City government · Ramsey County, MN

St. Paul's money: where it comes from and where it goes

In the latest recorded fiscal year (ended December 31, 2023), St. Paul took in $1.11 billion and spent $1.08 billion.

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

See every government that serves your ZIP

Where it comes from

Fees for services (water, housing)37%City taxes27%Federal tax money14%State tax money13%Fines and other7.1%County and local tax money2.0%

What stands out

14%

of St. Paul's money comes from federal tax money.A typical U.S. city of 50,000+ people gets 3.6%.

City taxes27%

Property tax
20%$226 million
Other taxes
4.7%$52.2 million
What's in other taxesPublic utility taxes; other licenses and 2 more
  • Public utility taxes$27.7 million
  • Other licenses$19.1 million
  • Other selective sales taxes$5.0 million
  • Amusement taxes$280 thousand

Amounts are by Census tax category.

Sales tax
2.2%$24.0 million

Fees for services37%

Fees for services
37%$404 million
What's in fees for servicesWater; housing and 6 more
  • Water$112 million
  • Housing$85.7 million
  • Sewer$83.8 million
  • Other service charges$65.6 million
  • Parks and recreation$30.5 million
  • Ports and waterways$14.8 million
  • Road charges$10.3 million
  • Garbage collection$898 thousand

Amounts are by Census type of charge.

Federal tax money14%

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

From the federal government
14%$154 million

State tax money13%

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

From the state
13%$145 million

County and local tax money2.0%

Money passed on by the county or other local governments.

From the county and other local governments
2.0%$22.0 million

Fines and other7.1%

Interest, rents and other
7.0%$77.3 million
Fines
<0.1%$742 thousand

Where it goes

Police, fire, courts and jails24%Water, sewer, trash and utilities23%Running the government and other costs13%Parks, recreation and libraries12%Roads, transit and parking11%All other spending16%

What stands out

11%

of St. Paul's spending goes to housing and community development.A typical U.S. city of 50,000+ people spends 1.4%.

Spending by category100%

Police, fire, courts and jails
24%$256 million
What's in police, fire, courts and jailsPolice and fire protection
  • Police$172 million
  • Fire protection$83.8 million
Water, sewer, trash and utilities
23%$249 million
What's in water, sewer, trash and utilitiesWater supply; sewer systems and 1 more
  • Water supply$159 million
  • Sewer systems$73.9 million
  • Garbage and solid waste$15.7 million
Running the government and other costs
13%$143 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$124 million
  • Finance, tax collection and budgeting$15.9 million
  • Central staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology)$2.8 million
Parks, recreation and libraries
12%$132 million
What's in parks, recreation and librariesParks and recreation and libraries
  • Parks and recreation$110 million
  • Libraries$22.1 million
Roads, transit and parking
11%$124 million
What's in roads, transit and parkingRoads and highways and ports and harbors
  • Roads and highways$103 million
  • Ports and harbors$20.3 million
Housing and community development
11%$121 million
Interest on debt
4.8%$51.2 million
What's in interest on debtInterest on general debt and interest on water supply debt
  • Interest on general debt$46.9 million
  • Interest on water supply debt$4.3 million
Health and hospitals
0.1%$1.2 million
What's in health and hospitalsPublic health
  • Public health$1.2 million
Sent to other local governments
<0.1%$1.0 million
What's in sent to other local governmentsSent to local governments: other and not broken out
  • Sent to local governments: other and not broken out$1.0 million
Sources and moreWhere these numbers come from and what they cover

City of St. Paul. 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 St. Paul 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.