Houston, TX vs Bakersfield, CA
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
Summary
Houston spends 24.4% more per capita than Bakersfield ($2,824/person difference). Houston, TX has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (A, 83/100).
Fiscal Health Score
A
83/100
Budget Balance94
Debt Burden72
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency100
Revenue Diversity100
Trend Direction50
C
56/100
Budget Balance2
Debt Burden100
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency100
Revenue Diversity0
Trend Direction50
Key Metrics
Metric
Houston
Bakersfield
Total Spending
$33.1B
$4.7B
Spending / Capita
$14,400
$11,576
Total Revenue
$127.7B
$1.6B
Revenue / Capita
$55,600
$3,862
Total Debt
$2.0B
$0
Debt / Capita
$863
$0
Population
2,296,253
404,321
Gov Employees / 10K
0.0
0.0
Avg Gov Salary
$0
$0
Per Capita Spending by Department
Fire Protection
Houston$295
Bakersfield$0
Highways & Roads
Houston$175
Bakersfield$0
Parks & Recreation
Houston$361
Bakersfield$741
Health
Houston$210
Bakersfield$0
Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)
HoustonBakersfield
| Property Tax | $0 | $1 |
| Sales Tax | $181 | $20 |
| Income Tax | $39 | $1,909 |
| Intergovernmental | $33 | $3,862 |
| Charges & Fees | $3,475 | $1,024 |
| Other | $3,960 | $1,915 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
HoustonBakersfield
| Fire Protection | $295 | $0 |
| Highways & Roads | $175 | $0 |
| Public Welfare | $533 | $840 |
| Health | $210 | $0 |
| Hospitals | $511 | $425 |
| Parks & Recreation | $361 | $741 |
| Housing | $4,288 | $3,391 |
| Sewerage | $386 | $265 |
| Utilities | $1,339 | $2,679 |
| Other | $6,301 | $3,234 |
A
Houston, TX
Fiscal Health Score: 83/100
Excellent fiscal health
C
Bakersfield, CA
Fiscal Health Score: 56/100
Average fiscal health