable ### Server version 0.4.3 ### mcp-ts-core version 0.13.6 ### Runtime Bun ### Transport HTTP (Streamable HTTP) ### Description No date input checks that the start precedes the end. An inverted range (start after end) goes upstream as-is: - `search/spending_over_time/`, `spending_by_category/`, and `spending_by_geography/` answer HTML 500. The service classifies that as `api_unavailable`, retries it, and tells the caller the API may be down. Retrying can never help. -… [Read the thread](https://github.com/cyanheads/usaspending-mcp-server/issues/64) · 2026-09-25 · closed · 1 comment ### feat(usaspending_disaster_spending): surface breakdown totals and budgetary resources ### Use case `usaspending_disaster_spending`'s breakdown dimensions are the working route to disaster totals while the upstream `/disaster/overview/` endpoint times out, but the tool drops the totals the breakdown response already carries, so a caller has to sum rows for obligations and outlays and cannot get budgetary resources at all. Related: #57 ### Proposed behavior Surface the breakdown response's `totals` object (`obligation`, `outlay`, `total_budgetary_resources`) and the per-row… [Read the thread](https://github.com/cyanheads/usaspending-mcp-server/issues/63) · 2026-09-25 · closed · 1 comment ### bug(date-filters): a lone start or end date is dropped but echoed as applied ### Server version 0.4.3 ### mcp-ts-core version 0.13.6 ### Runtime Bun ### Runtime version Bun 1.4.0 ### Transport HTTP (Streamable HTTP) ### Description The optional date-range inputs send a `time_period` upstream only when both ends are present (`buildFilters` in `filters.ts`, and the `filters.time_period_*` branch of `usaspending_search_awards`). A lone start or end date is dropped without notice, but the response still echoes it as `applied_time_period_start` /… [Read the thread](https://github.com/cyanheads/usaspending-mcp-server/issues/62) · 2026-09-25 · closed · 1 comment ### feat(usaspending_search_awards): filter awards by assistance listing (CFDA) number ### Use case Agents researching a grant program need "who has won awards under Assistance Listing 93.866, and for how much." `usaspending_autocomplete_filters type=cfda` returns the listing number with a note to use it in filter parameters, but `usaspending_search_awards` has no filter that accepts it, so the lookup dead-ends. ### Proposed behavior Add an `assistance_listings` input (array of listing numbers) to `usaspending_search_awards`, mapped to the USAspending API's `program_numbers`… [Read the thread](https://github.com/cyanheads/usaspending-mcp-server/issues/61) · 2026-09-22 · closed · 1 comment ### bug(usaspending_search_awards): sort is not award-type-aware — loans fail by default, IDVs reject End Date ### Server version 0.4.3 ### mcp-ts-core version 0.13.6 ### Runtime Bun ### Runtime version Bun 1.4.0 ### Transport HTTP (Streamable HTTP) ### OS Linux (Docker) ### Description `sort` on `usaspending_search_awards` defaults to `Award Amount` for every award type, but `/api/v2/search/spending_by_award/` checks the sort against a per-group field mapping and answers 400 outside it. Loans (`07`/`08`) have no `Award Amount`, `Total Outlays`, `Start Date`, or `End Date`, so a loan search… [Read the thread](https://github.com/cyanheads/usaspending-mcp-server/issues/60) · 2026-09-22 · closed · 1 comment ### bug(date-filters): date format is prose-only, and the upstream 4xx detail never reaches the error text ### Server version 0.4.2 ### mcp-ts-core version 0.12.3 ### Runtime Bun ### Runtime version Not recorded ### Transport HTTP (Streamable HTTP) ### Description The ten date inputs — `usaspending_search_awards` `time_period.start_date` / `end_date` and `filters.time_period_start` / `time_period_end`, plus `filters.time_period_start` / `time_period_end` on the three `usaspending_spending_*` tools — are bare `z.string()` fields with `YYYY-MM-DD` only in `.describe()`, so the advertised… [Read the thread](https://github.com/cyanheads/usaspending-mcp-server/issues/58) · 2026-09-18 · closed · 1 comment ## Most recent ### feat(spending-filters): expose program, PSC, and emergency funding filters ### Use case A water-program analyst can discover Assistance Listing `15.507`, PSC `Y1NE`, and DEF code `Z` through the current tools, but cannot reuse those codes to ask where or when the corresponding funding was spent. `usaspending_search_awards` supports Assistance Listings only; the three general analytics tools support none of these filters. ### Proposed behavior Extend the existing award-search and shared analytics filters with the relevant `assistance_listings`, `psc_codes`, and… [Read the thread](https://github.com/cyanheads/usaspending-mcp-server/issues/77) · 2026-09-30 · open · 0 comments ### bug(pagination): exact-cap results are falsely labeled truncated ### Server version 0.4.4 ### mcp-ts-core version 0.13.6 ### Runtime Bun ### Runtime version 1.4.2 ### Transport HTTP (Streamable HTTP) ### Description Exact-cap results are reported as definitely truncated even when the complete set was returned. Related: #30 and #54. Conservative continuation can be useful, but it is different from known truncation. ### Steps to reproduce Call `usaspending_autocomplete_filters` with `{"type":"naics","search_text":"Water","limit":10}`; repeat at… [Read the thread](https://github.com/cyanheads/usaspending-mcp-server/issues/76) · 2026-09-30 · open · 0 comments ### bug(usaspending_get_agency): conflicting identifiers silently ignore agency_slug ### Server version 0.4.4 ### mcp-ts-core version 0.13.6 ### Runtime Bun ### Runtime version 1.4.2 ### Transport HTTP (Streamable HTTP) ### Description `usaspending_get_agency` says to provide either `toptier_code` or `agency_slug`, never both, but accepts conflicting identifiers and silently ignores the slug. ### Steps to reproduce Call with `{"toptier_code":"014","agency_slug":"department-of-defense"}`. ### Actual behavior Successful Department of the Interior profile with no… [Read the thread](https://github.com/cyanheads/usaspending-mcp-server/issues/75) · 2026-09-30 · open · 0 comments ### bug(filters): unsupported nested keys become unfiltered successful queries ### Server version 0.4.4 ### mcp-ts-core version 0.13.6 ### Runtime Bun ### Runtime version 1.4.2 ### Transport HTTP (Streamable HTTP) ### Description Unsupported nested filter keys are silently stripped by the definitions' non-strict Zod objects. The tools then succeed with a broader query; top-level strict validation does not protect these objects. ### Steps to reproduce Call `usaspending_search_awards` with… [Read the thread](https://github.com/cyanheads/usaspending-mcp-server/issues/74) · 2026-09-30 · open · 0 comments ### bug(usaspending_disaster_spending): geography ignores limits and returns unbounded rows ### Server version 0.4.4 ### mcp-ts-core version 0.13.6 ### Runtime Bun ### Runtime version 1.4.2 ### Transport HTTP (Streamable HTTP) ### Description `usaspending_disaster_spending` ignores `limit` and `page` on its geography branch and returns an unbounded county table. Unlike #19, this branch requires client-side adaptation because the provider geography endpoint is not paginated. ### Steps to reproduce Call with… [Read the thread](https://github.com/cyanheads/usaspending-mcp-server/issues/73) · 2026-09-30 · open · 0 comments ### bug(usaspending_spending_by_geography): capped counties have no complete retrieval route ### Server version 0.4.4 ### mcp-ts-core version 0.13.6 ### Runtime Bun ### Runtime version 1.4.2 ### Transport HTTP (Streamable HTTP) ### Description `usaspending_spending_by_geography` discloses its cap but cannot retrieve the omitted counties for the same query. The cap introduced in #48 works; its filter-down guidance cannot select an omitted geographic area. ### Steps to reproduce Call with `scope: "place_of_performance"`, `geo_layer: "county"`, `limit: 500`, and filters for… [Read the thread](https://github.com/cyanheads/usaspending-mcp-server/issues/72) · 2026-09-30 · open · 0 comments ### bug(usaspending_autocomplete_filters): replaces matched sub-agency with parent ### Server version 0.4.4 ### mcp-ts-core version 0.13.6 ### Runtime Bun ### Runtime version 1.4.2 ### Transport HTTP (Streamable HTTP) ### Description `usaspending_autocomplete_filters` replaces matched sub-agencies with their top-tier parent's name and discards the tier and chainable code. This differs from #2's empty-result-field fix. ### Steps to reproduce Call with `{"type":"awarding_agency","search_text":"Geological","limit":5}`; compare [the provider… [Read the thread](https://github.com/cyanheads/usaspending-mcp-server/issues/71) · 2026-09-30 · open · 0 comments ### bug(usaspending_search_awards): county guidance contradicts provider location format ### Server version 0.4.4 ### mcp-ts-core version 0.13.6 ### Runtime Bun ### Runtime version 1.4.2 ### Transport HTTP (Streamable HTTP) ### Description `usaspending_search_awards.location_filter.county` recommends a five-digit FIPS code, but [USAspending location filters](https://github.com/fedspendingtransparency/usaspending-api/blob/master/usaspending_api/api_contracts/search_filters.md#standard-location-object) require the three-digit county component with a state and country. The… [Read the thread](https://github.com/cyanheads/usaspending-mcp-server/issues/70) · 2026-09-30 · open · 0 comments ### bug(usaspending_get_agency): suppresses failed budget and sub-agency requests ### Server version 0.4.4 ### mcp-ts-core version 0.13.6 ### Runtime Bun ### Runtime version 1.4.2 ### Transport HTTP (Streamable HTTP); fault injection into built handler ### Description `usaspending_get_agency` converts budgetary-resource and sub-agency request failures into empty successful data without a partial-result notice. A missing breakdown is reported as `has_more_sub_agencies: false`. ### Steps to reproduce Keep `getAgency` successful; inject `ServiceUnavailable` into… [Read the thread](https://github.com/cyanheads/usaspending-mcp-server/issues/69) · 2026-09-30 · open · 0 comments ### bug(usaspending_get_award): drops assistance listings and recipient identity fields ### Server version 0.4.4 ### mcp-ts-core version 0.13.6 ### Runtime Bun ### Runtime version 1.4.2 ### Transport HTTP (Streamable HTTP) ### Description `usaspending_get_award` drops populated Assistance Listing, recipient UEI, business-category, and country fields from [USAspending award detail](https://api.usaspending.gov/api/v2/awards/ASST_NON_R24AP00702_014/). These are different mappings from the financial/PSC fields fixed in #36. ### Steps to reproduce Call with… [Read the thread](https://github.com/cyanheads/usaspending-mcp-server/issues/68) · 2026-09-30 · open · 0 comments ### bug(usaspending_get_recipient): fiscal-year and award-type filters are ignored ### Server version 0.4.4 ### mcp-ts-core version 0.13.6 ### Runtime Bun ### Runtime version 1.4.2 ### Transport HTTP (Streamable HTTP) ### Description `usaspending_get_recipient` advertises fiscal-year and award-type scoping, but sends unsupported `fiscal_year` and `award_type` query parameters. [USAspending](https://github.com/fedspendingtransparency/usaspending-api/blob/master/usaspending_api/api_contracts/contracts/v2/recipient/recipient_id.md) accepts `year`, defaults to the… [Read the thread](https://github.com/cyanheads/usaspending-mcp-server/issues/67) · 2026-09-30 · open · 0 comments The remaining reports are on [the project's issue tracker](https://github.com/cyanheads/usaspending-mcp-server/issues).