County government · Montgomery County, MD

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

In the latest recorded fiscal year (ended June 30, 2024), Montgomery County took in $9.75 billion and spent $11.9 billion.

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

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Where it comes from

County taxes54%Fees for services (sewer, water)19%State tax money16%Fines and other4.7%Federal tax money4.2%Local tax money2.0%

What stands out

21%

of Montgomery County's money comes from a personal income tax.Most U.S. counties of 250,000+ people get none.

County taxes54%

Property tax
28%$2.74 billion
Individual income tax
21%$2.02 billion
Other taxes
5.0%$486 million
What's in other taxesOther selective sales taxes; real estate and stock transfer taxes and 4 more
  • Other selective sales taxes$206 million
  • Real estate and stock transfer taxes$141 million
  • Other licenses$75.0 million
  • Public utility taxes$55.6 million
  • Occupation and business licenses$4.2 million
  • Amusement taxes$3.7 million

Amounts are by Census tax category.

Fees for services19%

Fees for services
19%$1.85 billion
What's in fees for servicesSewer; water and 13 more
  • Sewer$468 million
  • Water$381 million
  • Liquor stores$316 million
  • Housing$190 million
  • Garbage collection$149 million
  • Parks and recreation$108 million
  • Other service charges$75.8 million
  • College tuition$55.1 million
  • Other school charges$29.9 million
  • Parking$26.2 million
  • Other government-run businesses$20.2 million
  • School lunches$14.9 million
  • Transit fares$9.4 million
  • University housing and dining$4.7 million
  • School tuition and transportation$2.3 million

Amounts are by Census type of charge.

Federal tax money4.2%

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

From the federal government
4.2%$409 million

State tax money16%

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

From the state
16%$1.59 billion

Local tax money2.0%

Money passed on by the county or other local governments.

From other local governments
2.0%$200 million

Fines and other4.7%

Interest, rents and other
4.3%$418 million
Fines
0.4%$39.1 million

Where it goes

Schools and colleges33%Sent to other local governments22%Water, sewer, trash and utilities10%Police, fire, courts and jails6.7%Running the government and other costs6.7%All other spending22%

What stands out

33%

of Montgomery County's spending goes to schools and colleges.Most U.S. counties of 250,000+ people spend nothing on this.

Spending by category100%

Schools and colleges
33%$3.91 billion
What's in schools and collegesElementary and secondary schools; colleges and universities and 2 more
  • Elementary and secondary schools$3.57 billion
  • Colleges and universities$318 million
  • Scholarships and other education subsidies$17.3 million
  • College housing, dining and bookstores$2.0 million
Sent to other local governments
22%$2.57 billion
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$2.48 billion
  • Sent to the state government$85.4 million
Water, sewer, trash and utilities
10%$1.23 billion
What's in water, sewer, trash and utilitiesWater supply; liquor stores and 2 more
  • Water supply$600 million
  • Liquor stores$273 million
  • Sewer systems$208 million
  • Garbage and solid waste$153 million
Police, fire, courts and jails
6.7%$800 million
What's in police, fire, courts and jailsPolice; fire protection and 3 more
  • Police$320 million
  • Fire protection$303 million
  • Prisons and jails$83.9 million
  • Courts and legal services$73.4 million
  • Inspections and regulation$19.3 million
Running the government and other costs
6.7%$792 million
What's in running the government and other costsOther and not broken out; government buildings and 3 more
  • Other and not broken out$573 million
  • Government buildings$127 million
  • Central staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology)$47.3 million
  • Finance, tax collection and budgeting$31.9 million
  • Other government-run businesses$12.5 million
Parks, recreation and libraries
6.6%$786 million
What's in parks, recreation and librariesParks and recreation and libraries
  • Parks and recreation$739 million
  • Libraries$46.7 million
Housing and community development
3.9%$461 million
Roads, transit and parking
3.5%$416 million
What's in roads, transit and parkingPublic transit; roads and highways and 1 more
  • Public transit$219 million
  • Roads and highways$167 million
  • Parking$30.8 million
Interest on debt
3.4%$401 million
What's in interest on debtInterest on general debt and interest on water supply debt
  • Interest on general debt$373 million
  • Interest on water supply debt$27.9 million
Social services
2.5%$299 million
What's in social servicesOther public welfare and welfare institutions
  • Other public welfare$227 million
  • Welfare institutions$72.1 million
Health and hospitals
1.7%$197 million
What's in health and hospitalsPublic health
  • Public health$197 million
Environment and natural resources
0.4%$49.0 million
What's in environment and natural resourcesNatural resources, farming and conservation
  • Natural resources, farming and conservation$49.0 million
Sources and moreWhere these numbers come from and what they cover

Montgomery County. 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 Montgomery 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.