City government · Suffolk County, MA

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

In the latest recorded fiscal year (ended June 30, 2024), Chelsea took in $292 million and spent $323 million.

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

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Where it comes from

State tax money51%City taxes31%Fees for services (sewer, water)11%Federal tax money4.8%Fines and other2.8%

What stands out

51%

of Chelsea's money comes from state tax money.A typical U.S. city of 10,000 to 50,000 people gets 7%.

City taxes31%

Property tax
29%$86.1 million
Other taxes
1.4%$4.0 million
What's in other taxesOther licenses and other selective sales taxes
  • Other licenses$2.5 million
  • Other selective sales taxes$1.5 million

Amounts are by Census tax category.

Fees for services11%

Fees for services
11%$31.9 million
What's in fees for servicesSewer; water and 7 more
  • Sewer$15.8 million
  • Water$11.1 million
  • Garbage collection$2.5 million
  • Other service charges$1.7 million
  • School lunches$489 thousand
  • Parking$350 thousand
  • Other school charges$41 thousand
  • School tuition and transportation$17 thousand
  • Housing$7 thousand

Amounts are by Census type of charge.

Federal tax money4.8%

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

From the federal government
4.8%$14.0 million

State tax money51%

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

From the state
51%$148 million

Fines and other2.8%

Interest, rents and other
2.8%$8.1 million
Fines
<0.1%$157 thousand

Where it goes

Schools and colleges54%Running the government and other costs15%Police, fire, courts and jails12%Water, sewer, trash and utilities7.9%Sent to other local governments4.5%All other spending7.1%

What stands out

54%

of Chelsea's spending goes to schools and colleges.Most U.S. cities of 10,000 to 50,000 people spend nothing on this.

Spending by category100%

Schools and colleges
54%$174 million
What's in schools and collegesElementary and secondary schools
  • Elementary and secondary schools$174 million
Running the government and other costs
15%$48.5 million
What's in running the government and other costsOther and not broken out; finance, tax collection and budgeting and 1 more
  • Other and not broken out$44.2 million
  • Finance, tax collection and budgeting$3.0 million
  • Central staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology)$1.3 million
Police, fire, courts and jails
12%$37.6 million
What's in police, fire, courts and jailsPolice; fire protection and 2 more
  • Police$16.9 million
  • Fire protection$14.6 million
  • Inspections and regulation$5.1 million
  • Courts and legal services$895 thousand
Water, sewer, trash and utilities
7.9%$25.6 million
What's in water, sewer, trash and utilitiesSewer systems; water supply and 1 more
  • Sewer systems$13.9 million
  • Water supply$8.2 million
  • Garbage and solid waste$3.5 million
Sent to other local governments
4.5%$14.4 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$11.3 million
  • Sent to the state government$3.1 million
Roads, transit and parking
3.5%$11.2 million
What's in roads, transit and parkingRoads and highways
  • Roads and highways$11.2 million
Housing and community development
2.5%$8.2 million
Parks, recreation and libraries
0.4%$1.4 million
What's in parks, recreation and librariesParks and recreation and libraries
  • Parks and recreation$880 thousand
  • Libraries$557 thousand
Interest on debt
0.3%$924 thousand
What's in interest on debtInterest on general debt and interest on water supply debt
  • Interest on general debt$719 thousand
  • Interest on water supply debt$205 thousand
Health and hospitals
0.2%$783 thousand
What's in health and hospitalsPublic health
  • Public health$783 thousand
Social services
0.1%$475 thousand
What's in social servicesOther public welfare
  • Other public welfare$475 thousand
Sources and moreWhere these numbers come from and what they cover

City of Chelsea. 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 Chelsea 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.