County government · Schenectady County, NY

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

In the latest recorded fiscal year (ended December 31, 2023), Schenectady County took in $418 million and spent $519 million.

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

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Where it comes from

County taxes56%State tax money25%Fees for services (college tuition, airport)11%Fines and other3.3%Federal tax money3.0%Local tax money2.2%

What stands out

39%

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

County taxes56%

Sales tax
39%$163 million
Property tax
16%$67.3 million
Other taxes
1.0%$4.1 million
What's in other taxesOther selective sales taxes; other licenses and 1 more
  • Other selective sales taxes$2.6 million
  • Other licenses$1.5 million
  • Other taxes not classified elsewhere$37 thousand

Amounts are by Census tax category.

Fees for services11%

Fees for services
11%$45.3 million
What's in fees for servicesOther service charges; college tuition and 3 more
  • Other service charges$38.8 million
  • College tuition$5.2 million
  • Airport$663 thousand
  • Parks and recreation$427 thousand
  • Garbage collection$204 thousand

Amounts are by Census type of charge.

Federal tax money3.0%

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

From the federal government
3.0%$12.4 million

State tax money25%

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

From the state
25%$103 million

Local tax money2.2%

Money passed on by the county or other local governments.

From other local governments
2.2%$9.2 million

Fines and other3.3%

Interest, rents and other
3.2%$13.6 million
Fines
<0.1%$112 thousand

Where it goes

Sent to other local governments21%Social services20%Health and hospitals19%Running the government and other costs15%Police, fire, courts and jails9.5%All other spending16%

What stands out

21%

of Schenectady 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
21%$107 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$72.8 million
  • Sent to the state government$34.2 million
Social services
20%$102 million
What's in social servicesOther public welfare and welfare institutions
  • Other public welfare$76.3 million
  • Welfare institutions$26.2 million
Health and hospitals
19%$99.4 million
What's in health and hospitalsPublic health
  • Public health$99.4 million
Running the government and other costs
15%$79.3 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$66.8 million
  • Central staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology)$5.4 million
  • Government buildings$4.0 million
  • Finance, tax collection and budgeting$3.1 million
Police, fire, courts and jails
9.5%$49.2 million
What's in police, fire, courts and jailsPrisons and jails; courts and legal services and 2 more
  • Prisons and jails$20.8 million
  • Courts and legal services$14.0 million
  • Police$8.2 million
  • Probation, parole and other corrections$6.3 million
Schools and colleges
8.4%$43.7 million
What's in schools and collegesColleges and universities and scholarships and other education subsidies
  • Colleges and universities$41.2 million
  • Scholarships and other education subsidies$2.6 million
Roads, transit and parking
4.3%$22.3 million
What's in roads, transit and parkingRoads and highways; airports and 1 more
  • Roads and highways$20.9 million
  • Airports$1.1 million
  • Public transit$312 thousand
Parks, recreation and libraries
1.9%$9.8 million
What's in parks, recreation and librariesLibraries and parks and recreation
  • Libraries$8.6 million
  • Parks and recreation$1.2 million
Interest on debt
0.8%$4.3 million
Environment and natural resources
0.1%$670 thousand
What's in environment and natural resourcesNatural resources, farming and conservation
  • Natural resources, farming and conservation$670 thousand
Water, sewer, trash and utilities
0.1%$548 thousand
What's in water, sewer, trash and utilitiesGarbage and solid waste
  • Garbage and solid waste$548 thousand
Housing and community development
<0.1%$195 thousand
Sources and moreWhere these numbers come from and what they cover

Schenectady 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 Schenectady 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.