County government · Ocean County, NJ

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

In the latest recorded fiscal year (ended December 31, 2023), Ocean County took in $564 million and spent $512 million.

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

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Where it comes from

County taxes76%Fees for services (college tuition, school tuition and transportation)8.8%Federal tax money4.3%State tax money4.2%Local tax money3.9%Fines and other2.8%

What stands out

76%

of Ocean County's money comes from property tax.A typical U.S. county of 250,000+ people gets 29%.

County taxes76%

Property tax
76%$429 million

Fees for services8.8%

Fees for services
8.8%$49.6 million
What's in fees for servicesCollege tuition; other service charges and 7 more
  • College tuition$27.9 million
  • Other service charges$13.7 million
  • School tuition and transportation$3.2 million
  • Parks and recreation$2.7 million
  • University housing and dining$1.4 million
  • Other school charges$265 thousand
  • School lunches$185 thousand
  • Hospital bills$145 thousand
  • Road charges$45 thousand

Amounts are by Census type of charge.

Federal tax money4.3%

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

From the federal government
4.3%$24.4 million

State tax money4.2%

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

From the state
4.2%$23.9 million

Local tax money3.9%

Money passed on by the county or other local governments.

From other local governments
3.9%$21.8 million

Fines and other2.8%

Interest, rents and other
2.3%$12.9 million
Fines
0.5%$2.9 million

Where it goes

Running the government and other costs32%Schools and colleges26%Police, fire, courts and jails17%Parks, recreation and libraries10%Roads, transit and parking6.3%All other spending8.5%

What stands out

26%

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

Spending by category100%

Running the government and other costs
32%$166 million
What's in running the government and other costsOther and not broken out; government buildings and 2 more
  • Other and not broken out$141 million
  • Government buildings$11.8 million
  • Finance, tax collection and budgeting$7.0 million
  • Central staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology)$6.3 million
Schools and colleges
26%$134 million
What's in schools and collegesColleges and universities; elementary and secondary schools and 2 more
  • Colleges and universities$78.9 million
  • Elementary and secondary schools$45.7 million
  • Scholarships and other education subsidies$6.9 million
  • College housing, dining and bookstores$2.9 million
Police, fire, courts and jails
17%$84.6 million
What's in police, fire, courts and jailsPrisons and jails; police and 3 more
  • Prisons and jails$32.0 million
  • Police$31.9 million
  • Courts and legal services$19.0 million
  • Fire protection$897 thousand
  • Inspections and regulation$842 thousand
Parks, recreation and libraries
10%$51.5 million
What's in parks, recreation and librariesLibraries and parks and recreation
  • Libraries$49.2 million
  • Parks and recreation$2.3 million
Roads, transit and parking
6.3%$32.4 million
What's in roads, transit and parkingRoads and highways
  • Roads and highways$32.4 million
Interest on debt
3.3%$16.9 million
Health and hospitals
1.8%$9.2 million
What's in health and hospitalsPublic health
  • Public health$9.2 million
Social services
1.5%$7.9 million
What's in social servicesOther public welfare
  • Other public welfare$7.9 million
Water, sewer, trash and utilities
1.3%$6.6 million
What's in water, sewer, trash and utilitiesSewer systems and garbage and solid waste
  • Sewer systems$6.0 million
  • Garbage and solid waste$575 thousand
Housing and community development
0.6%$2.8 million
Sent to other local governments
<0.1%$50 thousand
What's in sent to other local governmentsSent to the state government
  • Sent to the state government$50 thousand
Sources and moreWhere these numbers come from and what they cover

Ocean 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 Ocean 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.