Moscow operates under a mayor-council form of government. The city council adopts an annual budget each October covering all governmental and enterprise funds. Idaho law requires municipalities to adopt balanced budgets where appropriations do not exceed estimated revenues plus beginning fund balances.
FY2026 proposed total budget: $139.5M across all funds. The General Fund ($20.6M) covers police, fire, administration, and community development. Enterprise funds (water, sewer, sanitation) are self-supporting from user fees.
Revenue vs Expenditure
Total adopted budget revenue and expenditure by fiscal year, all funds combined.
Revenue equals expenditure for adopted budgets because Idaho law requires balanced budgets.
Annual Property Tax Increase
Council-approved property tax levy increase each year. Idaho law caps the statutory increase at 3%; additional foregone balance may be recaptured.
Cumulative Property Tax Increase
Compounded total property tax levy increase since FY2008. Each year's approved increase builds on the prior year's base.
Revenue by Source
Major revenue sources by fiscal year: General Fund, enterprise funds, and other.
"Other" includes miscellaneous revenue, donations, and one-time receipts not classified in the major categories above.
"Other Revenue" Detail
Breakdown of all-funds revenue sources. Includes transfers, fund balance reserves (mostly capital), investment earnings, intergovernmental grants, and debt/loan proceeds.
Debt/Loan Proceeds shows $0 for FY2008–2011 and FY2024–2026 because the city had no new borrowing those years. DEQ revolving loan draws (Water) occurred FY2012–2023. All zeros verified against official budget documents.
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Annual Property Tax Increase
Council-approved property tax levy increase each year. Idaho caps the statutory increase at 3%; additional foregone balance may be recaptured.
Cumulative Property Tax Increase
Compounded total property tax levy increase since FY2008. Each year's approved increase builds on the prior year's base.
Total Expenditure by Major Fund
Adopted budget expenditures by fund, stacked by fiscal year.
FY2013 sewer fund spike ($11.9M vs typical $5-7M) reflects bond refinancing recorded as both revenue and expenditure, not an actual spending increase. Adopted budget figures shown. Revenue equals expenditure by law (balanced budget requirement).
"Other Funds" Detail
Breakdown of "Other" in the Expenditure by Fund chart. These are all funds not shown individually above (General, Street, Water, Sewer, Sanitation, Parks).
Bond & Interest fund shows ~$10M for FY2017–FY2020 because each year's adopted budget included anticipated GO bond proceeds as appropriation authority, even though the bond was not issued until May 2019 ($9.64M GO Capital Facilities Bond). Actual debt service was ~$240–440K/yr for FY2017–2018 (Series 2011 Refunding payoff), rising to ~$1.05M/yr from FY2020 onward for the new bond. The ~$10M figures are total fund appropriations including unspent bond reserves, not actual annual spending. Remaining blanks are years where the fund did not exist or the budget does not break out that fund separately.
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General Fund by Department
Police, fire, administration, legal, and community development spending from the General Fund. Admin: FY2025 = $861,012, FY2026 = $837,581.
"Other" includes miscellaneous General Fund expenditures not allocated to the five departments shown above.
"Other Departments" Detail
General Fund departments not shown individually in the chart above: Finance, Human Resources, Buildings & Grounds, Non-Departmental (transfers, VEBA, economic development), Engineering (pre-FY2021), and Public Health.
Engineering appears as a separate General Fund department through FY2020. In FY2021, Engineering was merged into "Community Planning & Design" (later renamed Community Development). FY2021+ Engineering values are blank because the department no longer exists as a standalone budget line.
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Money Flow (Sankey Diagram)
Revenue sources flow into funds, then out to spending categories. Click a fund to drill down. Click a department at level 2 for expenditure detail.
Major Fund Comparison
Revenue for the five largest city funds plotted together over time.
General Fund Balance
Year-end General Fund balance as reported in budget documents. FY2024 spike ($2.0M) reflects one-time carry-forward surplus; FY2025 returned to normal levels.
Total Debt Service
Annual debt service payments across all funds (General Obligation bonds, revenue bonds, other). FY2013 includes $8.2M sewer bond refinancing.
Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) by Category
10-year CIP ($128.4M) broken down by infrastructure category.
FY2013 Debt Service Breakdown ($8.2M)
The FY2013 $8.2M spike was driven by sewer bond refinancing. The 2002 Sewer Revenue Bond (~$10M for WWTP Phase III) was partially refinanced in FY2012, and FY2013 included principal payments on the refinanced bonds recorded as both revenue and expenditure.
| Instrument | Amount | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Sewer Revenue Bond Debt Service | $7,445,995 | Includes principal payments on 2002 bonds (original + 2008 Phase IV) and 2011 refinanced portion. Refinancing saved ~$73,440/yr ($734,407 total). |
| GO Bond — Hamilton-Lowe Aquatic Center | $208,775 | 2011 Refunding Bond (swimming pool). Levy rate $0.203/1K. Refinancing saved $23,195/yr. |
| GO Bond — Fire Station #3 | $245,085 | Fire Station #3 capital construction bond. Levy rate $0.238/1K. |
| GO Bond — Commodities/Admin | $79,170 | Bond fund ending balance + commodities. |
| HIRC Certificates of Participation | $263,130 | Hamilton Indoor Recreation Center COPs, funded through Hamilton Trust. |
| Total Debt Service | $8,242,155 |
Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) Projects (2025-2034)
All capital projects from the adopted 10-year CIP. Click column headers to sort.
| Project | Category | Year | Cost | Funding |
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Construction Valuation
Total stated valuation of building permits issued per year (named permits only).
New Dwelling Units
Number of new residential units authorized by building permits per year.
Permit Types by Year
Named building permits by category per year (excludes mechanical/plumbing/other).
Seasonal Permit Activity
Monthly named permit counts by year. Red = highest activity, white = lowest.
Notable Permits
Highest-valuation building permits per year by project type, area, and unit count. Click column headers to sort.
| Year | Description | Valuation |
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Annual Property Tax Increase
Council-approved property tax levy increase each year. Idaho law caps the statutory increase at 3%; additional foregone balance may be recaptured.
Cumulative Property Tax Increase
Compounded total property tax levy increase since FY2008. Each year's approved increase builds on the prior year's base.
Property Tax Rate by Type (Urban / Rural / Overall)
2025 average property tax rates by county. Source: Idaho State Tax Commission, 2025.
Annual Property Tax on $400,000 Home
Estimated annual property tax bill based on 2025 urban levy rates.
Property Tax Rate Comparison (%)
2025 average property tax rates for Moscow, Lewiston, Coeur d'Alene, and statewide. Source: Idaho State Tax Commission, 2025.
| City / County | Urban Rate (%) | Rural Rate (%) | Overall Average (%) | Annual Tax on $400K Home (Urban) |
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Typical Household Annual Cost
Estimated annual cost for a typical single-family household on a $400,000 home. Assumes ~500 cubic feet (CF) per month water use, standard sewer, 64-gallon garbage, and 1 equivalent service unit (ESU) stormwater.
| City | Water | Sewer | Garbage | Stormwater | Property Tax | Total Annual |
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Property tax rates: Idaho State Tax Commission, 2025. Utility rates: official FY2026 fee schedules. CdA water annual = ($11.22 fixed + ~$6.10 consumption) x 12. Moscow water = ($44.78 + ~$18.87) x 12. Lewiston water = ($39.00 + $18.84) x 12.
Fees Comparison: Moscow vs Coeur d'Alene vs Lewiston
Side-by-side comparison of city fees and utility rates. Green = lowest, red = highest among cities with data.
Rates from official FY2026 fee schedules. Coeur d'Alene (CdA) and Lewiston included as regional benchmarks. Lewiston source: Resolution 2025-39 (effective Oct 1, 2025). Rates are not directly comparable in all cases due to different billing structures (see notes column).
| Category | Item | Moscow | CdA | Lewiston | Unit | Notes |
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Idaho Cities by Total Expenditures (>$20M)
FY2025 total appropriations (all funds) for Idaho cities above $20M. Includes general fund, enterprise funds, capital projects, and debt service. Moscow highlighted in cyan. Source: Idaho State Controller, Transparent Idaho.
Why Boise shows $1.17B (26.8% of all Idaho city expenditures): The Idaho State Controller's Transparent Idaho dataset captures all appropriated funds, not just operating budgets. Boise's total includes ~$300M General Fund, ~$463M enterprise funds (airport operations, water/sewer, solid waste, geothermal), $112M+ in airport capital projects (part of a $700M terminal expansion through 2029), urban renewal/CCDC tax increment financing, plus debt service, internal service, and reserve funds. The city's own public-facing budget narrative cites ~$876M for FY2025 (Boise Budget Library); the $296M gap is primarily airport bond proceeds and CCDC allocations that the State Controller captures but the city doesn't emphasize. Source: Idaho State Controller, Transparent Idaho, FY2024 city budget data.
Idaho Counties by Overall Average Property Tax Rate (2025)
Overall average property tax rate by county. Includes all taxing districts (city, county, school, highway, etc.). Source: Idaho State Tax Commission, EPB00129, 11/25/2025.
Property Tax Rate by Type (Urban / Rural / Overall)
2025 average property tax rates stacked by type. Source: Idaho State Tax Commission, 2025.
Annual Property Tax on $400,000 Home
Estimated annual property tax bill based on 2025 urban levy rates.
Property Tax Rate Comparison (%)
2025 average property tax rates for Moscow, Lewiston, Coeur d'Alene, and statewide. Source: Idaho State Tax Commission, 2025.
| City / County | Urban Rate (%) | Rural Rate (%) | Overall Average (%) | Annual Tax on $400K Home (Urban) |
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All Idaho Cities
FY2025 total appropriations (all funds combined: general, enterprise, capital, special revenue, debt service) for all 122 reporting Idaho cities. Figures represent total budgeted authority, not general fund operating budgets alone. Source: Idaho State Controller, Transparent Idaho.
| City | Expenditures | Revenues | % of State |
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Plan Timeline
Adoption dates and key milestones for each city plan.
City Plan Goals & Objectives
Goals from the Comprehensive Plan, Strategic Plan, Climate Action Plan, and Moscow Urban Renewal Agency (MURA) Strategic Plan.
| Plan | Chapter | ID | Goal | Timeline | Responsible |
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Data Sources
All source documents used to compile this dashboard.
| Document | Type | Category | Years | Notes |
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