Municipal government · Mercer County, NJ

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

In the latest recorded fiscal year (ended December 31, 2021), Princeton took in $55.4 million and spent $28.5 million.

Latest recorded year: ended December 31, 2021Comes fromGoes to

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Where it comes from

Municipal taxes70%Fees for services (sewer, parking)21%State tax money4.4%Fines and other2.9%Federal tax money1.5%

What stands out

68%

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

Municipal taxes70%

Property tax
68%$38.0 million
Other taxes
1.4%$765 thousand
What's in other taxesOther licenses; public utility taxes and 2 more
  • Other licenses$452 thousand
  • Public utility taxes$200 thousand
  • Alcoholic beverage licenses$59 thousand
  • Other selective sales taxes$54 thousand

Amounts are by Census tax category.

Fees for services21%

Fees for services
21%$11.8 million
What's in fees for servicesSewer; parking and 2 more
  • Sewer$5.7 million
  • Parking$3.9 million
  • Housing$1.7 million
  • Other service charges$500 thousand

Amounts are by Census type of charge.

Federal tax money1.5%

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

From the federal government
1.5%$856 thousand

State tax money4.4%

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

From the state
4.4%$2.5 million

Fines and other2.9%

Fines
1.8%$992 thousand
Interest, rents and other
1.1%$628 thousand

Where it goes

Police, fire, courts and jails40%Running the government and other costs22%Roads, transit and parking13%Interest on debt6.5%Water, sewer, trash and utilities5.5%All other spending13%

What stands out

5.2%

of Princeton's spending goes to housing and community development.Most U.S. cities of 10,000 to 50,000 people spend nothing on this.

Spending by category100%

Police, fire, courts and jails
40%$11.4 million
What's in police, fire, courts and jailsPolice; fire protection and 2 more
  • Police$8.2 million
  • Fire protection$1.7 million
  • Courts and legal services$956 thousand
  • Inspections and regulation$548 thousand
Running the government and other costs
22%$6.1 million
What's in running the government and other costsCentral staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology); finance, tax collection and budgeting and 2 more
  • Central staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology)$1.9 million
  • Finance, tax collection and budgeting$1.7 million
  • Other and not broken out$1.6 million
  • Government buildings$901 thousand
Roads, transit and parking
13%$3.7 million
What's in roads, transit and parkingParking and roads and highways
  • Parking$1.9 million
  • Roads and highways$1.9 million
Interest on debt
6.5%$1.9 million
Water, sewer, trash and utilities
5.5%$1.6 million
What's in water, sewer, trash and utilitiesGarbage and solid waste
  • Garbage and solid waste$1.6 million
Housing and community development
5.2%$1.5 million
Health and hospitals
4.2%$1.2 million
What's in health and hospitalsPublic health
  • Public health$1.2 million
Parks, recreation and libraries
3.5%$986 thousand
What's in parks, recreation and librariesParks and recreation
  • Parks and recreation$986 thousand
Sent to other local governments
0.2%$53 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$53 thousand
Sources and moreWhere these numbers come from and what they cover

Municipality of Princeton. U.S. Census Bureau, 2022 Census of Governments, Finance, individual unit file, fiscal year ended December 31, 2021. The Census record for this government is from the 2022 survey, the newest on file.

What this covers. The money of Municipality of Princeton 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.