New Orleans, LA vs Lake Charles, LA
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
Summary
New Orleans spends 162.8% more per capita than Lake Charles ($20,432/person difference). Lake Charles, LA has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (B, 73/100).
Fiscal Health Score
C
52/100
Budget Balance70
Debt Burden0
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency29
Revenue Diversity100
Trend Direction50
B
73/100
Budget Balance32
Debt Burden100
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency99
Revenue Diversity100
Trend Direction50
Key Metrics
Metric
New Orleans
Lake Charles
Total Spending
$12.5B
$1.0B
Spending / Capita
$32,984
$12,552
Total Revenue
$12.0B
$533.9M
Revenue / Capita
$31,427
$6,477
Total Debt
$870.3M
$322K
Debt / Capita
$2,288
$4
Population
380,408
82,430
Gov Employees / 10K
0.0
0.0
Avg Gov Salary
$0
$0
Per Capita Spending by Department
Fire Protection
New Orleans$1,044
Lake Charles$240
Highways & Roads
New Orleans$271
Lake Charles$204
Parks & Recreation
New Orleans$966
Lake Charles$737
Education
New Orleans$951
Lake Charles$0
Health
New Orleans$507
Lake Charles$0
Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)
New OrleansLake Charles
| Property Tax | $62 | $0 |
| Sales Tax | $327 | $38 |
| Income Tax | $993 | $0 |
| Intergovernmental | $3,013 | $10 |
| Charges & Fees | $3,241 | $1,751 |
| Other | $5,501 | $1,431 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
New OrleansLake Charles
| Fire Protection | $1,044 | $240 |
| Highways & Roads | $271 | $204 |
| Education | $951 | $0 |
| Public Welfare | $1,197 | $543 |
| Health | $507 | $0 |
| Hospitals | $5,002 | $1,466 |
| Parks & Recreation | $966 | $737 |
| Housing | $4,479 | $2,714 |
| Sewerage | $161 | $0 |
| Utilities | $4,300 | $1,918 |
| Interest on Debt | $0 | $435 |
| General Admin | $1,865 | $0 |
| Other | $12,243 | $4,296 |
C
New Orleans, LA
Fiscal Health Score: 52/100
Average fiscal health
B
Lake Charles, LA
Fiscal Health Score: 73/100
Good fiscal health