County government · Bucks County, PA

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

In the latest recorded fiscal year (ended December 31, 2023), Bucks County took in $696 million and spent $718 million.

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

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Where it comes from

State tax money55%County taxes30%Fees for services (housing)9.5%Fines and other5.1%

What stands out

55%

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

County taxes30%

Property tax
30%$212 million
Other taxes
<0.1%$255 thousand
What's in other taxesOther selective sales taxes
  • Other selective sales taxes$255 thousand

Amounts are by Census tax category.

Fees for services9.5%

Fees for services
9.5%$66.2 million
What's in fees for servicesOther service charges and housing
  • Other service charges$60.5 million
  • Housing$5.7 million

Amounts are by Census type of charge.

State tax money55%

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

From the state
55%$383 million

Fines and other5.1%

Fines
2.7%$18.6 million
Interest, rents and other
2.4%$16.6 million

Where it goes

Social services48%Police, fire, courts and jails28%Running the government and other costs9.7%Health and hospitals8.9%Parks, recreation and libraries2.0%All other spending3.6%

What stands out

48%

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

Spending by category100%

Social services
48%$346 million
What's in social servicesOther public welfare and welfare institutions
  • Other public welfare$301 million
  • Welfare institutions$45.2 million
Police, fire, courts and jails
28%$199 million
What's in police, fire, courts and jailsCourts and legal services; prisons and jails and 4 more
  • Courts and legal services$85.5 million
  • Prisons and jails$57.4 million
  • Probation, parole and other corrections$30.6 million
  • Police$24.1 million
  • Inspections and regulation$732 thousand
  • Fire protection$464 thousand
Running the government and other costs
9.7%$69.3 million
What's in running the government and other costsCentral staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology); other and not broken out and 2 more
  • Central staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology)$25.0 million
  • Other and not broken out$22.1 million
  • Government buildings$17.6 million
  • Finance, tax collection and budgeting$4.6 million
Health and hospitals
8.9%$64.1 million
What's in health and hospitalsPublic health
  • Public health$64.1 million
Parks, recreation and libraries
2.0%$14.2 million
What's in parks, recreation and librariesLibraries and parks and recreation
  • Libraries$8.2 million
  • Parks and recreation$6.0 million
Housing and community development
1.8%$12.7 million
Roads, transit and parking
1.4%$9.7 million
What's in roads, transit and parkingRoads and highways
  • Roads and highways$9.7 million
Interest on debt
0.4%$3.0 million
Environment and natural resources
<0.1%$518 thousand
What's in environment and natural resourcesNatural resources, farming and conservation
  • Natural resources, farming and conservation$518 thousand
Water, sewer, trash and utilities
<0.1%$225 thousand
What's in water, sewer, trash and utilitiesGarbage and solid waste
  • Garbage and solid waste$225 thousand
Sources and moreWhere these numbers come from and what they cover

Bucks 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 Bucks 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.