City government · Santa Clara County, CA

San Jose's money: where it comes from and where it goes

In the latest recorded fiscal year (ended June 30, 2024), San Jose took in $3.69 billion and spent $3.19 billion.

Latest recorded year: ended June 30, 2024Comes fromGoes to

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Where it comes from

City taxes44%Fees for services (electric power, sewer)38%Fines and other8.6%State tax money4.7%County and local tax money2.5%Federal tax money1.8%

What stands out

15%

of San Jose's money comes from taxes other than property, sales and income taxes.A typical U.S. city of 50,000+ people gets 7.2%.

City taxes44%

Property tax
20%$748 million
Other taxes
15%$538 million
What's in other taxesPublic utility taxes; other licenses and 3 more
  • Public utility taxes$205 million
  • Other licenses$115 million
  • Occupation and business licenses$89.9 million
  • Real estate and stock transfer taxes$88.7 million
  • Other selective sales taxes$39.8 million

Amounts are by Census tax category.

Sales tax
9.2%$338 million

Fees for services38%

Fees for services
38%$1.42 billion
What's in fees for servicesElectric power; sewer and 8 more
  • Electric power$492 million
  • Sewer$280 million
  • Airport$244 million
  • Garbage collection$201 million
  • Other service charges$81.2 million
  • Water$72.2 million
  • Parks and recreation$17.7 million
  • Parking$16.0 million
  • Housing$10.4 million
  • Road charges$2.6 million

Amounts are by Census type of charge.

Federal tax money1.8%

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

From the federal government
1.8%$68.0 million

State tax money4.7%

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

From the state
4.7%$172 million

County and local tax money2.5%

Money passed on by the county or other local governments.

From the county and other local governments
2.5%$90.6 million

Fines and other8.6%

Interest, rents and other
8.1%$300 million
Fines
0.4%$16.6 million

Where it goes

Water, sewer, trash and utilities27%Police, fire, courts and jails26%Roads, transit and parking14%Running the government and other costs12%Parks, recreation and libraries9.0%All other spending12%

What stands out

8.9%

of San Jose's spending goes to housing and community development.A typical U.S. city of 50,000+ people spends 1.4%.

Spending by category100%

Water, sewer, trash and utilities
27%$862 million
What's in water, sewer, trash and utilitiesElectric power; sewer systems and 2 more
  • Electric power$413 million
  • Sewer systems$198 million
  • Garbage and solid waste$192 million
  • Water supply$59.3 million
Police, fire, courts and jails
26%$827 million
What's in police, fire, courts and jailsPolice; fire protection and 1 more
  • Police$521 million
  • Fire protection$280 million
  • Inspections and regulation$25.6 million
Roads, transit and parking
14%$462 million
What's in roads, transit and parkingRoads and highways; airports and 1 more
  • Roads and highways$318 million
  • Airports$129 million
  • Parking$15.4 million
Running the government and other costs
12%$373 million
What's in running the government and other costsCentral staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology) and other and not broken out
  • Central staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology)$322 million
  • Other and not broken out$51.0 million
Parks, recreation and libraries
9.0%$287 million
What's in parks, recreation and librariesParks and recreation and libraries
  • Parks and recreation$226 million
  • Libraries$61.8 million
Housing and community development
8.9%$284 million
Interest on debt
3.0%$95.0 million
What's in interest on debtInterest on general debt and interest on electric power debt
  • Interest on general debt$92.3 million
  • Interest on electric power debt$2.7 million
Sources and moreWhere these numbers come from and what they cover

City of San Jose. U.S. Census Bureau, 2024 Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, individual unit file, fiscal year ended June 30, 2024.

What this covers. The money of City of San Jose 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.