City government · Travis County, TX

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

In the latest recorded fiscal year (ended September 30, 2023), Austin took in $5.56 billion and spent $5.61 billion.

Latest recorded year: ended September 30, 2023Estimated by the U.S. Census BureauComes fromGoes to

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Where it comes from

Fees for services (electric power, sewer)60%City taxes31%Fines and other5.4%Federal tax money2.2%State tax money0.8%County and local tax money0.4%

What stands out

60%

of Austin's money comes from fees for services such as water, sewer and parking.A typical U.S. city of 50,000+ people gets 30%.

City taxes31%

Property tax
19%$1.06 billion
Sales tax
7.1%$393 million
Other taxes
5.3%$295 million
What's in other taxesOther selective sales taxes; other licenses and 2 more
  • Other selective sales taxes$141 million
  • Other licenses$119 million
  • Public utility taxes$34.7 million
  • Alcoholic beverage licenses$550 thousand

Amounts are by Census tax category.

Fees for services60%

Fees for services
60%$3.32 billion
What's in fees for servicesElectric power; sewer and 8 more
  • Electric power$1.76 billion
  • Sewer$337 million
  • Airport$337 million
  • Water$325 million
  • Other service charges$242 million
  • Garbage collection$150 million
  • Parks, land and natural resources$108 million
  • Parks and recreation$54.0 million
  • Housing$928 thousand
  • Parking$70 thousand

Amounts are by Census type of charge.

Federal tax money2.2%

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

From the federal government
2.2%$124 million

State tax money0.8%

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

From the state
0.8%$42.9 million

County and local tax money0.4%

Money passed on by the county or other local governments.

From the county and other local governments
0.4%$24.2 million

Fines and other5.4%

Interest, rents and other
5.1%$285 million
Fines
0.2%$13.7 million

Where it goes

Water, sewer, trash and utilities46%Police, fire, courts and jails14%Roads, transit and parking14%Running the government and other costs6.7%Parks, recreation and libraries5.5%All other spending14%

What stands out

46%

of Austin'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
46%$2.56 billion
What's in water, sewer, trash and utilitiesElectric power; water supply and 2 more
  • Electric power$1.81 billion
  • Water supply$320 million
  • Sewer systems$282 million
  • Garbage and solid waste$155 million
Police, fire, courts and jails
14%$792 million
What's in police, fire, courts and jailsPolice; fire protection and 2 more
  • Police$394 million
  • Fire protection$250 million
  • Inspections and regulation$89.7 million
  • Courts and legal services$59.3 million
Roads, transit and parking
14%$783 million
What's in roads, transit and parkingRoads and highways; airports and 1 more
  • Roads and highways$569 million
  • Airports$215 million
  • Parking$4 thousand
Running the government and other costs
6.7%$377 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$229 million
  • Central staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology)$77.6 million
  • Finance, tax collection and budgeting$65.4 million
  • Other government-run businesses$5.2 million
Parks, recreation and libraries
5.5%$307 million
What's in parks, recreation and librariesParks and recreation and libraries
  • Parks and recreation$244 million
  • Libraries$63.4 million
Interest on debt
5.0%$282 million
What's in interest on debtInterest on general debt; interest on water supply debt and 1 more
  • Interest on general debt$129 million
  • Interest on water supply debt$81.4 million
  • Interest on electric power debt$71.9 million
Health and hospitals
4.5%$255 million
What's in health and hospitalsPublic health
  • Public health$255 million
Environment and natural resources
2.5%$141 million
What's in environment and natural resourcesNatural resources, farming and conservation
  • Natural resources, farming and conservation$141 million
Housing and community development
1.9%$104 million
Sent to other local governments
<0.1%$482 thousand
What's in sent to other local governmentsSent to local governments: other and not broken out
  • Sent to local governments: other and not broken out$482 thousand
Social services
<0.1%$193 thousand
What's in social servicesOther public welfare
  • Other public welfare$193 thousand
Sources and moreWhere these numbers come from and what they cover

City of Austin. U.S. Census Bureau, 2024 Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, individual unit file, fiscal year ended September 30, 2023. Most of this government's figures were estimated by the U.S. Census Bureau from a sample; the government did not report them itself.

What this covers. The money of City of Austin 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.