Jacksonville, FL vs El Paso, TX
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
Jacksonville, FL spends 30% more per resident than El Paso, TX: $31,456 against $24,259. That gap is large enough to show up across most functional budget categories below.
El Paso, TX holds the stronger Fiscal Health Score, 61/100 (grade C) against 53/100 (grade C) for Jacksonville, FL — a 8-point spread that puts the two in different grade territory.
El Paso, TX reports no outstanding debt per resident in its Census filing, while Jacksonville, FL carries $2,821 per resident. Their budgets diverge on where the largest per-resident dollars go: Jacksonville, FL leads with fire protection at $9,436 per resident, while El Paso, TX leads with police at $1,159.
On the revenue side both lean hardest on intergovernmental transfers — 14% of total revenue in Jacksonville, FL and 10% in El Paso, TX.
Summary
Jacksonville spends 29.7% more per capita than El Paso ($7,197/person difference). El Paso, TX has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (C, 61/100).
Fiscal Health Score
Key Metrics
Per Capita Spending by Department
Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Property Tax | $10 | $0 |
| Sales Tax | $233 | $65 |
| Income Tax | $762 | $12 |
| Intergovernmental | $7,348 | $690 |
| Charges & Fees | $2,119 | $31 |
| Other | $4,705 | $550 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Police | $18 | $1,159 |
| Fire Protection | $9,436 | $233 |
| Highways & Roads | $0 | $83 |
| Public Welfare | $486 | $299 |
| Health | $332 | $0 |
| Hospitals | $557 | $11 |
| Parks & Recreation | $1,329 | $151 |
| Housing | $5,572 | $958 |
| Sewerage | $176 | $6 |
| Utilities | $1,835 | $224 |
| Interest on Debt | $1,942 | $40 |
| General Admin | $0 | $17,951 |
| Other | $9,771 | $3,145 |
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Source: Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, 2026.