Louisville/Jefferson County metro government (balance), KY vs Charlotte, NC
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
Louisville/Jefferson County metro government (balance), KY spends 27% more per resident than Charlotte, NC: $20,200 against $15,854. That gap is large enough to show up across most functional budget categories below.
Charlotte, NC holds the stronger Fiscal Health Score, 63/100 (grade C) against 35/100 (grade D) for Louisville/Jefferson County metro government (balance), KY — a 28-point spread that puts the two in different grade territory.
On debt, Charlotte, NC carries the lighter load at $2,690 per resident versus $3,553 for Louisville/Jefferson County metro government (balance), KY. Their budgets diverge on where the largest per-resident dollars go: Louisville/Jefferson County metro government (balance), KY leads with fire protection at $1,132 per resident, while Charlotte, NC leads with parks and recreation at $1,571.
On the revenue side both lean hardest on other revenue — 103% of total revenue in Louisville/Jefferson County metro government (balance), KY and 10% in Charlotte, NC.
Summary
Louisville/Jefferson County metro government (balance) spends 27.4% more per capita than Charlotte ($4,347/person difference). Charlotte, NC has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (C, 63/100).
Fiscal Health Score
Key Metrics
Per Capita Spending by Department
Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Sales Tax | $1,138 | $541 |
| Income Tax | $24 | $366 |
| Intergovernmental | $412 | $1,859 |
| Charges & Fees | $3,823 | $2,459 |
| Other | $8,878 | $4,866 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Police | $701 | $0 |
| Fire Protection | $1,132 | $463 |
| Highways & Roads | $0 | $41 |
| Education | $956 | $0 |
| Public Welfare | $1,849 | $672 |
| Health | $379 | $0 |
| Hospitals | $779 | $1,243 |
| Parks & Recreation | $1,070 | $1,571 |
| Housing | $2,382 | $3,944 |
| Sewerage | $249 | $0 |
| Utilities | $3,844 | $2,244 |
| Interest on Debt | $1,517 | $2,226 |
| Other | $5,344 | $3,448 |
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Source: Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, 2026.