City government · Morgan County, AL

Decatur's money: where it comes from and where it goes

In the latest recorded fiscal year (ended September 30, 2023), Decatur took in $284 million and spent $273 million.

Latest recorded year: ended September 30, 2023Comes fromGoes to

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Where it comes from

Fees for services (electric power, water)61%City taxes27%State tax money6.6%Fines and other4.8%County and local tax money0.2%

What stands out

61%

of Decatur's money comes from fees for services such as water, sewer and parking.A typical U.S. city of 50,000+ people gets 30%.

City taxes27%

Sales tax
18%$49.8 million
Other taxes
7.9%$22.5 million
What's in other taxesOther selective sales taxes; other licenses and 1 more
  • Other selective sales taxes$10.4 million
  • Other licenses$8.8 million
  • Public utility taxes$3.4 million

Amounts are by Census tax category.

Property tax
1.8%$5.0 million

Fees for services61%

Fees for services
61%$173 million
What's in fees for servicesElectric power; water and 7 more
  • Electric power$96.2 million
  • Water$25.8 million
  • Sewer$16.6 million
  • Gas$14.5 million
  • Garbage collection$8.6 million
  • Parks and recreation$5.7 million
  • Road charges$5.3 million
  • Other service charges$695 thousand
  • Other government-run businesses$64 thousand

Amounts are by Census type of charge.

State tax money6.6%

Money the state passes on, paid for by the state taxes residents also pay.

From the state
6.6%$18.9 million

County and local tax money0.2%

Money passed on by the county or other local governments.

From the county and other local governments
0.2%$450 thousand

Fines and other4.8%

Interest, rents and other
4.3%$12.1 million
Fines
0.5%$1.5 million

Where it goes

Water, sewer, trash and utilities61%Police, fire, courts and jails11%Running the government and other costs7.7%Parks, recreation and libraries6.8%Roads, transit and parking5.8%All other spending7.2%

What stands out

61%

of Decatur's spending goes to water, sewer, trash and other utilities.A typical U.S. city of 50,000+ people spends 20%.

Spending by category100%

Water, sewer, trash and utilities
61%$167 million
What's in water, sewer, trash and utilitiesElectric power; sewer systems and 3 more
  • Electric power$96.2 million
  • Sewer systems$25.0 million
  • Water supply$17.8 million
  • Gas supply$15.4 million
  • Garbage and solid waste$12.9 million
Police, fire, courts and jails
11%$30.9 million
What's in police, fire, courts and jailsPolice; fire protection and 2 more
  • Police$16.3 million
  • Fire protection$12.5 million
  • Courts and legal services$1.9 million
  • Probation, parole and other corrections$215 thousand
Running the government and other costs
7.7%$21.1 million
What's in running the government and other costsOther and not broken out; central staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology) and 3 more
  • Other and not broken out$16.7 million
  • Central staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology)$2.4 million
  • Finance, tax collection and budgeting$1.4 million
  • Government buildings$490 thousand
  • Other government-run businesses$191 thousand
Parks, recreation and libraries
6.8%$18.6 million
What's in parks, recreation and librariesParks and recreation and libraries
  • Parks and recreation$18.2 million
  • Libraries$378 thousand
Roads, transit and parking
5.8%$15.7 million
What's in roads, transit and parkingRoads and highways; parking and 1 more
  • Roads and highways$15.2 million
  • Parking$391 thousand
  • Airports$149 thousand
Housing and community development
2.7%$7.4 million
Interest on debt
2.4%$6.5 million
What's in interest on debtInterest on general debt; interest on water supply debt and 2 more
  • Interest on general debt$6.0 million
  • Interest on water supply debt$476 thousand
  • Interest on electric power debt$2 thousand
  • Interest on gas supply debt$1 thousand
Sent to other local governments
1.2%$3.4 million
What's in sent to other local governmentsSent to local governments: other and not broken out
  • Sent to local governments: other and not broken out$3.4 million
Health and hospitals
0.4%$1.1 million
What's in health and hospitalsPublic health
  • Public health$1.1 million
Environment and natural resources
0.4%$1.0 million
What's in environment and natural resourcesNatural resources, farming and conservation
  • Natural resources, farming and conservation$1.0 million
Social services
<0.1%$147 thousand
What's in social servicesOther public welfare
  • Other public welfare$147 thousand
Sources and moreWhere these numbers come from and what they cover

City of Decatur. U.S. Census Bureau, 2024 Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, individual unit file, fiscal year ended September 30, 2023.

What this covers. The money of City of Decatur itself. Other governments that serve the same area (the city, county, school district and state) are separate and not included. Borrowing, transfers between a government's own funds, and pension trust funds are not counted as revenue.