Waterloo, IA vs West Des Moines, IA
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
Summary
Waterloo spends 20.5% more per capita than West Des Moines ($3,023/person difference). Waterloo, IA has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (B, 71/100).
Fiscal Health Score
B
71/100
Budget Balance100
Debt Burden28
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency65
Revenue Diversity100
Trend Direction50
C
53/100
Budget Balance51
Debt Burden0
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency84
Revenue Diversity71
Trend Direction50
Key Metrics
Metric
Waterloo
West Des Moines
Total Spending
$1.2B
$1.0B
Spending / Capita
$17,802
$14,779
Total Revenue
$1.6B
$2.4B
Revenue / Capita
$23,537
$35,361
Total Debt
$40.7M
$140.9M
Debt / Capita
$605
$2,050
Population
67,256
68,744
Gov Employees / 10K
0.0
0.0
Avg Gov Salary
$0
$0
Per Capita Spending by Department
Fire Protection
Waterloo$223
West Des Moines$240
Highways & Roads
Waterloo$108
West Des Moines$49
Parks & Recreation
Waterloo$1,325
West Des Moines$1,257
Education
Waterloo$10
West Des Moines$3
Health
Waterloo$431
West Des Moines$615
Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)
WaterlooWest Des Moines
| Property Tax | $59 | $24 |
| Sales Tax | $677 | $677 |
| Income Tax | $920 | $355 |
| Intergovernmental | $2,021 | $16,920 |
| Charges & Fees | $1,614 | $2,669 |
| Other | $3,969 | $3,239 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
WaterlooWest Des Moines
| Fire Protection | $223 | $240 |
| Highways & Roads | $108 | $49 |
| Education | $10 | $3 |
| Public Welfare | $2,637 | $1,500 |
| Health | $431 | $615 |
| Hospitals | $1,864 | $290 |
| Parks & Recreation | $1,325 | $1,257 |
| Housing | $3,169 | $2,213 |
| Sewerage | $205 | $194 |
| Utilities | $1,874 | $669 |
| Other | $5,957 | $7,750 |
B
Waterloo, IA
Fiscal Health Score: 71/100
Good fiscal health
C
West Des Moines, IA
Fiscal Health Score: 53/100
Average fiscal health