County government · Otter Tail County, MN

Otter Tail County's money: where it comes from and where it goes

In the latest recorded fiscal year (ended December 31, 2023), Otter Tail County took in $140 million and spent $128 million.

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

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Where it comes from

County taxes42%State tax money27%Fees for services (garbage collection, road charges)18%Federal tax money7.7%Fines and other4.4%Local tax money1.3%

What stands out

18%

of Otter Tail County's money comes from fees for services such as water, sewer and parking.A typical U.S. county of 50,000 to 250,000 people gets 11%.

County taxes42%

Property tax
37%$52.4 million
Sales tax
4.0%$5.6 million
Other taxes
0.7%$1.0 million
What's in other taxesOther licenses
  • Other licenses$1.0 million

Amounts are by Census tax category.

Fees for services18%

Fees for services
18%$25.2 million
What's in fees for servicesGarbage collection; other service charges and 3 more
  • Garbage collection$19.4 million
  • Other service charges$3.6 million
  • Road charges$2.1 million
  • Housing$119 thousand
  • Parks and recreation$2 thousand

Amounts are by Census type of charge.

Federal tax money7.7%

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

From the federal government
7.7%$10.7 million

State tax money27%

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

From the state
27%$37.1 million

Local tax money1.3%

Money passed on by the county or other local governments.

From other local governments
1.3%$1.8 million

Fines and other4.4%

Interest, rents and other
4.3%$6.0 million
Fines
<0.1%$81 thousand

Where it goes

Roads, transit and parking26%Social services18%Running the government and other costs17%Water, sewer, trash and utilities15%Police, fire, courts and jails14%All other spending11%

What stands out

18%

of Otter Tail County's spending goes to social services.A typical U.S. county of 50,000 to 250,000 people spends 1.5%.

Spending by category100%

Roads, transit and parking
26%$32.6 million
What's in roads, transit and parkingRoads and highways
  • Roads and highways$32.6 million
Social services
18%$23.1 million
What's in social servicesOther public welfare
  • Other public welfare$23.1 million
Running the government and other costs
17%$21.4 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$18.2 million
  • Finance, tax collection and budgeting$2.7 million
  • Central staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology)$491 thousand
Water, sewer, trash and utilities
15%$19.5 million
What's in water, sewer, trash and utilitiesGarbage and solid waste
  • Garbage and solid waste$19.5 million
Police, fire, courts and jails
14%$17.5 million
What's in police, fire, courts and jailsPolice; prisons and jails and 1 more
  • Police$11.2 million
  • Prisons and jails$6.3 million
  • Probation, parole and other corrections$50 thousand
Health and hospitals
3.5%$4.4 million
What's in health and hospitalsPublic health
  • Public health$4.4 million
Parks, recreation and libraries
2.1%$2.7 million
What's in parks, recreation and librariesParks and recreation and libraries
  • Parks and recreation$2.1 million
  • Libraries$632 thousand
Interest on debt
1.7%$2.2 million
Environment and natural resources
1.6%$2.1 million
What's in environment and natural resourcesNatural resources, farming and conservation
  • Natural resources, farming and conservation$2.1 million
Housing and community development
1.6%$2.0 million
Sources and moreWhere these numbers come from and what they cover

Otter Tail County. 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 Otter Tail 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.