City government · Dallas County, TX

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

In the latest recorded fiscal year (ended September 30, 2023), Garland took in $899 million and spent $962 million.

Latest recorded year: ended September 30, 2023Comes fromGoes to

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Where it comes from

Fees for services (electric power, water)65%City taxes25%Fines and other6.3%Federal tax money3.1%State tax money0.6%County and local tax money<0.1%

What stands out

65%

of Garland'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 taxes25%

Property tax
17%$154 million
Sales tax
5.5%$49.1 million
Other taxes
2.0%$18.2 million
What's in other taxesOther licenses; public utility taxes and 3 more
  • Other licenses$8.6 million
  • Public utility taxes$7.7 million
  • Other selective sales taxes$1.7 million
  • Amusement taxes$136 thousand
  • Alcoholic beverage licenses$29 thousand

Amounts are by Census tax category.

Fees for services65%

Fees for services
65%$588 million
What's in fees for servicesElectric power; water and 5 more
  • Electric power$370 million
  • Water$91.5 million
  • Sewer$55.3 million
  • Garbage collection$48.2 million
  • Other service charges$15.8 million
  • Parks and recreation$7.1 million
  • Airport$8 thousand

Amounts are by Census type of charge.

Federal tax money3.1%

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

From the federal government
3.1%$27.8 million

State tax money0.6%

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

From the state
0.6%$5.1 million

County and local tax money<0.1%

Money passed on by the county or other local governments.

From the county and other local governments
<0.1%$706 thousand

Fines and other6.3%

Interest, rents and other
5.7%$51.6 million
Fines
0.6%$5.4 million

Where it goes

Water, sewer, trash and utilities55%Police, fire, courts and jails14%Running the government and other costs12%Interest on debt6.1%Parks, recreation and libraries5.3%All other spending7.4%

What stands out

55%

of Garland'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
55%$531 million
What's in water, sewer, trash and utilitiesElectric power; water supply and 2 more
  • Electric power$366 million
  • Water supply$77.1 million
  • Sewer systems$56.4 million
  • Garbage and solid waste$30.9 million
Police, fire, courts and jails
14%$132 million
What's in police, fire, courts and jailsPolice; fire protection and 2 more
  • Police$69.9 million
  • Fire protection$50.9 million
  • Courts and legal services$6.4 million
  • Inspections and regulation$4.7 million
Running the government and other costs
12%$118 million
What's in running the government and other costsOther and not broken out; government buildings and 2 more
  • Other and not broken out$94.3 million
  • Government buildings$10.9 million
  • Central staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology)$8.2 million
  • Finance, tax collection and budgeting$5.1 million
Interest on debt
6.1%$58.5 million
What's in interest on debtInterest on electric power debt; interest on general debt and 1 more
  • Interest on electric power debt$31.8 million
  • Interest on general debt$21.7 million
  • Interest on water supply debt$4.9 million
Parks, recreation and libraries
5.3%$51.1 million
What's in parks, recreation and librariesParks and recreation and libraries
  • Parks and recreation$44.6 million
  • Libraries$6.5 million
Roads, transit and parking
4.4%$42.7 million
What's in roads, transit and parkingRoads and highways and airports
  • Roads and highways$42.6 million
  • Airports$31 thousand
Housing and community development
2.3%$22.6 million
Health and hospitals
0.6%$5.8 million
What's in health and hospitalsPublic health
  • Public health$5.8 million
Sources and moreWhere these numbers come from and what they cover

City of Garland. U.S. Census Bureau, 2024 Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, individual unit file, fiscal year ended September 30, 2023.

What this covers. The money of City of Garland 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.