Town government · Denton County, TX

Little Elm's money: where it comes from and where it goes

In the latest recorded fiscal year (ended September 30, 2023), Little Elm took in $133 million and spent $121 million.

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

See every government that serves your ZIP

Where it comes from

Town taxes45%Fees for services (water, sewer)26%Fines and other21%County and local tax money4.2%Federal tax money2.8%State tax money0.7%

What stands out

20%

of Little Elm's money comes from interest, rents and other revenue.A typical U.S. city of 50,000+ people gets 6.9%.

Town taxes45%

Property tax
29%$38.4 million
Sales tax
11%$14.4 million
Other taxes
5.5%$7.3 million
What's in other taxesOther licenses and public utility taxes
  • Other licenses$4.9 million
  • Public utility taxes$2.4 million

Amounts are by Census tax category.

Fees for services26%

Fees for services
26%$34.8 million
What's in fees for servicesWater; sewer and 3 more
  • Water$13.8 million
  • Sewer$8.2 million
  • Parks and recreation$5.6 million
  • Garbage collection$3.8 million
  • Other service charges$3.4 million

Amounts are by Census type of charge.

Federal tax money2.8%

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

From the federal government
2.8%$3.8 million

State tax money0.7%

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

From the state
0.7%$895 thousand

County and local tax money4.2%

Money passed on by the county or other local governments.

From the county and other local governments
4.2%$5.6 million

Fines and other21%

Interest, rents and other
20%$26.5 million
Fines
0.8%$1.1 million

Where it goes

Running the government and other costs40%Police, fire, courts and jails25%Water, sewer, trash and utilities20%Parks, recreation and libraries7.5%Roads, transit and parking3.6%All other spending3.3%

What stands out

40%

of Little Elm's spending goes to running the government and other costs.A typical U.S. city of 50,000+ people spends 16%.

Spending by category100%

Running the government and other costs
40%$48.1 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$43.2 million
  • Finance, tax collection and budgeting$2.1 million
  • Central staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology)$1.8 million
  • Government buildings$997 thousand
Police, fire, courts and jails
25%$30.7 million
What's in police, fire, courts and jailsPolice; fire protection and 2 more
  • Police$14.7 million
  • Fire protection$12.0 million
  • Inspections and regulation$3.4 million
  • Courts and legal services$619 thousand
Water, sewer, trash and utilities
20%$24.3 million
What's in water, sewer, trash and utilitiesWater supply; sewer systems and 1 more
  • Water supply$18.2 million
  • Sewer systems$3.1 million
  • Garbage and solid waste$3.0 million
Parks, recreation and libraries
7.5%$9.0 million
What's in parks, recreation and librariesParks and recreation and libraries
  • Parks and recreation$8.3 million
  • Libraries$682 thousand
Roads, transit and parking
3.6%$4.3 million
What's in roads, transit and parkingRoads and highways
  • Roads and highways$4.3 million
Interest on debt
3.0%$3.6 million
What's in interest on debtInterest on general debt and interest on water supply debt
  • Interest on general debt$2.4 million
  • Interest on water supply debt$1.3 million
Health and hospitals
0.3%$387 thousand
What's in health and hospitalsPublic health
  • Public health$387 thousand
Sources and moreWhere these numbers come from and what they cover

Town of Little Elm. 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 Town of Little Elm 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.