Scranton, PA vs Reading, PA

Reading, PA spends 56% more per resident than Scranton, PA: $16,327 against $10,446. That gap is large enough to show up across most functional budget categories below.

Reading, PA edges Scranton, PA on the Fiscal Health Score by 3 points — 86/100 (grade A) to 83/100 (grade A). At a margin this narrow the grade is close enough that the factor-level detail matters more than the composite.

Scranton, PA reports no outstanding debt per resident in its Census filing, while Reading, PA carries $87 per resident. Their budgets diverge on where the largest per-resident dollars go: Scranton, PA leads with fire protection at $1,029 per resident, while Reading, PA leads with parks and recreation at $826.

They also fund themselves differently: income tax is the largest single revenue source in Scranton, PA at 11% of total revenue, whereas Reading, PA relies most on other revenue at 28%.