Central City · FY2023 municipal finance benchmarks

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

Clear Creek, Gilpin counties · Central Mountains & Resort · home rule municipality · Pop. 807 (2025 estimate); FY2023 per-resident figures use 781 · Census finance data FY2016, FY2021, FY2023

Latest Census Bureau finance data for Central City: FY2023. 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

FY2023 in brief

Central City collected $13,790 per resident (including city-run utilities), 3.9× the median of the 97 Colorado municipalities reporting that year, 62% above its peers. Tax revenue per resident sits 30% below its peers, but 4.6× the state median. Debt per resident runs 55.8× peers.

Regional hub: sales tax per resident is 1.6× 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)

$13,790

62% above peers

Includes city-owned utilities

Peer median: $8,532
CO median · 97 with a published figure Median of the 97 Colorado municipalities with FY2023 Census finance data. In FY2016 and FY2021 the Census covers every municipality; in other years it surveys a sample, mostly larger cities.: $3,580
Position: Higher than 92% of the 97 reporting
5-year changenominal dollars: Not enough history for a 5-year change

How Colorado compares on revenue per resident

Expenditures per resident (definition)

$14,997

18% below peers

Includes city-owned utilities

Peer median: $18,207
CO median · 91 with a published figure Median of the 91 Colorado municipalities with FY2023 Census finance data. In FY2016 and FY2021 the Census covers every municipality; in other years it surveys a sample, mostly larger cities.: $3,680
Position: Higher than 93% of the 91 reporting
5-year changenominal dollars: Not enough history for a 5-year change

Tax revenue per resident (definition)

$7,889

30% below peers

Peer median: $11,256
CO median · 90 with a published figure Median of the 90 Colorado municipalities with FY2023 Census finance data. In FY2016 and FY2021 the Census covers every municipality; in other years it surveys a sample, mostly larger cities.: $1,726
Position: Higher than 92% of the 90 reporting
5-year changenominal dollars: Not enough history for a 5-year change

Debt per resident (definition)

$99,078

55.8× peers

Peer median: $1,777
CO median · 91 with a published figure Median of the 91 Colorado municipalities with FY2023 Census finance data. In FY2016 and FY2021 the Census covers every municipality; in other years it surveys a sample, mostly larger cities.: $2,130
Position: Higher than 99% of the 91 reporting
5-year changenominal dollars: Not enough history for a 5-year change

How Colorado compares on debt per resident

How this number was calculated

Revenue per resident · $13,790

Reported by the city to the Census Bureau

1Metric
$13,790 Total revenue divided by population
= Total revenue ÷ population
Full definition: Revenue per resident
2Inputs
Total revenue $10.8M ÷ population 781 (2023 estimate)
3Census line items
- A61 Parks & recreation charges
- A89 General government (other) charges
- A91 Water utility charges
- C89 State aid
- T01 Property tax
- T09 General sales tax
- T19 Selective sales taxes (lodging, utilities, etc.)
- T21 Licenses & permits
- T28 Licenses & permits
- T29 Licenses & permits
- U01 Special assessments
- U11 Sale of property
- U20 Interest earnings
- U30 Fines & forfeits
- U50 Private donations
- U99 Miscellaneous
4Source file
- Annual Survey of State & Local Government Finances 2024 - Individual Unit File
  Value for
  FY2023
  Survey file
  2024
  The 2024 Census survey covers fiscal years ending July 1, 2023 through June 30, 2024, so a fiscal year ending December 31, 2023 is FY2023.
  Retrieved October 12, 2026 · View source: Annual Survey of State & Local Government Finances 2024 - Individual Unit File (opens in a new tab)
- Population Estimates Program, Vintage 2025 - incorporated places
  Value for
  FY2023
  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

Central City runs city-owned utilities, which add 11.4% 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 781 residents, small changes in Central City's budget move per-resident figures a lot. Compare several years, not one.
Debt per resident is 55.8× the peer median. One large bond issue can do this; check the city's annual financial report for what it funded.

Where the money comes from and where it goes

Per resident, FY2023. Bars show Central City; the gold tick is the peer median. How categories work

Regional hub: sales tax per resident is 1.6× 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 Transportation: $327 per resident, 93% below the peer median. On the revenue side, sales tax is 71% below peers.

Money in

Revenue

$13,790

per resident62% above peers

Money in: Central City revenue per resident by category, FY2023, against the peer median. Open a category for its lines and Census item codes.
Category	Per resident	Peer median	vs peers	Share of revenue
	$3,786	$1,486	2.5× peerspeers $1,486	27%

Licenses & permits $3,526 · peers $301 Selective sales taxes (lodging, utilities, etc.) $260 · peers $80 Lodging, utility, tobacco and other selective sales taxes, licenses and permits, and other taxes. Census line items T19 Selective sales taxes (lodging, utilities, etc.) T21 Licenses & permits T28 Licenses & permits T29 Licenses & permits
	$2,677	$332	8.1× peerspeers $332	19%

State aid $2,677 · peers $42 Grants and shared revenue from federal, state and local governments. Census line items C89 State aid
	$2,303	$1,666	38% above peerspeers $1,666	17%

Property tax $2,303 · peers $1,666 Property tax levied by the municipality. Census line items T01 Property tax
	$1,799	$6,132	71% below peerspeers $6,132	13%

General sales tax $1,799 · peers $6,132 General sales and use tax. Census line items T09 General sales tax
	$1,577	$363	4.3× peerspeers $363	11%

Water utility charges $1,577 · peers $363 Revenue of city-owned water, electric, gas and transit systems. Census line items A91 Water utility charges
	$1,006	$675	49% above peerspeers $675	7%

Interest earnings $714 · peers $220 Special assessments $119 · peers $0 Private donations $79 · peers $0 Miscellaneous $67 · peers $225 Sale of property $26 · peers $0 Fines & forfeits $1 · peers $35 Interest earnings, fines, rents, special assessments, donations and sales of property. Census line items U01 Special assessments U11 Sale of property U20 Interest earnings U30 Fines & forfeits U50 Private donations U99 Miscellaneous
	$640	$347	85% above peerspeers $347	5%

General government (other) charges $624 · peers $36 Parks & recreation charges $17 · peers $0 Charges for services such as sewer, trash, recreation, parking and airports. Census line items A61 Parks & recreation charges A89 General government (other) charges

Peer median of 5 peers · Colorado median of 97 reporting

Money out

Spending

$14,997

per resident18% below peers

Money out: Central City spending per resident by category, FY2023, against the peer median. Open a category for its lines and Census item codes.
Category	Per resident	Peer median	vs peers	Share of spending
	$5,425	$4,103	32% above peerspeers $4,103	36%

General government (other) $4,749 · peers $986 incl. $371 construction General public buildings $676 · peers $356 incl. $661 construction incl. $1,032 construction Administration, finance, legal and courts, public buildings and other general government. Census line items E31 General public buildings E89 General government (other) F31 General public buildings F89 General government (other)
	$4,035	$235	17.2× peerspeers $235	27%

Interest on debt $4,035 · peers $235 Interest paid on the municipality's debt. Includes Census Bureau estimates for this year. Census line items I89 Interest on debt
	$2,160	$2,196	in line with peerspeers $2,196	14%

Parks & recreation $1,291 · peers $461 incl. $942 construction Housing & community development $869 · peers $1,630 incl. $942 construction Parks and recreation, libraries, housing and community development. Census line items E50 Housing & community development E61 Parks & recreation F61 Parks & recreation
	$1,948	$1,419	37% above peerspeers $1,419	13%

Police $1,535 · peers $1,419 incl. $15 construction Fire protection $412 · peers $0 incl. $15 construction Police, fire protection, inspection and corrections. Census line items E24 Fire protection E62 Police F62 Police
	$1,104	$702	57% above peerspeers $702	7%

Water utility $1,097 · peers $603 incl. $210 construction Natural resources $6 · peers $1 incl. $210 construction Water, sewer, solid waste, electric and gas utilities, and natural resources. Census line items E59 Natural resources E91 Water utility F91 Water utility
	$327	$4,758	93% below peerspeers $4,758	2%

Transit $327 · peers $2,896 Streets and highways, transit, parking and airports. Census line items E94 Transit

Peer median of 4 peers · Colorado median of 91 reporting

Central City 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, FY2023. How peers are chosen

Open in Compare

Central City compared with its peer municipalities, FY2023, per resident
Municipality	Revenue	Expenditures	Tax revenue	Sales tax	Debt
Central CityUtilities: City-owned utilities (water, electric, gas, transit) brought in 11.4% of total revenue in FY2023. 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 1.6× the Colorado median.	$13,790	$14,997	$7,889	$1,799	$99,078
Winter ParkRegional hub: Sales tax per resident is 10.4× the Colorado median.	$26,089	$28,038	$15,201	$12,097	$25,474
Mountain VillageUtilities: City-owned utilities (water, electric, gas, transit) brought in 8.6% of total revenue in FY2023. 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 7.0× the Colorado median.	$33,136	$31,265	$16,827	$8,118	$32,366
Mt. Crested ButteRegional hub: Sales tax per resident is 3.6× the Colorado median.	$8,532	$8,375	$7,312	$4,147	$1,202
MinturnUtilities: City-owned utilities (water, electric, gas, transit) brought in 39.3% of total revenue in FY2023. Revenue and spending per resident include them, so cities that run their own utilities read higher than cities that don't.	$4,343	$3,680	$1,987	$1,278	$1,777
DoloresUtilities: City-owned utilities (water, electric, gas, transit) brought in 14.6% of total revenue in FY2023. Revenue and spending per resident include them, so cities that run their own utilities read higher than cities that don't.	$2,484	Withheld Dolores · Expenditures per resident · FY2023 Reason: Expenditures per resident is 15% of the peer median We don't publish figures that fail our quality checks until they're verified against the city's audited financial report.	Withheld Dolores · Tax revenue per resident · FY2023 Reason: Tax revenue per resident is 16% of the peer median We don't publish figures that fail our quality checks until they're verified against the city's audited financial report.	$940	$245
Peer median	$8,532	$18,207	$11,256	$4,147	$1,777

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 6.9x the peer median

Peer group changed in FY2021, FY2023. Peers are matched each year, so the peer median can step when the group changes.

Show data table

Revenue per resident by fiscal year
Year	This city	Peer median	Colorado median
FY2016	Withheld (Revenue per resident is 6.9x the peer median)	Benchmark unavailable	$1,746 (224 reporting)
FY2021	$11,511	$4,570	$2,476 (227 reporting)
FY2023	$13,790	$8,532	$3,580 (97 reporting, sample year)

Expenditures per resident

Fiscal year · nominal dollars, not adjusted for inflation

Census definition change: Excludes equipment purchases and payments to other governments, which Census stopped reporting after FY2021.

FY2016 withheld: Expenditures per resident is 9.1x the peer median

Peer group changed in FY2021, FY2023. Peers are matched each year, so the peer median can step when the group changes.

Show data table

Expenditures per resident by fiscal year
Year	This city	Peer median	Colorado median
FY2016	Withheld (Expenditures per resident is 9.1x the peer median)	Benchmark unavailable	$1,749 (196 reporting)
FY2021	$9,407	$4,120	$2,208 (220 reporting)
FY2023	$14,997	$18,207	$3,680 (91 reporting, sample year)

Tax revenue per resident

Fiscal year · nominal dollars, not adjusted for inflation

FY2016 withheld: Tax revenue per resident is 10.4x the peer median
FY2021 withheld: Tax revenue per resident is 7.0x 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 10.4x the peer median)	Benchmark unavailable	$705 (193 reporting)
FY2021	Withheld (Tax revenue per resident is 7.0x the peer median)	Benchmark unavailable	$1,072 (201 reporting)
FY2023	$7,889	$11,256	$1,726 (90 reporting, sample year)

Debt per resident

Fiscal year · nominal dollars, not adjusted for inflation

Peer group changed in FY2021, FY2023. 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	$1,207	$182	$1,072 (220 reporting)
FY2021	$101,531	$2,808	$1,411 (199 reporting)
FY2023	$99,078	$1,777	$2,130 (91 reporting, sample year)

Questions about Central City’s finances

How much revenue does Central City collect per resident?: Central City collected $13,790 per resident in FY2023, 3.9× the median of the 97 Colorado municipalities reporting that year. See the figure
How does Central City's spending per resident compare with similar cities?: Central City spent $14,997 per resident in FY2023, 18% below the median of its peers: Winter Park, Mountain Village, Mt. Crested Butte, Minturn and Dolores. See the figure
How much debt does Central City have per resident?: Central City carried $99,078 of debt per resident in FY2023, 55.8× its peers' median. See the figure
Which cities is Central City compared with?: Central City is compared with Winter Park, Mountain Village, Mt. Crested Butte, Minturn and Dolores: 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): +1.4%/yr; 2023 estimate
Median household income: $62.1K; 2023 estimate
Poverty rate: 6.6%; 2023 estimate
Median home value: $379.4K; 2023 estimate
Housing vacancy rate: 30.9%; 2023 estimate

Explore further

Also in Central Mountains & Resort

Oak Creek$4,009 · FY2021
Blue River$1,525 · FY2016
Fairplay$5,213 · FY2021
Hot Sulphur Springs
Mt. Crested Butte$8,532 · FY2023
Minturn$4,343 · FY2023
Dillon$22,632 · FY2022
Walden$4,010 · FY2021

Revenue per resident, latest published year.

Sources

American Community Survey 5-year estimates 2019-2023 · 2023
U.S. Census Bureau
Retrieved October 7, 2026View source: American Community Survey 5-year estimates 2019-2023 (opens in a new tab)
Annual Survey of State & Local Government Finances 2024 - Individual Unit File · 2024 survey file
U.S. Census Bureau
Retrieved October 12, 2026View source: Annual Survey of State & Local Government Finances 2024 - 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: Central City, 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

Transportation is Central City’s largest difference from its peers (93% below the peer median in FY2023). 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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Central City · FY2023 municipal finance benchmarks

FY2023 in brief

FY2023 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

Central City and its peers

Trends

Questions about Central City’s finances

Community context

Explore further

Also in Central Mountains & Resort

Sources

Transportation is Central City’s largest difference from its peers (93% below the peer median in FY2023). See how that line moves month to month in your own budget-vs-actual.