City government · Butler County, OH

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

In the latest recorded fiscal year (ended December 31, 2023), Hamilton took in $265 million and spent $290 million.

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

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Where it comes from

Fees for services (electric power, gas)60%City taxes25%State tax money7.3%Fines and other5.0%Federal tax money2.8%

What stands out

18%

of Hamilton's money comes from a personal income tax.Most U.S. cities of 50,000+ people get none.

City taxes25%

Individual income tax
18%$46.6 million
Property tax
6.3%$16.7 million
Other taxes
0.7%$1.9 million
What's in other taxesOther licenses
  • Other licenses$1.9 million

Amounts are by Census tax category.

Fees for services60%

Fees for services
60%$160 million
What's in fees for servicesElectric power; other service charges and 7 more
  • Electric power$87.6 million
  • Other service charges$17.3 million
  • Gas$16.2 million
  • Water$16.1 million
  • Sewer$13.5 million
  • Garbage collection$5.1 million
  • Parks and recreation$2.4 million
  • Road charges$1.3 million
  • Parking$291 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%$7.3 million

State tax money7.3%

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

From the state
7.3%$19.3 million

Fines and other5.0%

Interest, rents and other
4.7%$12.3 million
Fines
0.4%$950 thousand

Where it goes

Water, sewer, trash and utilities42%Running the government and other costs29%Police, fire, courts and jails21%Roads, transit and parking2.9%Interest on debt2.6%All other spending2.9%

What stands out

42%

of Hamilton's spending goes to water, sewer, trash and other utilities.A typical U.S. city of 50,000+ people spends 20%.

Spending by category100%

Water, sewer, trash and utilities
42%$122 million
What's in water, sewer, trash and utilitiesElectric power; water supply and 3 more
  • Electric power$76.6 million
  • Water supply$15.9 million
  • Gas supply$15.2 million
  • Sewer systems$9.3 million
  • Garbage and solid waste$5.0 million
Running the government and other costs
29%$83.5 million
What's in running the government and other costsOther and not broken out; finance, tax collection and budgeting and 1 more
  • Other and not broken out$68.9 million
  • Finance, tax collection and budgeting$13.2 million
  • Central staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology)$1.4 million
Police, fire, courts and jails
21%$60.6 million
What's in police, fire, courts and jailsFire protection; police and 1 more
  • Fire protection$37.9 million
  • Police$19.4 million
  • Courts and legal services$3.3 million
Roads, transit and parking
2.9%$8.4 million
What's in roads, transit and parkingRoads and highways and parking
  • Roads and highways$7.9 million
  • Parking$503 thousand
Interest on debt
2.6%$7.4 million
What's in interest on debtInterest on general debt; interest on electric power debt and 2 more
  • Interest on general debt$5.2 million
  • Interest on electric power debt$1.2 million
  • Interest on water supply debt$860 thousand
  • Interest on gas supply debt$150 thousand
Housing and community development
1.6%$4.6 million
Parks, recreation and libraries
0.9%$2.7 million
What's in parks, recreation and librariesParks and recreation
  • Parks and recreation$2.7 million
Health and hospitals
0.3%$985 thousand
What's in health and hospitalsPublic health
  • Public health$985 thousand
Sources and moreWhere these numbers come from and what they cover

City of Hamilton. 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 Hamilton 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.