City government · Montgomery County, AL

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

In the latest recorded fiscal year (ended September 30, 2023), Montgomery took in $498 million and spent $474 million.

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

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Where it comes from

City taxes52%Fees for services (water, garbage collection)27%Fines and other12%Federal tax money4.8%State tax money4.0%County and local tax money0.2%

What stands out

30%

of Montgomery's money comes from sales tax.A typical U.S. city of 50,000+ people gets 7.8%.

City taxes52%

Sales tax
30%$149 million
Other taxes
14%$69.3 million
What's in other taxesOccupation and business licenses; other selective sales taxes and 3 more
  • Occupation and business licenses$37.7 million
  • Other selective sales taxes$20.4 million
  • Motor fuel taxes$9.4 million
  • Tobacco taxes$1.4 million
  • Alcoholic beverage taxes$360 thousand

Amounts are by Census tax category.

Property tax
8.0%$39.6 million

Fees for services27%

Fees for services
27%$134 million
What's in fees for servicesWater; garbage collection and 3 more
  • Water$102 million
  • Garbage collection$21.5 million
  • Parks and recreation$7.0 million
  • Other service charges$2.2 million
  • Parking$1.0 million

Amounts are by Census type of charge.

Federal tax money4.8%

Grants from Washington, paid for by the federal taxes residents also pay.

From the federal government
4.8%$24.1 million

State tax money4.0%

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

From the state
4.0%$20.1 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%$979 thousand

Fines and other12%

Interest, rents and other
12%$57.6 million
Fines
0.8%$4.0 million

Where it goes

Water, sewer, trash and utilities31%Police, fire, courts and jails30%Running the government and other costs15%Parks, recreation and libraries14%Roads, transit and parking4.9%All other spending4.9%

What stands out

14%

of Montgomery's spending goes to parks, recreation and libraries.A typical U.S. city of 50,000+ people spends 6.4%.

Spending by category100%

Water, sewer, trash and utilities
31%$149 million
What's in water, sewer, trash and utilitiesSewer systems; water supply and 1 more
  • Sewer systems$76.9 million
  • Water supply$49.6 million
  • Garbage and solid waste$22.5 million
Police, fire, courts and jails
30%$140 million
What's in police, fire, courts and jailsFire protection; police and 1 more
  • Fire protection$69.9 million
  • Police$66.7 million
  • Courts and legal services$3.3 million
Running the government and other costs
15%$73.0 million
What's in running the government and other costsOther and not broken out; government buildings and 2 more
  • Other and not broken out$54.3 million
  • Government buildings$12.2 million
  • Finance, tax collection and budgeting$3.5 million
  • Central staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology)$2.9 million
Parks, recreation and libraries
14%$65.6 million
What's in parks, recreation and librariesParks and recreation and libraries
  • Parks and recreation$62.2 million
  • Libraries$3.4 million
Roads, transit and parking
4.9%$23.3 million
What's in roads, transit and parkingRoads and highways; public transit and 1 more
  • Roads and highways$15.0 million
  • Public transit$7.5 million
  • Parking$827 thousand
Interest on debt
2.5%$11.8 million
What's in interest on debtInterest on water supply debt and interest on general debt
  • Interest on water supply debt$6.0 million
  • Interest on general debt$5.8 million
Health and hospitals
1.2%$5.7 million
What's in health and hospitalsPublic health
  • Public health$5.7 million
Housing and community development
0.7%$3.2 million
Sent to other local governments
0.5%$2.6 million
What's in sent to other local governmentsSent to the state government
  • Sent to the state government$2.6 million
Sources and moreWhere these numbers come from and what they cover

City of Montgomery. 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 Montgomery 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.