City government · Cass County, ND

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

In the latest recorded fiscal year (ended December 31, 2023), Fargo took in $445 million and spent $462 million.

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

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Where it comes from

Fees for services (water, sewer)29%City taxes29%State tax money17%Fines and other17%Federal tax money8.7%

What stands out

17%

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

City taxes29%

Sales tax
16%$69.3 million
Property tax
8.7%$38.7 million
Other taxes
4.3%$19.1 million
What's in other taxesOther licenses; public utility taxes and 2 more
  • Other licenses$6.8 million
  • Public utility taxes$6.4 million
  • Other selective sales taxes$3.3 million
  • Other taxes not classified elsewhere$2.6 million

Amounts are by Census tax category.

Fees for services29%

Fees for services
29%$129 million
What's in fees for servicesWater; sewer and 9 more
  • Water$29.1 million
  • Sewer$24.2 million
  • Garbage collection$18.8 million
  • Other service charges$15.6 million
  • Airport$15.0 million
  • Parks and recreation$13.2 million
  • Road charges$3.7 million
  • Transit fares$3.0 million
  • Parking$2.5 million
  • Parks, land and natural resources$2.5 million
  • Housing$1.2 million

Amounts are by Census type of charge.

Federal tax money8.7%

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

From the federal government
8.7%$38.5 million

State tax money17%

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

From the state
17%$75.2 million

County and local tax money<0.1%

Money passed on by the county or other local governments.

From the county and other local governments
<0.1%$72 thousand

Fines and other17%

Interest, rents and other
16%$73.3 million
Fines
0.3%$1.5 million

Where it goes

Water, sewer, trash and utilities26%Running the government and other costs25%Roads, transit and parking20%Police, fire, courts and jails12%Interest on debt6.2%All other spending11%

What stands out

20%

of Fargo's spending goes to roads, transit and parking.A typical U.S. city of 50,000+ people spends 10%.

Spending by category100%

Water, sewer, trash and utilities
26%$120 million
What's in water, sewer, trash and utilitiesSewer systems; water supply and 1 more
  • Sewer systems$60.1 million
  • Water supply$44.7 million
  • Garbage and solid waste$15.3 million
Running the government and other costs
25%$114 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$100 million
  • Central staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology)$6.7 million
  • Government buildings$3.6 million
  • Finance, tax collection and budgeting$3.6 million
Roads, transit and parking
20%$93.7 million
What's in roads, transit and parkingRoads and highways; airports and 2 more
  • Roads and highways$48.2 million
  • Airports$32.2 million
  • Public transit$11.9 million
  • Parking$1.4 million
Police, fire, courts and jails
12%$55.3 million
What's in police, fire, courts and jailsPolice; fire protection and 3 more
  • Police$28.1 million
  • Fire protection$21.1 million
  • Inspections and regulation$2.8 million
  • Courts and legal services$2.8 million
  • Prisons and jails$495 thousand
Interest on debt
6.2%$28.5 million
What's in interest on debtInterest on general debt and interest on water supply debt
  • Interest on general debt$26.0 million
  • Interest on water supply debt$2.5 million
Parks, recreation and libraries
5.1%$23.5 million
What's in parks, recreation and librariesParks and recreation and libraries
  • Parks and recreation$17.9 million
  • Libraries$5.6 million
Health and hospitals
3.7%$17.3 million
What's in health and hospitalsPublic health
  • Public health$17.3 million
Housing and community development
1.2%$5.5 million
Environment and natural resources
0.8%$3.6 million
What's in environment and natural resourcesNatural resources, farming and conservation
  • Natural resources, farming and conservation$3.6 million
Social services
<0.1%$316 thousand
What's in social servicesOther public welfare
  • Other public welfare$316 thousand
Sources and moreWhere these numbers come from and what they cover

City of Fargo. 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 City of Fargo 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.