Lake Charles, LA vs Lafayette, LA
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
Summary
Lafayette spends 58.2% more per capita than Lake Charles ($17,475/person difference). Lake Charles, LA has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (B, 73/100).
Fiscal Health Score
B
73/100
Budget Balance32
Debt Burden100
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency99
Revenue Diversity100
Trend Direction50
D
44/100
Budget Balance54
Debt Burden0
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency2
Revenue Diversity100
Trend Direction50
Key Metrics
Metric
Lake Charles
Lafayette
Total Spending
$1.0B
$3.7B
Spending / Capita
$12,552
$30,028
Total Revenue
$533.9M
$4.6B
Revenue / Capita
$6,477
$37,974
Total Debt
$322K
$162.4M
Debt / Capita
$4
$1,334
Population
82,430
121,706
Gov Employees / 10K
0.0
0.0
Avg Gov Salary
$0
$0
Per Capita Spending by Department
Police
Lake Charles$0
Lafayette$615
Fire Protection
Lake Charles$240
Lafayette$1,967
Highways & Roads
Lake Charles$204
Lafayette$355
Parks & Recreation
Lake Charles$737
Lafayette$1,923
Education
Lake Charles$0
Lafayette$1,758
Health
Lake Charles$0
Lafayette$851
Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)
Lake CharlesLafayette
| Sales Tax | $38 | $1,778 |
| Income Tax | $0 | $1,580 |
| Intergovernmental | $10 | $956 |
| Charges & Fees | $1,751 | $2,527 |
| Other | $1,431 | $3,792 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
Lake CharlesLafayette
| Police | $0 | $615 |
| Fire Protection | $240 | $1,967 |
| Highways & Roads | $204 | $355 |
| Education | $0 | $1,758 |
| Public Welfare | $543 | $1,573 |
| Health | $0 | $851 |
| Hospitals | $1,466 | $1,440 |
| Parks & Recreation | $737 | $1,923 |
| Housing | $2,714 | $8,621 |
| Utilities | $1,918 | $3,202 |
| Interest on Debt | $435 | $1,013 |
| Other | $4,296 | $6,711 |
B
Lake Charles, LA
Fiscal Health Score: 73/100
Good fiscal health
D
Lafayette, LA
Fiscal Health Score: 44/100
Below average fiscal health