El Paso, TX vs Plano, TX
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
El Paso, TX spends 44% more per resident than Plano, TX: $24,259 against $16,842. That gap is large enough to show up across most functional budget categories below.
Plano, TX holds the stronger Fiscal Health Score, 75/100 (grade B) against 61/100 (grade C) for El Paso, TX — a 14-point spread that puts the two in different grade territory.
El Paso, TX reports no outstanding debt per resident in its Census filing, while Plano, TX carries $663 per resident. Their budgets diverge on where the largest per-resident dollars go: El Paso, TX leads with police at $1,159 per resident, while Plano, TX leads with parks and recreation at $1,518.
They also fund themselves differently: intergovernmental transfers is the largest single revenue source in El Paso, TX at 10% of total revenue, whereas Plano, TX relies most on charges and fees at 20%.
Summary
El Paso spends 44.0% more per capita than Plano ($7,417/person difference). Plano, TX has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (B, 75/100).
Fiscal Health Score
Key Metrics
Per Capita Spending by Department
Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Sales Tax | $65 | $644 |
| Income Tax | $12 | $731 |
| Intergovernmental | $690 | $2,683 |
| Charges & Fees | $31 | $3,976 |
| Other | $550 | $3,004 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Police | $1,159 | $0 |
| Fire Protection | $233 | $125 |
| Highways & Roads | $83 | $319 |
| Education | $0 | $34 |
| Public Welfare | $299 | $283 |
| Health | $0 | $463 |
| Hospitals | $11 | $194 |
| Parks & Recreation | $151 | $1,518 |
| Housing | $958 | $3,356 |
| Sewerage | $6 | $145 |
| Utilities | $224 | $4,137 |
| Interest on Debt | $40 | $0 |
| General Admin | $17,951 | $0 |
| Other | $3,145 | $6,268 |
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Source: Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, 2026.