Borough government · Middlesex County, NJ

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

In the latest recorded fiscal year (ended December 31, 2021), Metuchen took in $20.6 million and spent $16.9 million.

Latest recorded year: ended December 31, 2021Estimated by the U.S. Census BureauComes fromGoes to

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Where it comes from

Borough taxes78%Fees for services (parking, parks and recreation)11%Fines and other7.6%State tax money4.0%

What stands out

75%

of Metuchen's money comes from property tax.A typical U.S. city of 10,000 to 50,000 people gets 19%.

Borough taxes78%

Property tax
75%$15.4 million
Other taxes
3.1%$641 thousand
What's in other taxesOther licenses; public utility taxes and 1 more
  • Other licenses$550 thousand
  • Public utility taxes$65 thousand
  • Alcoholic beverage licenses$26 thousand

Amounts are by Census tax category.

Fees for services11%

Fees for services
11%$2.2 million
What's in fees for servicesParking; parks and recreation and 2 more
  • Parking$1.7 million
  • Parks and recreation$406 thousand
  • Other service charges$64 thousand
  • Sewer$31 thousand

Amounts are by Census type of charge.

State tax money4.0%

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

From the state
4.0%$834 thousand

Fines and other7.6%

Fines
4.5%$934 thousand
Interest, rents and other
3.0%$627 thousand

Where it goes

Running the government and other costs34%Police, fire, courts and jails29%Roads, transit and parking11%Parks, recreation and libraries9.7%Water, sewer, trash and utilities7.9%All other spending7.9%

What stands out

34%

of Metuchen's spending goes to running the government and other costs.A typical U.S. city of 10,000 to 50,000 people spends 18%.

Spending by category100%

Running the government and other costs
34%$5.8 million
What's in running the government and other costsOther and not broken out; central staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology) and 3 more
  • Other and not broken out$4.6 million
  • Central staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology)$547 thousand
  • Finance, tax collection and budgeting$306 thousand
  • Government buildings$241 thousand
  • Other government-run businesses$114 thousand
Police, fire, courts and jails
29%$4.9 million
What's in police, fire, courts and jailsPolice; fire protection and 2 more
  • Police$3.8 million
  • Fire protection$569 thousand
  • Courts and legal services$287 thousand
  • Inspections and regulation$250 thousand
Roads, transit and parking
11%$1.8 million
What's in roads, transit and parkingParking and roads and highways
  • Parking$989 thousand
  • Roads and highways$859 thousand
Parks, recreation and libraries
9.7%$1.6 million
What's in parks, recreation and librariesLibraries and parks and recreation
  • Libraries$953 thousand
  • Parks and recreation$693 thousand
Water, sewer, trash and utilities
7.9%$1.3 million
What's in water, sewer, trash and utilitiesGarbage and solid waste and sewer systems
  • Garbage and solid waste$1.1 million
  • Sewer systems$245 thousand
Interest on debt
3.6%$612 thousand
Sent to other local governments
3.1%$521 thousand
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$521 thousand
Environment and natural resources
1.0%$164 thousand
What's in environment and natural resourcesNatural resources, farming and conservation
  • Natural resources, farming and conservation$164 thousand
Health and hospitals
0.2%$37 thousand
What's in health and hospitalsPublic health
  • Public health$37 thousand
Sources and moreWhere these numbers come from and what they cover

Borough of Metuchen. U.S. Census Bureau, 2022 Census of Governments, Finance, individual unit file, fiscal year ended December 31, 2021. Most of this government's figures were estimated by the U.S. Census Bureau from a sample; the government did not report them itself. The Census record for this government is from the 2022 survey, the newest on file.

What this covers. The money of Borough of Metuchen 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.