City government · Elkhart County, IN

Elkhart's money: where it comes from and where it goes

In the latest recorded fiscal year (ended December 31, 2023), Elkhart took in $201 million and spent $164 million.

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

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Where it comes from

Fees for services (sewer, water)38%State tax money29%City taxes27%Fines and other4.9%County and local tax money0.5%Federal tax money0.2%

What stands out

29%

of Elkhart's money comes from state tax money.A typical U.S. city of 50,000+ people gets 6.4%.

City taxes27%

Property tax
27%$53.7 million
Other taxes
0.3%$626 thousand
What's in other taxesOther licenses; public utility taxes and 1 more
  • Other licenses$291 thousand
  • Public utility taxes$263 thousand
  • Occupation and business licenses$72 thousand

Amounts are by Census tax category.

Fees for services38%

Fees for services
38%$77.4 million
What's in fees for servicesSewer; water and 5 more
  • Sewer$57.3 million
  • Water$15.1 million
  • Other service charges$3.5 million
  • Parks and recreation$805 thousand
  • Airport$324 thousand
  • Other government-run businesses$273 thousand
  • Road charges$15 thousand

Amounts are by Census type of charge.

Federal tax money0.2%

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

From the federal government
0.2%$502 thousand

State tax money29%

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

From the state
29%$58.0 million

County and local tax money0.5%

Money passed on by the county or other local governments.

From the county and other local governments
0.5%$1.0 million

Fines and other4.9%

Interest, rents and other
4.7%$9.5 million
Fines
0.2%$442 thousand

Where it goes

Running the government and other costs40%Police, fire, courts and jails27%Water, sewer, trash and utilities17%Housing and community development6.7%Roads, transit and parking4.3%All other spending5.3%

What stands out

40%

of Elkhart's spending goes to running the government and other costs.A typical U.S. city of 50,000+ people spends 16%.

Spending by category100%

Running the government and other costs
40%$64.9 million
What's in running the government and other costsOther and not broken out; other government-run businesses and 3 more
  • Other and not broken out$56.0 million
  • Other government-run businesses$2.7 million
  • Finance, tax collection and budgeting$2.6 million
  • Central staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology)$2.3 million
  • Government buildings$1.4 million
Police, fire, courts and jails
27%$44.5 million
What's in police, fire, courts and jailsPolice; fire protection and 2 more
  • Police$23.4 million
  • Fire protection$19.7 million
  • Courts and legal services$1.0 million
  • Probation, parole and other corrections$454 thousand
Water, sewer, trash and utilities
17%$28.0 million
What's in water, sewer, trash and utilitiesSewer systems; water supply and 1 more
  • Sewer systems$22.5 million
  • Water supply$5.5 million
  • Garbage and solid waste$1 thousand
Housing and community development
6.7%$10.9 million
Roads, transit and parking
4.3%$7.1 million
What's in roads, transit and parkingRoads and highways; parking and 1 more
  • Roads and highways$4.2 million
  • Parking$2.8 million
  • Airports$11 thousand
Parks, recreation and libraries
3.9%$6.5 million
What's in parks, recreation and librariesParks and recreation
  • Parks and recreation$6.5 million
Interest on debt
1.3%$2.1 million
Health and hospitals
<0.1%$140 thousand
What's in health and hospitalsPublic health
  • Public health$140 thousand
Sources and moreWhere these numbers come from and what they cover

City of Elkhart. 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 Elkhart 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.