Austin, TX vs Los Angeles, CA

Los Angeles, CA outspends Austin, TX by a wide margin per resident — $85,432 versus $21,772, a 292% difference. A gap this size usually reflects a structurally different service mix or accounting scope rather than a single line item.

Austin, TX holds the stronger Fiscal Health Score, 75/100 (grade B) against 47/100 (grade D) for Los Angeles, CA — a 28-point spread that puts the two in different grade territory.

Los Angeles, CA reports no outstanding debt per resident in its Census filing, while Austin, TX carries $1,229 per resident. Their budgets diverge on where the largest per-resident dollars go: Austin, TX leads with parks and recreation at $1,801 per resident, while Los Angeles, CA leads with police at $4,111.

They also fund themselves differently: intergovernmental transfers is the largest single revenue source in Austin, TX at 18% of total revenue, whereas Los Angeles, CA relies most on other revenue at 51%.