County government · Berks County, PA

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

In the latest recorded fiscal year (ended December 31, 2023), Berks County took in $637 million and spent $593 million.

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

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Where it comes from

State tax money49%County taxes24%Fees for services (airport)22%Fines and other5.3%

What stands out

49%

of Berks County's money comes from state tax money.A typical U.S. county of 250,000+ people gets 19%.

County taxes24%

Property tax
24%$152 million
Other taxes
0.5%$3.1 million
What's in other taxesOther selective sales taxes
  • Other selective sales taxes$3.1 million

Amounts are by Census tax category.

Fees for services22%

Fees for services
22%$137 million
What's in fees for servicesOther service charges and airport
  • Other service charges$134 million
  • Airport$3.0 million

Amounts are by Census type of charge.

Federal tax money<0.1%

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

From the federal government
<0.1%$115 thousand

State tax money49%

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

From the state
49%$310 million

Fines and other5.3%

Interest, rents and other
4.9%$31.4 million
Fines
0.3%$2.2 million

Where it goes

Social services43%Police, fire, courts and jails25%Running the government and other costs14%Health and hospitals13%Parks, recreation and libraries2.0%All other spending3.0%

What stands out

43%

of Berks County's spending goes to social services.A typical U.S. county of 250,000+ people spends 4.3%.

Spending by category100%

Social services
43%$257 million
What's in social servicesOther public welfare and welfare institutions
  • Other public welfare$211 million
  • Welfare institutions$46.1 million
Police, fire, courts and jails
25%$148 million
What's in police, fire, courts and jailsCourts and legal services; prisons and jails and 2 more
  • Courts and legal services$62.6 million
  • Prisons and jails$46.6 million
  • Probation, parole and other corrections$27.3 million
  • Police$11.7 million
Running the government and other costs
14%$81.4 million
What's in running the government and other costsCentral staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology); government buildings and 2 more
  • Central staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology)$30.3 million
  • Government buildings$21.0 million
  • Finance, tax collection and budgeting$15.7 million
  • Other and not broken out$14.4 million
Health and hospitals
13%$76.9 million
What's in health and hospitalsPublic health
  • Public health$76.9 million
Parks, recreation and libraries
2.0%$11.6 million
What's in parks, recreation and librariesLibraries and parks and recreation
  • Libraries$5.9 million
  • Parks and recreation$5.7 million
Housing and community development
1.5%$8.7 million
Environment and natural resources
0.6%$3.9 million
What's in environment and natural resourcesNatural resources, farming and conservation
  • Natural resources, farming and conservation$3.9 million
Roads, transit and parking
0.6%$3.5 million
What's in roads, transit and parkingRoads and highways and airports
  • Roads and highways$2.5 million
  • Airports$1.0 million
Interest on debt
0.2%$1.3 million
Water, sewer, trash and utilities
<0.1%$291 thousand
What's in water, sewer, trash and utilitiesGarbage and solid waste
  • Garbage and solid waste$291 thousand
Sources and moreWhere these numbers come from and what they cover

Berks 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 Berks 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.