Town government · Dane County, WI

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

In the latest recorded fiscal year (ended December 31, 2021), Madison took in $6.3 million and spent $6.5 million.

Latest recorded year: ended December 31, 2021Comes fromGoes to

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Where it comes from

Town taxes56%State tax money18%Fees for services (sewer, garbage collection)12%Fines and other7.0%Federal tax money6.3%County and local tax money0.1%

What stands out

12%

of Madison's money comes from fees for services such as water, sewer and parking.Most U.S. townships and towns of under 10,000 people get none.

Town taxes56%

Property tax
54%$3.4 million
Other taxes
2.5%$156 thousand
What's in other taxesOther selective sales taxes; occupation and business licenses and 2 more
  • Other selective sales taxes$93 thousand
  • Occupation and business licenses$40 thousand
  • Other licenses$14 thousand
  • Other taxes not classified elsewhere$9 thousand

Amounts are by Census tax category.

Fees for services12%

Fees for services
12%$735 thousand
What's in fees for servicesSewer; other service charges and 1 more
  • Sewer$679 thousand
  • Other service charges$46 thousand
  • Garbage collection$10 thousand

Amounts are by Census type of charge.

Federal tax money6.3%

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

From the federal government
6.3%$396 thousand

State tax money18%

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

From the state
18%$1.2 million

County and local tax money0.1%

Money passed on by the county or other local governments.

From the county and other local governments
0.1%$9 thousand

Fines and other7.0%

Interest, rents and other
5.0%$312 thousand
Fines
2.0%$125 thousand

Where it goes

Police, fire, courts and jails49%Running the government and other costs26%Water, sewer, trash and utilities14%Roads, transit and parking8.0%Health and hospitals2.3%All other spending1.2%

What stands out

49%

of Madison's spending goes to police, fire, courts and jails.A typical U.S. township or town of under 10,000 people spends 6.7%.

Spending by category100%

Police, fire, courts and jails
49%$3.2 million
What's in police, fire, courts and jailsPolice; fire protection and 2 more
  • Police$2.2 million
  • Fire protection$736 thousand
  • Courts and legal services$147 thousand
  • Inspections and regulation$130 thousand
Running the government and other costs
26%$1.7 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$1.3 million
  • Finance, tax collection and budgeting$236 thousand
  • Central staff services (personnel, purchasing, technology)$175 thousand
  • Government buildings$28 thousand
Water, sewer, trash and utilities
14%$883 thousand
What's in water, sewer, trash and utilitiesSewer systems and garbage and solid waste
  • Sewer systems$653 thousand
  • Garbage and solid waste$230 thousand
Roads, transit and parking
8.0%$522 thousand
What's in roads, transit and parkingRoads and highways and public transit
  • Roads and highways$354 thousand
  • Public transit$168 thousand
Health and hospitals
2.3%$150 thousand
What's in health and hospitalsPublic health
  • Public health$150 thousand
Interest on debt
0.6%$42 thousand
Parks, recreation and libraries
0.5%$34 thousand
What's in parks, recreation and librariesParks and recreation
  • Parks and recreation$34 thousand
Sources and moreWhere these numbers come from and what they cover

Town of Madison. U.S. Census Bureau, 2022 Census of Governments, Finance, individual unit file, fiscal year ended December 31, 2021. The Census record for this government is from the 2022 survey, the newest on file.

What this covers. The money of Town of Madison 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.