County government · Garfield County, CO

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

In the latest recorded fiscal year (ended December 31, 2023), Garfield County took in $138 million and spent $122 million.

Latest recorded year: ended December 31, 2023Comes fromGoes to

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Where it comes from

County taxes49%Federal tax money25%Fines and other11%State tax money8.4%Fees for services (airport, garbage collection)6.0%Local tax money0.3%

What stands out

25%

of Garfield County's money comes from federal tax money.A typical U.S. county of 50,000 to 250,000 people gets 3.6%.

County taxes49%

Property tax
29%$40.3 million
Sales tax
17%$23.3 million
Other taxes
3.3%$4.5 million
What's in other taxesMotor vehicle licenses
  • Motor vehicle licenses$4.5 million

Amounts are by Census tax category.

Fees for services6.0%

Fees for services
6.0%$8.2 million
What's in fees for servicesAirport; garbage collection and 3 more
  • Airport$2.5 million
  • Garbage collection$2.3 million
  • Parks and recreation$1.5 million
  • Other service charges$1.4 million
  • Road charges$350 thousand

Amounts are by Census type of charge.

Federal tax money25%

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

From the federal government
25%$34.9 million

State tax money8.4%

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

From the state
8.4%$11.6 million

Local tax money0.3%

Money passed on by the county or other local governments.

From other local governments
0.3%$440 thousand

Fines and other11%

Interest, rents and other
11%$14.8 million
Fines
<0.1%$134 thousand

Where it goes

Police, fire, courts and jails28%Social services21%Running the government and other costs17%Roads, transit and parking12%Sent to other local governments11%All other spending11%

What stands out

21%

of Garfield County's spending goes to social services.A typical U.S. county of 50,000 to 250,000 people spends 1.5%.

Spending by category100%

Police, fire, courts and jails
28%$33.9 million
What's in police, fire, courts and jailsPolice; prisons and jails and 3 more
  • Police$16.2 million
  • Prisons and jails$9.6 million
  • Courts and legal services$5.0 million
  • Probation, parole and other corrections$3.0 million
  • Inspections and regulation$160 thousand
Social services
21%$25.2 million
What's in social servicesOther public welfare
  • Other public welfare$25.2 million
Running the government and other costs
17%$21.2 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)$10.1 million
  • Finance, tax collection and budgeting$8.6 million
  • Government buildings$2.5 million
Roads, transit and parking
12%$14.9 million
What's in roads, transit and parkingRoads and highways and airports
  • Roads and highways$12.7 million
  • Airports$2.2 million
Sent to other local governments
11%$13.7 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$13.7 million
Health and hospitals
6.8%$8.3 million
What's in health and hospitalsPublic health
  • Public health$8.3 million
Parks, recreation and libraries
2.2%$2.7 million
What's in parks, recreation and librariesParks and recreation
  • Parks and recreation$2.7 million
Water, sewer, trash and utilities
1.8%$2.2 million
What's in water, sewer, trash and utilitiesGarbage and solid waste
  • Garbage and solid waste$2.2 million
Sources and moreWhere these numbers come from and what they cover

Garfield County. U.S. Census Bureau, 2024 Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, individual unit file, fiscal year ended December 31, 2023.

What this covers. The money of Garfield 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.