City government · Black Hawk County, IA

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

In the latest recorded fiscal year (ended June 30, 2024), Waterloo took in $184 million and spent $215 million.

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

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Where it comes from

City taxes45%Fees for services (sewer, water)27%Federal tax money9.2%Fines and other9.1%State tax money9.1%County and local tax money0.2%

What stands out

32%

of Waterloo's money comes from property tax.A typical U.S. city of 50,000+ people gets 20%.

City taxes45%

Property tax
32%$59.0 million
Sales tax
7.5%$13.8 million
Other taxes
5.7%$10.4 million
What's in other taxesPublic utility taxes; other selective sales taxes and 1 more
  • Public utility taxes$7.0 million
  • Other selective sales taxes$1.7 million
  • Other licenses$1.7 million

Amounts are by Census tax category.

Fees for services27%

Fees for services
27%$49.8 million
What's in fees for servicesSewer; water and 7 more
  • Sewer$20.7 million
  • Water$11.8 million
  • Garbage collection$6.2 million
  • Other service charges$5.7 million
  • Parks and recreation$4.3 million
  • Parking$349 thousand
  • Housing$337 thousand
  • Airport$313 thousand
  • Road charges$44 thousand

Amounts are by Census type of charge.

Federal tax money9.2%

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

From the federal government
9.2%$16.9 million

State tax money9.1%

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

From the state
9.1%$16.8 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%$347 thousand

Fines and other9.1%

Interest, rents and other
7.8%$14.4 million
Fines
1.3%$2.4 million

Where it goes

Running the government and other costs34%Police, fire, courts and jails18%Water, sewer, trash and utilities18%Roads, transit and parking14%Parks, recreation and libraries5.7%All other spending11%

What stands out

34%

of Waterloo'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
34%$72.8 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$64.4 million
  • Other government-run businesses$4.2 million
  • Central staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology)$1.9 million
  • Finance, tax collection and budgeting$1.5 million
  • Government buildings$734 thousand
Police, fire, courts and jails
18%$38.5 million
What's in police, fire, courts and jailsPolice; fire protection and 2 more
  • Police$22.6 million
  • Fire protection$14.2 million
  • Inspections and regulation$1.4 million
  • Courts and legal services$307 thousand
Water, sewer, trash and utilities
18%$38.2 million
What's in water, sewer, trash and utilitiesSewer systems; water supply and 1 more
  • Sewer systems$18.5 million
  • Water supply$13.2 million
  • Garbage and solid waste$6.4 million
Roads, transit and parking
14%$29.1 million
What's in roads, transit and parkingRoads and highways; airports and 2 more
  • Roads and highways$23.6 million
  • Airports$3.6 million
  • Public transit$1.5 million
  • Parking$398 thousand
Parks, recreation and libraries
5.7%$12.2 million
What's in parks, recreation and librariesParks and recreation and libraries
  • Parks and recreation$9.1 million
  • Libraries$3.1 million
Housing and community development
5.5%$11.9 million
Health and hospitals
2.0%$4.2 million
What's in health and hospitalsPublic health
  • Public health$4.2 million
Interest on debt
1.8%$4.0 million
Sent to other local governments
1.7%$3.7 million
What's in sent to other local governmentsSent to local governments: other and not broken out and sent to the state government
  • Sent to local governments: other and not broken out$3.6 million
  • Sent to the state government$38 thousand
Social services
0.2%$372 thousand
What's in social servicesOther public welfare
  • Other public welfare$372 thousand
Sources and moreWhere these numbers come from and what they cover

City of Waterloo. 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 Waterloo 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.