County government · Polk County, TX

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

In the latest recorded fiscal year (ended September 30, 2021), Polk County took in $38.4 million and spent $29.1 million.

Latest recorded year: ended September 30, 2021Comes fromGoes to

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Where it comes from

County taxes78%Fees for services (garbage collection, sewer)9.6%Fines and other8.7%Federal tax money3.2%State tax money0.3%

What stands out

68%

of Polk County's money comes from property tax.A typical U.S. county of 50,000 to 250,000 people gets 28%.

County taxes78%

Property tax
68%$26.3 million
Sales tax
8.3%$3.2 million
Other taxes
1.5%$569 thousand
What's in other taxesMotor vehicle licenses and alcoholic beverage licenses
  • Motor vehicle licenses$563 thousand
  • Alcoholic beverage licenses$6 thousand

Amounts are by Census tax category.

Fees for services9.6%

Fees for services
9.6%$3.7 million
What's in fees for servicesOther service charges; garbage collection and 1 more
  • Other service charges$2.9 million
  • Garbage collection$598 thousand
  • Sewer$229 thousand

Amounts are by Census type of charge.

Federal tax money3.2%

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

From the federal government
3.2%$1.2 million

State tax money0.3%

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

From the state
0.3%$117 thousand

Fines and other8.7%

Interest, rents and other
7.1%$2.7 million
Fines
1.6%$610 thousand

Where it goes

Police, fire, courts and jails42%Roads, transit and parking24%Running the government and other costs24%Health and hospitals3.0%Social services2.5%All other spending4.4%

What stands out

24%

of Polk County's spending goes to roads, transit and parking.A typical U.S. county of 50,000 to 250,000 people spends 8.9%.

Spending by category100%

Police, fire, courts and jails
42%$12.3 million
What's in police, fire, courts and jailsPolice; courts and legal services and 3 more
  • Police$4.7 million
  • Courts and legal services$4.1 million
  • Prisons and jails$3.1 million
  • Fire protection$198 thousand
  • Inspections and regulation$111 thousand
Roads, transit and parking
24%$7.0 million
What's in roads, transit and parkingRoads and highways
  • Roads and highways$7.0 million
Running the government and other costs
24%$6.9 million
What's in running the government and other costsCentral staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology); government buildings and 2 more
  • Central staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology)$3.0 million
  • Government buildings$2.0 million
  • Finance, tax collection and budgeting$1.4 million
  • Other and not broken out$443 thousand
Health and hospitals
3.0%$858 thousand
What's in health and hospitalsPublic health
  • Public health$858 thousand
Social services
2.5%$727 thousand
What's in social servicesWelfare institutions
  • Welfare institutions$727 thousand
Interest on debt
2.1%$604 thousand
Water, sewer, trash and utilities
1.7%$506 thousand
What's in water, sewer, trash and utilitiesGarbage and solid waste
  • Garbage and solid waste$506 thousand
Environment and natural resources
0.4%$117 thousand
What's in environment and natural resourcesNatural resources, farming and conservation
  • Natural resources, farming and conservation$117 thousand
Parks, recreation and libraries
0.2%$56 thousand
What's in parks, recreation and librariesParks and recreation
  • Parks and recreation$56 thousand
Sources and moreWhere these numbers come from and what they cover

Polk County. U.S. Census Bureau, 2022 Census of Governments, Finance, individual unit file, fiscal year ended September 30, 2021. The Census record for this government is from the 2022 survey, the newest on file.

What this covers. The money of Polk 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.