During fiscal 1990, state and local government revenues surpassed the $1-trillion mark for the first time, according to a report by the U.S. Census Bureau. Total revenues received by state and local governments in 1989-90 were $1.032 trillion, compared with $954 billion the previous fiscal year, an increase of 8 percent.
Almost half ($501 billion) of all the 1989-90 revenues came from taxes. Property taxes accounted for $156 billion, or 15 percent of all revenues.
Approximately 30 percent of all state and local expenditures ($287 billion) went for education. Of the $185 billion spent on education by states, $109 billion was in the form of intergovernmental aid distributed to local schools. Local governments spent $212 billion on education, virtually all of which ($199 billion) went for elementary and secondary education.
Copies of “Government Finances: 1989-90 (Preliminary)” are available for $3.25 each from the Data User Services Division, Customer Services (Publications), Bureau of the Census, Washington, D.C. 20233.