Updated April 2026 · U.S. Census Bureau, fiscal year 2023
How Does Novato, CA Spend Tax Money?
Novato, CA spends $13,215 per resident on city services, $701.1M in total. Per the U.S. Census Bureau Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, the largest per-capita line items are Parks & Recreation ($581). CitySpend's Fiscal Health Score for Novato is B (78/100), a solid reading versus its 531 peer cities.
Novato, CA Budget Snapshot
| Total Spending | $701.1M |
| Per Capita Spending | $13,215 |
| Total Revenue | $545.6M |
| Total Debt | $0 |
| Debt Per Capita | $0 |
| Population | 53,055 |
| Fiscal Health Score | 78/100 (B) |
| Data Year | FY 2023 |
What Does the B Grade Mean?
Novato, CA earns a B on the CitySpend Fiscal Health Score (78/100). The city's books are reliably balanced and debt is manageable, with one or two factors (typically pension funding or revenue diversity) keeping the score below A range.
Where the Money Goes
Of the $701.1M that Novato, CA spent in its most recent reported fiscal year, the largest single line item per resident is Parks & Recreation at $581. Other functions, including roads, parks, debt service, and general administration, fill out the budget below the top line item.
Top Spending Categories (Per Capita)
Where the Money Comes From
Where does the money come from? Property tax provides 0 percent of city revenue, sales tax 3 percent, intergovernmental transfers from federal and state sources 19 percent, and direct charges and user fees 0 percent. The remainder comes from utility revenue, income tax (where applicable), and miscellaneous sources.
Debt Burden in Context
Debt-wise, Novato sits close to the peer median for cities its size: $0 per resident versus a peer-group median of $0. That tracks with normal capital-program borrowing for streets, water, and public buildings.
How This Score Is Calculated
The CitySpend Fiscal Health Score combines six factors into one composite, drawn from the U.S. Census Bureau Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances: budget balance and reserves (25%), debt burden per capita versus peer median (20%), pension funded ratio from the Public Plans Database (20%), spending efficiency (15%), revenue diversity (10%), and three-year trend direction (10%). Best-practice weighting follows guidance from the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA). Read the full methodology.
Novato, CA spends $13,215 per resident on city services, $701.1M in total. Per the U.S. Census Bureau Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, the largest per-capita line items are Parks & Recreation ($581). CitySpend's Fiscal Health Score for Novato is B (78/100), a solid reading versus its 531 peer cities.
This answer pulls from the Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, the authoritative federal source for U.S. municipal and county government finances. The headline number above is the direct answer; what follows is the additional context most readers need to use the answer for a real decision rather than just a fact lookup.
For readers turning this answer into action: cross-reference against the underlying the Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances record before acting on time-sensitive decisions. The site renders the data as it was published; subsequent revisions can shift the picture, and the live federal data is always the authoritative current reference.