County government · Onondaga County, NY

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

In the latest recorded fiscal year (ended December 31, 2023), Onondaga County took in $1.31 billion and spent $1.42 billion.

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

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Where it comes from

County taxes60%State tax money19%Fees for services (sewer, college tuition)10%Fines and other4.8%Federal tax money3.1%Local tax money2.5%

What stands out

46%

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

County taxes60%

Sales tax
46%$608 million
Property tax
12%$161 million
Other taxes
1.2%$15.5 million
What's in other taxesOther taxes not classified elsewhere; other selective sales taxes and 1 more
  • Other taxes not classified elsewhere$8.5 million
  • Other selective sales taxes$6.4 million
  • Other licenses$561 thousand

Amounts are by Census tax category.

Fees for services10%

Fees for services
10%$136 million
What's in fees for servicesSewer; other service charges and 3 more
  • Sewer$90.6 million
  • Other service charges$25.5 million
  • College tuition$17.6 million
  • Parks and recreation$2.6 million
  • Parking$184 thousand

Amounts are by Census type of charge.

Federal tax money3.1%

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

From the federal government
3.1%$40.7 million

State tax money19%

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

From the state
19%$254 million

Local tax money2.5%

Money passed on by the county or other local governments.

From other local governments
2.5%$32.8 million

Fines and other4.8%

Interest, rents and other
4.8%$63.0 million
Fines
<0.1%$411 thousand

Where it goes

Social services21%Running the government and other costs20%Sent to other local governments17%Police, fire, courts and jails12%Health and hospitals7.7%All other spending22%

What stands out

17%

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

Spending by category100%

Social services
21%$304 million
What's in social servicesOther public welfare
  • Other public welfare$304 million
Running the government and other costs
20%$281 million
What's in running the government and other costsOther and not broken out; government buildings and 2 more
  • Other and not broken out$235 million
  • Government buildings$20.2 million
  • Central staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology)$13.1 million
  • Finance, tax collection and budgeting$12.2 million
Sent to other local governments
17%$248 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$248 million
  • Sent to the state government$6 thousand
Police, fire, courts and jails
12%$171 million
What's in police, fire, courts and jailsPrisons and jails; police and 2 more
  • Prisons and jails$68.2 million
  • Police$47.5 million
  • Probation, parole and other corrections$29.8 million
  • Courts and legal services$25.6 million
Health and hospitals
7.7%$109 million
What's in health and hospitalsPublic health
  • Public health$109 million
Water, sewer, trash and utilities
6.6%$93.8 million
What's in water, sewer, trash and utilitiesSewer systems; garbage and solid waste and 1 more
  • Sewer systems$62.7 million
  • Garbage and solid waste$30.8 million
  • Water supply$275 thousand
Schools and colleges
4.4%$63.2 million
What's in schools and collegesColleges and universities and scholarships and other education subsidies
  • Colleges and universities$57.9 million
  • Scholarships and other education subsidies$5.3 million
Roads, transit and parking
4.4%$62.5 million
What's in roads, transit and parkingRoads and highways and public transit
  • Roads and highways$60.0 million
  • Public transit$2.5 million
Parks, recreation and libraries
3.8%$53.8 million
What's in parks, recreation and librariesParks and recreation and libraries
  • Parks and recreation$41.2 million
  • Libraries$12.6 million
Interest on debt
1.8%$25.1 million
Housing and community development
0.6%$8.6 million
Environment and natural resources
0.2%$2.6 million
What's in environment and natural resourcesNatural resources, farming and conservation
  • Natural resources, farming and conservation$2.6 million
Sources and moreWhere these numbers come from and what they cover

Onondaga 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 Onondaga 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.