County government · Erie County, NY

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

In the latest recorded fiscal year (ended December 31, 2023), Erie County took in $3.14 billion and spent $3.29 billion.

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

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Where it comes from

County taxes52%Fees for services (hospital bills, sewer)26%State tax money15%Fines and other3.8%Federal tax money2.5%Local tax money0.8%

What stands out

41%

of Erie County's money comes from sales tax.A typical U.S. county of 250,000+ people gets 2.7%.

County taxes52%

Sales tax
41%$1.27 billion
Property tax
11%$341 million
Other taxes
1.0%$30.1 million
What's in other taxesOther selective sales taxes; motor vehicle licenses and 2 more
  • Other selective sales taxes$13.6 million
  • Motor vehicle licenses$9.9 million
  • Other taxes not classified elsewhere$4.1 million
  • Other licenses$2.6 million

Amounts are by Census tax category.

Fees for services26%

Fees for services
26%$804 million
What's in fees for servicesHospital bills; other service charges and 5 more
  • Hospital bills$690 million
  • Other service charges$47.7 million
  • Sewer$31.5 million
  • College tuition$22.8 million
  • Electric power$7.8 million
  • Gas$2.5 million
  • Parks and recreation$1.9 million

Amounts are by Census type of charge.

Federal tax money2.5%

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

From the federal government
2.5%$78.8 million

State tax money15%

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

From the state
15%$468 million

Local tax money0.8%

Money passed on by the county or other local governments.

From other local governments
0.8%$25.0 million

Fines and other3.8%

Interest, rents and other
3.8%$120 million
Fines
<0.1%$519 thousand

Where it goes

Health and hospitals32%Sent to other local governments26%Social services13%Police, fire, courts and jails8.7%Running the government and other costs4.7%All other spending15%

What stands out

26%

of Erie County's spending goes to local governments.Most U.S. counties of 250,000+ people spend nothing on this.

Spending by category100%

Health and hospitals
32%$1.07 billion
What's in health and hospitalsHospitals and public health
  • Hospitals$861 million
  • Public health$205 million
Sent to other local governments
26%$867 million
What's in sent to other local governmentsSent to local governments: other and not broken out and sent to the state government
  • Sent to local governments: other and not broken out$665 million
  • Sent to the state government$202 million
Social services
13%$427 million
What's in social servicesOther public welfare
  • Other public welfare$427 million
Police, fire, courts and jails
8.7%$285 million
What's in police, fire, courts and jailsPrisons and jails; police and 3 more
  • Prisons and jails$114 million
  • Police$79.6 million
  • Courts and legal services$59.1 million
  • Probation, parole and other corrections$32.2 million
  • Fire protection$342 thousand
Running the government and other costs
4.7%$153 million
What's in running the government and other costsOther and not broken out; central staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology) and 2 more
  • Other and not broken out$103 million
  • Central staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology)$22.7 million
  • Government buildings$19.3 million
  • Finance, tax collection and budgeting$8.6 million
Parks, recreation and libraries
3.5%$115 million
What's in parks, recreation and librariesParks and recreation and libraries
  • Parks and recreation$115 million
  • Libraries$196 thousand
Water, sewer, trash and utilities
3.4%$111 million
What's in water, sewer, trash and utilitiesSewer systems; electric power and 1 more
  • Sewer systems$85.4 million
  • Electric power$21.3 million
  • Gas supply$4.3 million
Roads, transit and parking
3.3%$110 million
What's in roads, transit and parkingRoads and highways and public transit
  • Roads and highways$78.6 million
  • Public transit$31.0 million
Schools and colleges
2.4%$79.6 million
What's in schools and collegesColleges and universities and scholarships and other education subsidies
  • Colleges and universities$72.9 million
  • Scholarships and other education subsidies$6.7 million
Interest on debt
2.0%$67.3 million
Housing and community development
0.2%$6.3 million
Sources and moreWhere these numbers come from and what they cover

Erie 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 Erie 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.