County government · Shelby County, AL

Shelby County's money: where it comes from and where it goes

In the latest recorded fiscal year (ended September 30, 2023), Shelby County took in $169 million and spent $122 million.

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

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Where it comes from

County taxes42%Fees for services (water, garbage collection)23%Fines and other16%State tax money16%Federal tax money3.0%

What stands out

16%

of Shelby County's money comes from interest, rents and other revenue.A typical U.S. county of 50,000 to 250,000 people gets 5.4%.

County taxes42%

Property tax
23%$38.3 million
Sales tax
13%$22.2 million
Other taxes
6.1%$10.4 million
What's in other taxesOther licenses and other selective sales taxes
  • Other licenses$7.7 million
  • Other selective sales taxes$2.6 million

Amounts are by Census tax category.

Fees for services23%

Fees for services
23%$39.1 million
What's in fees for servicesOther service charges; water and 2 more
  • Other service charges$16.5 million
  • Water$14.9 million
  • Garbage collection$7.3 million
  • Road charges$343 thousand

Amounts are by Census type of charge.

Federal tax money3.0%

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

From the federal government
3.0%$5.1 million

State tax money16%

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

From the state
16%$26.9 million

Fines and other16%

Interest, rents and other
16%$27.4 million

Where it goes

Police, fire, courts and jails45%Running the government and other costs20%Water, sewer, trash and utilities13%Roads, transit and parking13%Parks, recreation and libraries4.5%All other spending4.0%

What stands out

13%

of Shelby County's spending goes to water, sewer, trash and other utilities.A typical U.S. county of 50,000 to 250,000 people spends 1.6%.

Spending by category100%

Police, fire, courts and jails
45%$54.8 million
What's in police, fire, courts and jailsPolice; courts and legal services and 2 more
  • Police$27.9 million
  • Courts and legal services$12.1 million
  • Prisons and jails$10.0 million
  • Fire protection$4.8 million
Running the government and other costs
20%$24.7 million
What's in running the government and other costsCentral staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology); finance, tax collection and budgeting and 1 more
  • Central staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology)$14.7 million
  • Finance, tax collection and budgeting$9.8 million
  • Other and not broken out$146 thousand
Water, sewer, trash and utilities
13%$16.4 million
What's in water, sewer, trash and utilitiesWater supply and garbage and solid waste
  • Water supply$8.5 million
  • Garbage and solid waste$7.8 million
Roads, transit and parking
13%$16.1 million
What's in roads, transit and parkingRoads and highways
  • Roads and highways$16.1 million
Parks, recreation and libraries
4.5%$5.5 million
What's in parks, recreation and librariesParks and recreation
  • Parks and recreation$5.5 million
Interest on debt
1.4%$1.7 million
Social services
1.4%$1.7 million
What's in social servicesOther public welfare
  • Other public welfare$1.7 million
Health and hospitals
1.2%$1.5 million
What's in health and hospitalsPublic health
  • Public health$1.5 million
Sources and moreWhere these numbers come from and what they cover

Shelby County. 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 Shelby County 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.