City government · Lewis County, WA

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

In the latest recorded fiscal year (ended December 31, 2023), Centralia took in $67.5 million and spent $61.4 million.

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

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Where it comes from

Fees for services (electric power, sewer)69%City taxes20%Fines and other7.1%State tax money4.2%

What stands out

69%

of Centralia's money comes from fees for services such as water, sewer and parking.A typical U.S. city of 10,000 to 50,000 people gets 30%.

City taxes20%

Sales tax
9.6%$6.5 million
Other taxes
8.7%$5.9 million
What's in other taxesPublic utility taxes; real estate and stock transfer taxes and 5 more
  • Public utility taxes$4.6 million
  • Real estate and stock transfer taxes$634 thousand
  • Other licenses$270 thousand
  • Other selective sales taxes$194 thousand
  • Occupation and business licenses$97 thousand
  • Amusement taxes$51 thousand
  • Public utility licenses$6 thousand

Amounts are by Census tax category.

Property tax
1.5%$1.0 million

Fees for services69%

Fees for services
69%$46.5 million
What's in fees for servicesElectric power; sewer and 5 more
  • Electric power$27.2 million
  • Sewer$11.3 million
  • Water$6.4 million
  • Other service charges$1.5 million
  • Parks, land and natural resources$107 thousand
  • Parks and recreation$22 thousand
  • Road charges$15 thousand

Amounts are by Census type of charge.

Federal tax money<0.1%

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

From the federal government
<0.1%$12 thousand

State tax money4.2%

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

From the state
4.2%$2.9 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%$18 thousand

Fines and other7.1%

Interest, rents and other
6.3%$4.2 million
Fines
0.8%$538 thousand

Where it goes

Water, sewer, trash and utilities67%Police, fire, courts and jails14%Roads, transit and parking7.9%Running the government and other costs3.8%Housing and community development2.4%All other spending4.8%

What stands out

67%

of Centralia's spending goes to water, sewer, trash and other utilities.A typical U.S. city of 10,000 to 50,000 people spends 24%.

Spending by category100%

Water, sewer, trash and utilities
67%$41.3 million
What's in water, sewer, trash and utilitiesElectric power; sewer systems and 2 more
  • Electric power$24.7 million
  • Sewer systems$10.0 million
  • Water supply$6.6 million
  • Garbage and solid waste$2 thousand
Police, fire, courts and jails
14%$8.4 million
What's in police, fire, courts and jailsPolice; fire protection and 3 more
  • Police$6.5 million
  • Fire protection$721 thousand
  • Courts and legal services$533 thousand
  • Inspections and regulation$396 thousand
  • Prisons and jails$231 thousand
Roads, transit and parking
7.9%$4.9 million
What's in roads, transit and parkingRoads and highways; public transit and 1 more
  • Roads and highways$4.7 million
  • Public transit$148 thousand
  • Parking$15 thousand
Running the government and other costs
3.8%$2.4 million
What's in running the government and other costsFinance, tax collection and budgeting; other and not broken out and 3 more
  • Finance, tax collection and budgeting$955 thousand
  • Other and not broken out$636 thousand
  • Central staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology)$427 thousand
  • Government buildings$298 thousand
  • Other government-run businesses$42 thousand
Housing and community development
2.4%$1.5 million
Interest on debt
2.0%$1.2 million
What's in interest on debtInterest on electric power debt; interest on general debt and 1 more
  • Interest on electric power debt$846 thousand
  • Interest on general debt$402 thousand
  • Interest on water supply debt-$6 thousand
Parks, recreation and libraries
2.0%$1.2 million
What's in parks, recreation and librariesParks and recreation and libraries
  • Parks and recreation$1.2 million
  • Libraries$59 thousand
Environment and natural resources
0.7%$458 thousand
What's in environment and natural resourcesNatural resources, farming and conservation
  • Natural resources, farming and conservation$458 thousand
Health and hospitals
<0.1%$20 thousand
What's in health and hospitalsPublic health
  • Public health$20 thousand
Sources and moreWhere these numbers come from and what they cover

City of Centralia. 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 Centralia 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.