Where does the data come from?

From public sources: municipal/state codes, agency pages, and ballot or ordinance records, each cited on the tax detail pages.

How current is the data?

We compile changes as soon as contributors submit updates. The inventory reads a compiled JSON snapshot generated at build time.

Yes—start with your local jurisdiction and add one tax with an official source. See the Get started and Contribute pages for templates.

How it works

A plain-language guide to our pipeline: origination → collection → expenditure. This is about methodology, not how to submit data.

Public funds should be public knowledge. TaxTracker exists to honor sunlight laws, open-data mandates, and the simple belief that communities thrive when people can actually see how money moves. Transparency is not just good governance—it is the accountability mechanism that keeps public promises honest and empowers residents to push for better outcomes.

The pipeline

We aggregate public records, normalize them to a common schema, compile to JSON, and render pages.

Sources: municipal/state codes, agency sites, ballot/ordinance records.
Normalization: small JSON files under _data/taxes/… validated & key-sorted.
Compilation: a build step produces _data/compiled/taxes.json.
Rendering: the inventory lists all taxes; per-tax pages show details & sources.
Visualization: the flows prototype illustrates cyclical movement of funds.

What’s in a tax record

name, slug, status, type
jurisdiction (level, name, slug)
agency (name, slug)
rates[] (percent/amount; applies_to; cap)
revenue & revenue_year (latest annual USD)
sources[] (name + URL), updated_at, notes

Provenance & verification

Every fact links to an official source.
Edits via PR/Issues leave an auditable history.
Automated validation catches schema drift.

How pages are generated

Inventory reads _data/compiled/taxes.json. Per-tax pages are generated from that dataset (either via a build step or a Jekyll generator), ensuring the site reflects the latest data.

Roadmap

Richer jurisdiction coverage (city, county, special districts).
“Follow the Money” with account/vendor hops.
APIs & bulk downloads.

Browse inventory Get started Contribute data

Contribute a tax from your jurisdiction

Start small—add one accurate record with an official source. We validate JSON and key ordering automatically.

Contribute data