Alma · FY2021 municipal finance benchmarks

Name: Alma, CO municipal finance benchmarks
Creator: Orivian
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Park County · Central Mountains & Resort · statutory town · Pop. 312 (2025 estimate); FY2021 per-resident figures use 299 · Census finance data FY2016, FY2021

Latest Census Bureau finance data for Alma: FY2021. Retrieved Oct 2026. Newer years are added when the Census Bureau publishes them. Why the lag?

City website (opens in a new tab)

Fiscal yearCompare

FY2021 in brief

Alma collected $2,983 per resident (including city-run utilities), 20% above the median of the 227 Colorado municipalities reporting that year. Tax revenue per resident sits 54% above its peers, and 69% above the state median. Debt per resident runs 54% below peers.

Regional hub: sales tax per resident is 1.7× the Colorado median.

Generated from the figures below. Every number links to its Census source.

Compared with

Nearest on population, household income and region

Revenue per resident (definition)

$2,983

22% above peers

Includes city-owned utilities

Peer median: $2,445
CO median · 227 with a published figure Median of the 227 Colorado municipalities with FY2021 Census finance data. In FY2016 and FY2021 the Census covers every municipality; in other years it surveys a sample, mostly larger cities.: $2,476
Position: Higher than 64% of the 227 reporting
5-year changenominal dollars: Not enough history for a 5-year change

How Colorado compares on revenue per resident

Expenditures per resident (definition)

$2,445

21% above peers

Includes city-owned utilities

Peer median: $2,023
CO median · 220 with a published figure Median of the 220 Colorado municipalities with FY2021 Census finance data. In FY2016 and FY2021 the Census covers every municipality; in other years it surveys a sample, mostly larger cities.: $2,208
Position: Higher than 58% of the 220 reporting
5-year changenominal dollars: Not enough history for a 5-year change

Tax revenue per resident (definition)

$1,809

54% above peers

Peer median: $1,175
CO median · 201 with a published figure Median of the 201 Colorado municipalities with FY2021 Census finance data. In FY2016 and FY2021 the Census covers every municipality; in other years it surveys a sample, mostly larger cities.: $1,072
Position: Higher than 76% of the 201 reporting
5-year changenominal dollars: Not enough history for a 5-year change

Debt per resident (definition)

$294

54% below peers

Peer median: $644
CO median · 199 with a published figure Median of the 199 Colorado municipalities with FY2021 Census finance data. In FY2016 and FY2021 the Census covers every municipality; in other years it surveys a sample, mostly larger cities.: $1,411
Position: Higher than 12% of the 199 reporting
5-year changenominal dollars: −36.4%/yr

How Colorado compares on debt per resident

How this number was calculated

Revenue per resident · $2,983

Reported by the city to the Census Bureau

1Metric
$2,983 Total revenue divided by population
= Total revenue ÷ population
Full definition: Revenue per resident
2Inputs
Total revenue $892K ÷ population 299 (2021 estimate)
3Census line items
- A03 Commercial activities (other) charges
- A80 Sewer charges
- A81 Solid waste charges
- A91 Water utility charges
- B89 Federal aid
- C89 State aid
- T01 Property tax
- T09 General sales tax
- T28 Licenses & permits
- U40 Rents
- U99 Miscellaneous
4Source file
- Annual Survey of State & Local Government Finances 2022 - Individual Unit File
  Value for
  FY2021
  Survey file
  2022
  The 2022 Census survey covers fiscal years ending July 1, 2021 through June 30, 2022, so a fiscal year ending December 31, 2021 is FY2021.
  Retrieved October 12, 2026 · View source: Annual Survey of State & Local Government Finances 2022 - Individual Unit File (opens in a new tab)
- Population Estimates Program, Vintage 2025 - incorporated places
  Value for
  FY2021
  Source year
  2025
  Retrieved October 7, 2026 · View source: Population Estimates Program, Vintage 2025 - incorporated places (opens in a new tab)

What the numbers mean

Alma runs city-owned utilities, which add 15.2% of its revenue. Cities that don't run utilities will look lower on revenue and spending per resident for that reason alone. What counts as utility revenue
With about 299 residents, small changes in Alma's budget move per-resident figures a lot. Compare several years, not one.

Where the money comes from and where it goes

Per resident, FY2021. Bars show Alma; the gold tick is the peer median. How categories work

Regional hub: sales tax per resident is 1.7× the Colorado median.

Sales tax per resident is high, which usually means many non-residents shop, stay or work here. Per-resident figures divide citywide totals by residents only, so they overstate what residents themselves pay and use.

The biggest difference from peers is General government: $1,599 per resident, 2.7× the peer median. On the revenue side, sales tax is 2.5× peers.

Money in

Revenue

$2,983

per resident22% above peers

Money in: Alma revenue per resident by category, FY2021, against the peer median. Open a category for its lines and Census item codes.
Category	Per resident	Peer median	vs peers	Share of revenue
	$1,431	$583	2.5× peerspeers $583	48%

General sales tax $1,431 · peers $583 General sales and use tax. Census line items T09 General sales tax
	$542	$77	7.0× peerspeers $77	18%

Sewer charges $375 · peers $77 Solid waste charges $137 · peers $0 Commercial activities (other) charges $30 · peers $0 Charges for services such as sewer, trash, recreation, parking and airports. Census line items A03 Commercial activities (other) charges A80 Sewer charges A81 Solid waste charges
	$455	$762	40% below peerspeers $762	15%

Water utility charges $455 · peers $762 Revenue of city-owned water, electric, gas and transit systems. Census line items A91 Water utility charges
	$361	$269	34% above peerspeers $269	12%

Property tax $361 · peers $269 Property tax levied by the municipality. Census line items T01 Property tax
	$164	$211	22% below peerspeers $211	5%

Federal aid $130 · peers $0 State aid $33 · peers $192 Grants and shared revenue from federal, state and local governments. Census line items B89 Federal aid C89 State aid
	$17	$90	81% below peerspeers $90	1%

Licenses & permits $17 · peers $21 Lodging, utility, tobacco and other selective sales taxes, licenses and permits, and other taxes. Census line items T28 Licenses & permits
	$13	$77	83% below peerspeers $77	<1%

Miscellaneous $7 · peers $18 Rents $7 · peers $3 Interest earnings, fines, rents, special assessments, donations and sales of property. Census line items U40 Rents U99 Miscellaneous

Peer median of 4 peers · Colorado median of 227 reporting

Money out

Spending

$2,445

per resident21% above peers

Money out: Alma spending per resident by category, FY2021, against the peer median. Open a category for its lines and Census item codes.
Category	Per resident	Peer median	vs peers	Share of spending
	$1,599	$591	2.7× peerspeers $591	65%

Central staff services $1,030 · peers $376 General government (other) $344 · peers $0 Judicial & legal $167 · peers $0 General public buildings $33 · peers $47 Financial administration $23 · peers $11 Administration, finance, legal and courts, public buildings and other general government. Census line items E23 Financial administration E25 Judicial & legal E29 Central staff services E31 General public buildings E89 General government (other)
Peer median unavailable	$462	Peer median unavailable	No peer comparison	19%

Police $438 Protective inspection & regulation $23 · peers $0 Police, fire protection, inspection and corrections. Census line items E62 Police E66 Protective inspection & regulation
	$237	$1,046	77% below peerspeers $1,046	10%

Solid waste $117 · peers $0 Water utility $60 · peers $718 Sewer $60 · peers $136 Water, sewer, solid waste, electric and gas utilities, and natural resources. Census line items E80 Sewer E81 Solid waste E91 Water utility
	$67	$55	23% above peerspeers $55	3%

Streets & highways $50 · peers $55 incl. $10 construction Transit $17 · peers $0 incl. $10 construction Streets and highways, transit, parking and airports. Census line items E44 Streets & highways E94 Transit F44 Streets & highways
	$67	$9	7.6× peerspeers $9	3%

Parks & recreation $67 · peers $9 Parks and recreation, libraries, housing and community development. Census line items E61 Parks & recreation
	$13	$14	in line with peerspeers $14	1%

Interest on debt $13 · peers $14 Interest paid on the municipality's debt. Census line items I89 Interest on debt
None reported · peers $3	$0	$3	None reported	0%

Alma reported nothing in this category for FY2021. Commercial activities and functions outside the categories above.

Peer median of 4 peers · Colorado median of 220 reporting

Alma and its peers

The five Colorado municipalities nearest on population, median household income and region. Budget size isn’t a matching factor, so peers aren’t chosen on the figures being compared. Per resident, FY2021. How peers are chosen

Open in Compare

Alma compared with its peer municipalities, FY2021, per resident
Municipality	Revenue	Expenditures	Tax revenue	Sales tax	Debt
AlmaUtilities: City-owned utilities (water, electric, gas, transit) brought in 15.2% of total revenue in FY2021. Revenue and spending per resident include them, so cities that run their own utilities read higher than cities that don't.Regional hub: Sales tax per resident is 1.7× the Colorado median.	$2,983	$2,445	$1,809	$1,431	$294
EmpireUtilities: City-owned utilities (water, electric, gas, transit) brought in 32.2% of total revenue in FY2021. Revenue and spending per resident include them, so cities that run their own utilities read higher than cities that don't.	$3,292	$2,484	$1,245	$1,062	Not reported for this year
Red CliffUtilities: City-owned utilities (water, electric, gas, transit) brought in 42.6% of total revenue in FY2021. Revenue and spending per resident include them, so cities that run their own utilities read higher than cities that don't.	$2,972	$3,303	$1,189	$398	$516
BlancaUtilities: City-owned utilities (water, electric, gas, transit) brought in 17.4% of total revenue in FY2021. Revenue and spending per resident include them, so cities that run their own utilities read higher than cities that don't.	$1,843	$1,562	$795	$414	$644
RicoUtilities: City-owned utilities (water, electric, gas, transit) brought in 24.2% of total revenue in FY2021. Revenue and spending per resident include them, so cities that run their own utilities read higher than cities that don't.	$1,918	$1,402	$1,160	$752	Not reported for this year
Peer median	$2,445	$2,023	$1,175	$583	$644

Utilities marks a municipality whose revenue and spending include city-owned utilities (water, electric, gas, transit), which raises its per-resident totals.

Regional hub marks a municipality whose sales tax per resident is at least 1.5× the Colorado median: a shopping or visitor hub where people who live elsewhere pay much of the sales tax.

Trends

Every available fiscal year. Lines break where a year is missing or withheld; nothing is interpolated.

This city
Peer median
Withheld (shown on the axis, no value)
Colorado median (Census of Governments years only)

Revenue per resident

Fiscal year · nominal dollars, not adjusted for inflation

FY2016 withheld: Revenue per resident is 5.7x the peer median

Show data table

Revenue per resident by fiscal year
Year	This city	Peer median	Colorado median
FY2016	Withheld (Revenue per resident is 5.7x the peer median)	Benchmark unavailable	$1,746 (224 reporting)
FY2021	$2,983	$2,445	$2,476 (227 reporting)

Expenditures per resident

Fiscal year · nominal dollars, not adjusted for inflation

FY2016 withheld: Expenditures per resident is 8.3x the peer median

Show data table

Expenditures per resident by fiscal year
Year	This city	Peer median	Colorado median
FY2016	Withheld (Expenditures per resident is 8.3x the peer median)	Benchmark unavailable	$1,749 (196 reporting)
FY2021	$2,445	$2,023	$2,208 (220 reporting)

Tax revenue per resident

Fiscal year · nominal dollars, not adjusted for inflation

FY2016 withheld: Tax revenue per resident is 13.7x the peer median

Show data table

Tax revenue per resident by fiscal year
Year	This city	Peer median	Colorado median
FY2016	Withheld (Tax revenue per resident is 13.7x the peer median)	Benchmark unavailable	$705 (193 reporting)
FY2021	$1,809	$1,175	$1,072 (201 reporting)

Debt per resident

Fiscal year · nominal dollars, not adjusted for inflation

Peer group changed in FY2021. Peers are matched each year, so the peer median can step when the group changes.

Show data table

Debt per resident by fiscal year
Year	This city	Peer median	Colorado median
FY2016	$2,823	$1,258	$1,072 (220 reporting)
FY2021	$294	$644	$1,411 (199 reporting)

Questions about Alma’s finances

How much revenue does Alma collect per resident?: Alma collected $2,983 per resident in FY2021, 20% above the median of the 227 Colorado municipalities reporting that year. See the figure
How does Alma's spending per resident compare with similar cities?: Alma spent $2,445 per resident in FY2021, 21% above the median of its peers: Empire, Red Cliff, Blanca and Rico. See the figure
How much debt does Alma have per resident?: Alma carried $294 of debt per resident in FY2021, 54% below its peers' median. See the figure
Which cities is Alma compared with?: Alma is compared with Empire, Red Cliff, Blanca and Rico: the Colorado municipalities nearest to it on population, median household income and region. Budget size isn't used, so peers aren't chosen on the figures being compared. See the peer table
Where do these numbers come from?: From the U.S. Census Bureau's Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, as each government reported its own fiscal year, divided by Census population estimates. Figures that fail quality checks are withheld rather than shown. Sources and methodology

Community context

American Community Survey 5-year estimates and Census population estimates. Where the selected year isn’t available, the nearest earlier year is shown and labeled.

Population growth (5-yr): −0.4%/yr; 2021 estimate
Median household income: $45.9K; 2021 estimate
Poverty rate: 10.2%; 2021 estimate
Median home value: $275K; 2021 estimate
Housing vacancy rate: 43.8%; 2021 estimate

Explore further

Also in Central Mountains & Resort

Empire$3,292 · FY2021
Yampa$1,935 · FY2021
Red Cliff$2,972 · FY2021
Grand Lake$13,561 · FY2023
Lake City$4,270 · FY2021
Ophir$3,282 · FY2021
Silver Plume$2,874 · FY2021
Marble$2,341 · FY2021

Revenue per resident, latest published year.

Sources

American Community Survey 5-year estimates 2017-2021 · 2021
U.S. Census Bureau
Retrieved October 7, 2026View source: American Community Survey 5-year estimates 2017-2021 (opens in a new tab)
Annual Survey of State & Local Government Finances 2022 - Individual Unit File · 2022 survey file
U.S. Census Bureau
Retrieved October 12, 2026View source: Annual Survey of State & Local Government Finances 2022 - Individual Unit File (opens in a new tab)
Population Estimates Program, Vintage 2025 - incorporated places · 2025
U.S. Census Bureau
Retrieved October 7, 2026View source: Population Estimates Program, Vintage 2025 - incorporated places (opens in a new tab)

Dataset: Alma, CO municipal finance benchmarks

Free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (opens in a new tab). Please credit “Source: Orivian Municipal Index, orivian.ai/benchmarks”. See the data use terms.

Notes: dollars are nominal (not inflation-adjusted). Colorado medians cover the municipalities reporting that year. Peers: nearest on population, income and region. Definitions: orivian.ai/benchmarks/methodology.Retrieved October 12, 2026 from orivian.ai/benchmarks.

Every figure on this page is read from the published index; nothing is recalculated for display. Read the methodology

General government is Alma’s largest difference from its peers (2.7× the peer median in FY2021). See how that line moves month to month in your own budget-vs-actual.

Orivian applies the same sourced, governed approach to your city's own budget-vs-actual data.

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Alma · FY2021 municipal finance benchmarks

FY2021 in brief

FY2021 headline figures

Revenue per resident (definition)

Expenditures per resident (definition)

Tax revenue per resident (definition)

Debt per resident (definition)

How this number was calculated

What the numbers mean

Where the money comes from and where it goes

Money in

Money out

Alma and its peers

Trends

Questions about Alma’s finances

Community context

Explore further

Also in Central Mountains & Resort

Sources

General government is Alma’s largest difference from its peers (2.7× the peer median in FY2021). See how that line moves month to month in your own budget-vs-actual.