Description of the Indicator
The county fiscal snapshot depicts fiscal indicators across Lackawanna, Luzerne, and Wayne County, including total revenue, revenue per capita, total expenditures, and expenditures per capita.
Why is it important?
The fiscal snapshot points to the fiscal health of the three-county region. Increasing costs can create challenges in a county’s ability to maintain strong fiscal health. Policymakers can often respond to such challenges by analyzing trends concerning revenue and expenditure.
How is the region performing?
Luzerne has slightly higher expenses than revenue per capita and Lackawanna and Wayne have slightly higher revenue than expense per capita. Luzerne and Wayne counties saw decreases in both revenue and expenses in 2021. Lackawanna saw an increase in revenue with a decrease in expenses during the same period. All three saw taxes per capita increase. Across all three counties, intergovernmental revenue has trended upward through 2020, then all saw a decrease in 2021. Intergovernmental revenue is the funds transferred from one level of government to another. These transfers may be in the form of grants, shared taxes, or allocations made to support specific projects, programs, or activities.