City government · Whitley County, IN

Columbia City's money: where it comes from and where it goes

In the latest recorded fiscal year (ended December 31, 2023), Columbia City took in $38.4 million and spent $34.8 million.

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

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Where it comes from

Fees for services (electric power, sewer)79%State tax money11%City taxes7.9%Fines and other2.1%County and local tax money0.2%

What stands out

79%

of Columbia City's money comes from fees for services such as water, sewer and parking.A typical U.S. city of 10,000 to 50,000 people gets 30%.

City taxes7.9%

Property tax
7.8%$3.0 million
Other taxes
0.1%$50 thousand
What's in other taxesPublic utility taxes and other licenses
  • Public utility taxes$39 thousand
  • Other licenses$11 thousand

Amounts are by Census tax category.

Fees for services79%

Fees for services
79%$30.2 million
What's in fees for servicesElectric power; sewer and 5 more
  • Electric power$15.1 million
  • Sewer$10.3 million
  • Water$3.8 million
  • Parks and recreation$521 thousand
  • Garbage collection$454 thousand
  • Other service charges$17 thousand
  • Other government-run businesses$12 thousand

Amounts are by Census type of charge.

State tax money11%

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

From the state
11%$4.2 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%$95 thousand

Fines and other2.1%

Interest, rents and other
1.7%$643 thousand
Fines
0.4%$156 thousand

Where it goes

Water, sewer, trash and utilities52%Running the government and other costs23%Police, fire, courts and jails10%Interest on debt7.3%Parks, recreation and libraries3.4%All other spending3.8%

What stands out

52%

of Columbia City's spending goes to water, sewer, trash and other utilities.A typical U.S. city of 10,000 to 50,000 people spends 24%.

Spending by category100%

Water, sewer, trash and utilities
52%$18.1 million
What's in water, sewer, trash and utilitiesElectric power; sewer systems and 2 more
  • Electric power$12.6 million
  • Sewer systems$3.9 million
  • Water supply$1.1 million
  • Garbage and solid waste$505 thousand
Running the government and other costs
23%$8.0 million
What's in running the government and other costsOther and not broken out; finance, tax collection and budgeting and 2 more
  • Other and not broken out$4.8 million
  • Finance, tax collection and budgeting$1.6 million
  • Central staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology)$1.6 million
  • Other government-run businesses$8 thousand
Police, fire, courts and jails
10%$3.6 million
What's in police, fire, courts and jailsPolice; fire protection and 1 more
  • Police$2.4 million
  • Fire protection$1.3 million
  • Courts and legal services$21 thousand
Interest on debt
7.3%$2.5 million
Parks, recreation and libraries
3.4%$1.2 million
What's in parks, recreation and librariesParks and recreation
  • Parks and recreation$1.2 million
Roads, transit and parking
3.0%$1.0 million
What's in roads, transit and parkingRoads and highways
  • Roads and highways$1.0 million
Housing and community development
0.6%$213 thousand
Environment and natural resources
0.2%$64 thousand
What's in environment and natural resourcesNatural resources, farming and conservation
  • Natural resources, farming and conservation$64 thousand
Sources and moreWhere these numbers come from and what they cover

City of Columbia City. 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 City of Columbia City 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.