Central City · FY2021 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); FY2021 per-resident figures use 791 · Census finance data FY2016, FY2021, FY2023

You’re viewing FY2021. See the latest view (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

FY2021 in brief

Central City collected $11,511 per resident (including city-run utilities), 4.6× the median of the 227 Colorado municipalities reporting that year, 2.5× its peers. Debt per resident runs 36.2× peers.

Regional hub: sales tax per resident is 1.5× the Colorado median.

Tax revenue per resident withheld: Tax revenue per resident is 7.0x the peer 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)

$11,511

2.5× peers

Includes city-owned utilities

Peer median: $4,570
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 97% 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)

$9,407

2.3× peers

Includes city-owned utilities

Peer median: $4,120
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 96% of the 220 reporting
5-year changenominal dollars: Not enough history for a 5-year change

Tax revenue per resident (definition)

Peer median: Benchmark unavailable
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: Not reported for this year
5-year changenominal dollars: Withheld with this year's value

Debt per resident (definition)

$101,531

36.2× peers

Peer median: $2,808
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 99% of the 199 reporting
5-year changenominal dollars: +142.7%/yr

How Colorado compares on debt per resident

How this number was calculated

Revenue per resident · $11,511

Reported by the city to the Census Bureau

1Metric
$11,511 Total revenue divided by population
= Total revenue ÷ population
Full definition: Revenue per resident
2Inputs
Total revenue $9.1M ÷ population 791 (2021 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
- U20 Interest earnings
- U30 Fines & forfeits
- U50 Private donations
- 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

Central City runs city-owned utilities, which add 9.7% 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 791 residents, small changes in Central City's budget move per-resident figures a lot. Compare several years, not one.
Debt per resident is 36.2× 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, FY2021. Bars show Central City; the gold tick is the peer median. How categories work

Regional hub: sales tax per resident is 1.5× 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: $3,040 per resident, 4.0× the peer median. On the revenue side, intergovernmental is 6.9× peers.

Money in

Revenue

$11,511

per resident2.5× peers

Money in: Central City 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
	$2,655	$384	6.9× peerspeers $384	23%

State aid $2,655 · peers $259 Grants and shared revenue from federal, state and local governments. Census line items C89 State aid
	$1,119	$1,456	23% below peerspeers $1,456	10%

Water utility charges $1,119 · peers $474 Revenue of city-owned water, electric, gas and transit systems. Census line items A91 Water utility charges
	$684	$838	18% below peerspeers $838	6%

General government (other) charges $670 · peers $129 Parks & recreation charges $14 · 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
	$104	$63	63% above peerspeers $63	1%

Miscellaneous $51 · peers $2 Private donations $25 · peers $8 Interest earnings $25 · peers $1 Fines & forfeits $3 · peers $1 Interest earnings, fines, rents, special assessments, donations and sales of property. Census line items U20 Interest earnings U30 Fines & forfeits U50 Private donations U99 Miscellaneous
	Withheld Central City · Sales tax · FY2021 Reason: Tax revenue per resident is 7.0x the peer median We don't publish figures that fail our quality checks until they're verified against the city's audited financial report.	Peer median unavailable	Withheld	Withheld

General sales tax Withheld Central City · General sales tax · FY2021 Reason: Tax revenue per resident is 7.0x the peer median We don't publish figures that fail our quality checks until they're verified against the city's audited financial report. General sales and use tax. Census line items T09 General sales tax
	Withheld Central City · Property tax · FY2021 Reason: Tax revenue per resident is 7.0x the peer median We don't publish figures that fail our quality checks until they're verified against the city's audited financial report.	Peer median unavailable	Withheld	Withheld

Property tax Withheld Central City · Property tax · FY2021 Reason: Tax revenue per resident is 7.0x the peer median We don't publish figures that fail our quality checks until they're verified against the city's audited financial report. Property tax levied by the municipality. Census line items T01 Property tax
	Withheld Central City · Other taxes · FY2021 Reason: Tax revenue per resident is 7.0x the peer median We don't publish figures that fail our quality checks until they're verified against the city's audited financial report.	Peer median unavailable	Withheld	Withheld

Licenses & permits Withheld Central City · Licenses & permits · FY2021 Reason: Tax revenue per resident is 7.0x the peer median We don't publish figures that fail our quality checks until they're verified against the city's audited financial report. Selective sales taxes (lodging, utilities, etc.) Withheld Central City · Selective sales taxes (lodging, utilities, etc.) · FY2021 Reason: Tax revenue per resident is 7.0x the peer median We don't publish figures that fail our quality checks until they're verified against the city's audited financial report. · peers $0 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

Peer median of 4 peers · Colorado median of 227 reporting

Money out

Spending

$9,407

per resident2.3× peers

Money out: Central City 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
	$3,040	$768	4.0× peerspeers $768	32%

General government (other) $3,040 · peers $177 incl. $71 construction incl. $71 construction Administration, finance, legal and courts, public buildings and other general government. Census line items E89 General government (other) F89 General government (other)
	$2,166	$480	4.5× peerspeers $480	23%

Police $1,153 · peers $480 Fire protection $1,013 · peers $0 incl. $654 construction incl. $654 construction Police, fire protection, inspection and corrections. Census line items E24 Fire protection E62 Police F24 Fire protection
	$1,927	$73	26.2× peerspeers $73	20%

Interest on debt $1,927 · peers $73 Interest paid on the municipality's debt. Census line items I89 Interest on debt
	$918	$1,739	47% below peerspeers $1,739	10%

Water utility $913 · peers $396 incl. $229 construction Natural resources $5 · peers $0 incl. $229 construction Water, sewer, solid waste, electric and gas utilities, and natural resources. Census line items E59 Natural resources E91 Water utility F91 Water utility
	$799	$129	6.2× peerspeers $129	8%

Housing & community development $403 · peers $28 Parks & recreation $396 · peers $95 incl. $13 construction incl. $13 construction Parks and recreation, libraries, housing and community development. Census line items E50 Housing & community development E61 Parks & recreation F61 Parks & recreation
	$558	$365	53% above peerspeers $365	6%

Transit $558 · peers $0 incl. $198 construction incl. $198 construction Streets and highways, transit, parking and airports. Census line items E94 Transit F94 Transit
None reported · peers $1	$0	$1	None reported	0%

Central City reported nothing in this category for FY2021. Health, hospitals and public welfare.

Peer median of 4 peers · Colorado median of 220 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, FY2021. How peers are chosen

Open in Compare

Central City compared with its peer municipalities, FY2021, per resident
Municipality	Revenue	Expenditures	Tax revenue	Sales tax	Debt
Central CityUtilities: City-owned utilities (water, electric, gas, transit) brought in 9.7% 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 1.5× the Colorado median.	$11,511	$9,407	Withheld Central City · Tax revenue per resident · FY2021 Reason: Tax revenue per resident is 7.0x the peer median We don't publish figures that fail our quality checks until they're verified against the city's audited financial report.	$1,317	$101,531
Oak CreekUtilities: City-owned utilities (water, electric, gas, transit) brought in 53.3% 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.	$4,009	$3,126	Withheld Oak Creek · Tax revenue per resident · FY2021 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.	Withheld Oak Creek · Sales tax per resident · FY2021 Reason: Sales tax per resident is 21% 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.	$1,856
FairplayUtilities: City-owned utilities (water, electric, gas, transit) brought in 10.6% 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.Regional hub: Sales tax per resident is 3.0× the Colorado median.	$5,213	$3,948	Withheld Fairplay · Tax revenue per resident · FY2021 Reason: Tax revenue per resident is 3.6x the peer median We don't publish figures that fail our quality checks until they're verified against the city's audited financial report.	$2,591	$4,005
IgnacioUtilities: 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 2.6× the Colorado median.	$5,129	$4,332	$2,333	$2,261	Not reported for this year
WaldenUtilities: City-owned utilities (water, electric, gas, transit) brought in 53.2% 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.	$4,010	$4,292	$997	$815	$2,768
Peer median	$4,570	$4,120	Benchmark unavailable	$2,261	$2,808

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 $11,511 per resident in FY2021, 4.6× the median of the 227 Colorado municipalities reporting that year. See the figure
How does Central City's spending per resident compare with similar cities?: Central City spent $9,407 per resident in FY2021, 2.3× the median of its peers: Oak Creek, Fairplay, Ignacio and Walden. See the figure
How much debt does Central City have per resident?: Central City carried $101,531 of debt per resident in FY2021, 36.2× its peers' median. See the figure
Which cities is Central City compared with?: Central City is compared with Oak Creek, Fairplay, Ignacio and Walden: 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): +2.0%/yr; 2021 estimate
Median household income: $55.4K; 2021 estimate
Poverty rate: 8.5%; 2021 estimate
Median home value: $330.7K; 2021 estimate
Housing vacancy rate: 20.9%; 2021 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 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: 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

General government is Central City’s largest difference from its peers (4.0× 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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Central City · 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

Central City and its peers

Trends

Questions about Central City’s finances

Community context

Explore further

Also in Central Mountains & Resort

Sources

General government is Central City’s largest difference from its peers (4.0× the peer median in FY2021). See how that line moves month to month in your own budget-vs-actual.