City government · Monroe County, NY

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

In the latest recorded fiscal year (ended June 30, 2024), Rochester took in $1.69 billion and spent $1.83 billion.

Latest recorded year: ended June 30, 2024Comes fromGoes to

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Where it comes from

State tax money59%County and local tax money14%Fines and other9.1%City taxes7.8%Fees for services (water, garbage collection)5.8%Federal tax money4.8%

What stands out

59%

of Rochester's money comes from state tax money.A typical U.S. city of 50,000+ people gets 6.4%.

City taxes7.8%

Property tax
6.7%$113 million
Other taxes
1.2%$19.6 million
What's in other taxesPublic utility taxes; other licenses and 4 more
  • Public utility taxes$11.0 million
  • Other licenses$7.4 million
  • Other selective sales taxes$925 thousand
  • Occupation and business licenses$180 thousand
  • Other taxes not classified elsewhere$38 thousand
  • Amusement licenses$6 thousand

Amounts are by Census tax category.

Fees for services5.8%

Fees for services
5.8%$98.2 million
What's in fees for servicesWater; garbage collection and 6 more
  • Water$40.7 million
  • Garbage collection$30.5 million
  • Other service charges$15.1 million
  • Parking$8.5 million
  • Parks and recreation$2.8 million
  • Other school charges$533 thousand
  • School lunches$48 thousand
  • School tuition and transportation$31 thousand

Amounts are by Census type of charge.

Federal tax money4.8%

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

From the federal government
4.8%$81.2 million

State tax money59%

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

From the state
59%$995 million

County and local tax money14%

Money passed on by the county or other local governments.

From the county and other local governments
14%$229 million

Fines and other9.1%

Interest, rents and other
9.0%$152 million
Fines
0.1%$2.5 million

Where it goes

Schools and colleges53%Running the government and other costs21%Police, fire, courts and jails11%Water, sewer, trash and utilities5.4%Roads, transit and parking3.2%All other spending6.8%

What stands out

53%

of Rochester's spending goes to schools and colleges.Most U.S. cities of 50,000+ people spend nothing on this.

Spending by category100%

Schools and colleges
53%$970 million
What's in schools and collegesElementary and secondary schools
  • Elementary and secondary schools$970 million
Running the government and other costs
21%$382 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$345 million
  • Central staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology)$21.3 million
  • Government buildings$8.8 million
  • Finance, tax collection and budgeting$6.5 million
Police, fire, courts and jails
11%$193 million
What's in police, fire, courts and jailsPolice; fire protection and 2 more
  • Police$107 million
  • Fire protection$63.9 million
  • Inspections and regulation$18.6 million
  • Courts and legal services$3.5 million
Water, sewer, trash and utilities
5.4%$98.5 million
What's in water, sewer, trash and utilitiesGarbage and solid waste; water supply and 1 more
  • Garbage and solid waste$53.9 million
  • Water supply$44.1 million
  • Sewer systems$533 thousand
Roads, transit and parking
3.2%$58.5 million
What's in roads, transit and parkingRoads and highways; parking and 1 more
  • Roads and highways$44.4 million
  • Parking$10.0 million
  • Public transit$4.1 million
Parks, recreation and libraries
2.5%$45.8 million
What's in parks, recreation and librariesParks and recreation and libraries
  • Parks and recreation$26.1 million
  • Libraries$19.7 million
Sent to other local governments
2.3%$41.9 million
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$41.9 million
Interest on debt
1.0%$18.1 million
Housing and community development
0.9%$16.7 million
Health and hospitals
<0.1%$1.1 million
What's in health and hospitalsPublic health
  • Public health$1.1 million
Sources and moreWhere these numbers come from and what they cover

City of Rochester. U.S. Census Bureau, 2024 Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, individual unit file, fiscal year ended June 30, 2024.

What this covers. The money of City of Rochester 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.