City government · Erie County, PA

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

In the latest recorded fiscal year (ended December 31, 2023), Erie took in $190 million and spent $205 million.

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

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Where it comes from

City taxes44%Fees for services (sewer, garbage collection)21%Federal tax money13%State tax money9.3%County and local tax money8.9%Fines and other3.7%

What stands out

18%

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

City taxes44%

Property tax
23%$43.5 million
Individual income tax
18%$33.5 million
Other taxes
3.8%$7.3 million
What's in other taxesOccupation and business licenses; real estate and stock transfer taxes and 1 more
  • Occupation and business licenses$5.3 million
  • Real estate and stock transfer taxes$1.2 million
  • Public utility licenses$866 thousand

Amounts are by Census tax category.

Fees for services21%

Fees for services
21%$39.8 million
What's in fees for servicesSewer; garbage collection and 4 more
  • Sewer$25.3 million
  • Garbage collection$8.5 million
  • Water$2.6 million
  • Other service charges$2.4 million
  • Housing$591 thousand
  • Parks and recreation$526 thousand

Amounts are by Census type of charge.

Federal tax money13%

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

From the federal government
13%$24.7 million

State tax money9.3%

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

From the state
9.3%$17.7 million

County and local tax money8.9%

Money passed on by the county or other local governments.

From the county and other local governments
8.9%$16.9 million

Fines and other3.7%

Interest, rents and other
2.8%$5.4 million
Fines
0.8%$1.5 million

Where it goes

Running the government and other costs37%Police, fire, courts and jails21%Water, sewer, trash and utilities15%Roads, transit and parking12%Housing and community development12%All other spending3.3%

What stands out

12%

of Erie's spending goes to housing and community development.A typical U.S. city of 50,000+ people spends 1.4%.

Spending by category100%

Running the government and other costs
37%$75.0 million
What's in running the government and other costsOther and not broken out; finance, tax collection and budgeting and 2 more
  • Other and not broken out$34.4 million
  • Finance, tax collection and budgeting$29.4 million
  • Central staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology)$6.7 million
  • Government buildings$4.6 million
Police, fire, courts and jails
21%$42.4 million
What's in police, fire, courts and jailsPolice; fire protection and 2 more
  • Police$25.2 million
  • Fire protection$15.2 million
  • Inspections and regulation$1.7 million
  • Courts and legal services$189 thousand
Water, sewer, trash and utilities
15%$30.8 million
What's in water, sewer, trash and utilitiesSewer systems and garbage and solid waste
  • Sewer systems$22.6 million
  • Garbage and solid waste$8.2 million
Roads, transit and parking
12%$25.2 million
What's in roads, transit and parkingRoads and highways
  • Roads and highways$25.2 million
Housing and community development
12%$24.4 million
Parks, recreation and libraries
2.2%$4.6 million
What's in parks, recreation and librariesParks and recreation
  • Parks and recreation$4.6 million
Interest on debt
1.1%$2.2 million
Sources and moreWhere these numbers come from and what they cover

City of Erie. 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 Erie 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.