County government · Ontario County, NY

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

In the latest recorded fiscal year (ended December 31, 2023), Ontario County took in $368 million and spent $360 million.

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

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Where it comes from

County taxes65%State tax money14%Fees for services (college tuition, sewer)8.8%Fines and other5.5%Local tax money4.1%Federal tax money2.8%

What stands out

44%

of Ontario County's money comes from sales tax.A typical U.S. county of 50,000 to 250,000 people gets 4.2%.

County taxes65%

Sales tax
44%$161 million
Property tax
20%$74.0 million
Other taxes
0.5%$1.7 million
What's in other taxesOther selective sales taxes; other taxes not classified elsewhere and 1 more
  • Other selective sales taxes$1.6 million
  • Other taxes not classified elsewhere$56 thousand
  • Other licenses$19 thousand

Amounts are by Census tax category.

Fees for services8.8%

Fees for services
8.8%$32.4 million
What's in fees for servicesCollege tuition; other service charges and 2 more
  • College tuition$16.7 million
  • Other service charges$11.9 million
  • Sewer$3.7 million
  • Parks and recreation$75 thousand

Amounts are by Census type of charge.

Federal tax money2.8%

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

From the federal government
2.8%$10.1 million

State tax money14%

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

From the state
14%$52.8 million

Local tax money4.1%

Money passed on by the county or other local governments.

From other local governments
4.1%$15.1 million

Fines and other5.5%

Interest, rents and other
5.4%$19.9 million
Fines
<0.1%$165 thousand

Where it goes

Sent to other local governments32%Schools and colleges16%Police, fire, courts and jails15%Running the government and other costs12%Social services11%All other spending15%

What stands out

32%

of Ontario County's spending goes to local governments.Most U.S. counties of 50,000 to 250,000 people spend nothing on this.

Spending by category100%

Sent to other local governments
32%$116 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$101 million
  • Sent to the state government$14.9 million
Schools and colleges
16%$55.9 million
What's in schools and collegesColleges and universities and scholarships and other education subsidies
  • Colleges and universities$53.0 million
  • Scholarships and other education subsidies$2.9 million
Police, fire, courts and jails
15%$54.5 million
What's in police, fire, courts and jailsPolice; courts and legal services and 3 more
  • Police$17.7 million
  • Courts and legal services$16.1 million
  • Prisons and jails$15.0 million
  • Probation, parole and other corrections$5.3 million
  • Fire protection$332 thousand
Running the government and other costs
12%$41.7 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$22.0 million
  • Central staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology)$8.9 million
  • Finance, tax collection and budgeting$5.6 million
  • Government buildings$5.1 million
Social services
11%$38.8 million
What's in social servicesOther public welfare
  • Other public welfare$38.8 million
Roads, transit and parking
6.5%$23.3 million
What's in roads, transit and parkingRoads and highways and public transit
  • Roads and highways$23.1 million
  • Public transit$183 thousand
Health and hospitals
5.5%$19.6 million
What's in health and hospitalsPublic health
  • Public health$19.6 million
Water, sewer, trash and utilities
2.3%$8.4 million
What's in water, sewer, trash and utilitiesSewer systems and garbage and solid waste
  • Sewer systems$7.7 million
  • Garbage and solid waste$758 thousand
Parks, recreation and libraries
0.2%$700 thousand
What's in parks, recreation and librariesParks and recreation
  • Parks and recreation$700 thousand
Interest on debt
0.2%$689 thousand
Housing and community development
0.1%$464 thousand
Sources and moreWhere these numbers come from and what they cover

Ontario 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 Ontario 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.