Federal, State, and Local Government Revenues

Publication Date: July 2007

Publisher: Tax Policy Center

Author(s): Roberton Williams

Research Area: Banking and finance

Keywords: Economy; State and Local Finance; Tax Policy; Tax Distribution and Economic Trends

Type: Report

Abstract:

The federal, state, and local governments collected nearly $3.9 trillion in revenue in 2004, roughly one-third of GDP. Almost half that amount went to the federal government, which turned around and passed more than $400 billion on to state and local governments (90 percent to the states). For their part, the states brought in almost $1.2 trillion of their own revenue, 30 percent of which they passed on to local governments to help finance education and other activities. Finally, local governments used property taxes and other sources to collect nearly $800 billion.