County government · Kent County, DE

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

In the latest recorded fiscal year (ended June 30, 2024), Kent County took in $109 million and spent $104 million.

Latest recorded year: ended June 30, 2024Estimated by the U.S. Census BureauComes fromGoes to

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Where it comes from

Fees for services (sewer, garbage collection)49%Fines and other30%County taxes17%State tax money3.7%

What stands out

49%

of Kent County's money comes from fees for services such as water, sewer and parking.A typical U.S. county of 50,000 to 250,000 people gets 11%.

County taxes17%

Property tax
9.5%$10.4 million
Other taxes
7.2%$7.9 million
What's in other taxesReal estate and stock transfer taxes; public utility taxes and 1 more
  • Real estate and stock transfer taxes$7.4 million
  • Public utility taxes$230 thousand
  • Other licenses$190 thousand

Amounts are by Census tax category.

Fees for services49%

Fees for services
49%$54.1 million
What's in fees for servicesSewer; other service charges and 3 more
  • Sewer$31.4 million
  • Other service charges$13.3 million
  • Garbage collection$7.1 million
  • Road charges$1.7 million
  • Parks and recreation$603 thousand

Amounts are by Census type of charge.

State tax money3.7%

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

From the state
3.7%$4.0 million

Fines and other30%

Interest, rents and other
30%$33.0 million

Where it goes

Water, sewer, trash and utilities42%Running the government and other costs24%Police, fire, courts and jails16%Health and hospitals8.1%Parks, recreation and libraries4.8%All other spending4.6%

What stands out

42%

of Kent 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%

Water, sewer, trash and utilities
42%$43.3 million
What's in water, sewer, trash and utilitiesSewer systems and garbage and solid waste
  • Sewer systems$37.4 million
  • Garbage and solid waste$5.9 million
Running the government and other costs
24%$25.3 million
What's in running the government and other costsOther and not broken out; central staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology) and 2 more
  • Other and not broken out$16.3 million
  • Central staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology)$5.5 million
  • Finance, tax collection and budgeting$3.3 million
  • Government buildings$243 thousand
Police, fire, courts and jails
16%$16.8 million
What's in police, fire, courts and jailsPolice and inspections and regulation
  • Police$14.0 million
  • Inspections and regulation$2.7 million
Health and hospitals
8.1%$8.4 million
What's in health and hospitalsPublic health
  • Public health$8.4 million
Parks, recreation and libraries
4.8%$4.9 million
What's in parks, recreation and librariesParks and recreation and libraries
  • Parks and recreation$2.9 million
  • Libraries$2.0 million
Interest on debt
2.1%$2.2 million
Roads, transit and parking
1.2%$1.3 million
What's in roads, transit and parkingRoads and highways
  • Roads and highways$1.3 million
Housing and community development
1.0%$988 thousand
Environment and natural resources
0.3%$312 thousand
What's in environment and natural resourcesNatural resources, farming and conservation
  • Natural resources, farming and conservation$312 thousand
Sources and moreWhere these numbers come from and what they cover

Kent County. U.S. Census Bureau, 2024 Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, individual unit file, fiscal year ended June 30, 2024. Most of this government's figures were estimated by the U.S. Census Bureau from a sample; the government did not report them itself.

What this covers. The money of Kent 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.