City government · La Crosse County, WI

La Crosse's money: where it comes from and where it goes

In the latest recorded fiscal year (ended December 31, 2023), La Crosse took in $140 million and spent $145 million.

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

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Where it comes from

City taxes38%Fees for services (sewer, parks and recreation)23%State tax money17%Fines and other11%Federal tax money7.5%County and local tax money3.6%

What stands out

17%

of La Crosse's money comes from state tax money.A typical U.S. city of 50,000+ people gets 6.4%.

City taxes38%

Property tax
33%$46.1 million
Other taxes
4.8%$6.8 million
What's in other taxesOther selective sales taxes; other licenses and 2 more
  • Other selective sales taxes$3.9 million
  • Other licenses$2.2 million
  • Occupation and business licenses$584 thousand
  • Other taxes not classified elsewhere$130 thousand

Amounts are by Census tax category.

Fees for services23%

Fees for services
23%$32.8 million
What's in fees for servicesSewer; parks and recreation and 7 more
  • Sewer$11.3 million
  • Parks and recreation$7.4 million
  • Water$5.7 million
  • Airport$3.0 million
  • Road charges$2.3 million
  • Parking$1.8 million
  • Housing$801 thousand
  • Transit fares$471 thousand
  • Other service charges$102 thousand

Amounts are by Census type of charge.

Federal tax money7.5%

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

From the federal government
7.5%$10.5 million

State tax money17%

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

From the state
17%$23.8 million

County and local tax money3.6%

Money passed on by the county or other local governments.

From the county and other local governments
3.6%$5.0 million

Fines and other11%

Interest, rents and other
10%$14.3 million
Fines
0.6%$856 thousand

Where it goes

Roads, transit and parking28%Police, fire, courts and jails25%Parks, recreation and libraries17%Running the government and other costs14%Water, sewer, trash and utilities10%All other spending5.8%

What stands out

28%

of La Crosse's spending goes to roads, transit and parking.A typical U.S. city of 50,000+ people spends 10%.

Spending by category100%

Roads, transit and parking
28%$40.9 million
What's in roads, transit and parkingRoads and highways; public transit and 2 more
  • Roads and highways$23.8 million
  • Public transit$9.0 million
  • Airports$4.8 million
  • Parking$3.2 million
Police, fire, courts and jails
25%$36.3 million
What's in police, fire, courts and jailsFire protection; police and 1 more
  • Fire protection$19.7 million
  • Police$15.3 million
  • Courts and legal services$1.2 million
Parks, recreation and libraries
17%$24.4 million
What's in parks, recreation and librariesParks and recreation and libraries
  • Parks and recreation$19.0 million
  • Libraries$5.4 million
Running the government and other costs
14%$19.8 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$12.3 million
  • Central staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology)$4.0 million
  • Finance, tax collection and budgeting$2.4 million
  • Government buildings$1.1 million
Water, sewer, trash and utilities
10%$15.0 million
What's in water, sewer, trash and utilitiesSewer systems; water supply and 1 more
  • Sewer systems$7.6 million
  • Water supply$5.2 million
  • Garbage and solid waste$2.2 million
Interest on debt
3.0%$4.4 million
Housing and community development
2.7%$3.9 million
Health and hospitals
0.1%$154 thousand
What's in health and hospitalsPublic health
  • Public health$154 thousand
Sources and moreWhere these numbers come from and what they cover

City of La Crosse. 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 La Crosse 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.