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Please note!
This fact brief was originally published as an experiment to test the concepts behind fact briefs.
Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of useful information in fact briefs like this one, not all of them reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.

Is the per-user cost of municipal services higher in low-density neighborhoods?

By Lisa Freedland
YES

Urban sprawl, which creates lower-density suburban communities, is associated with higher per-user costs for municipal services like water, sanitation, electricity, public transport, waste management and policing, according to a 2018 report published by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. “Significant subsidies” are required to cover the cost of these services, and providing them “exerts pressure on local public finance.”

Sometimes, taxpayers in denser urban neighborhoods may directly subsidize services for suburbanites. According to 2019 tax data from Denver, denser, older neighborhoods close to downtown generate millions of dollars in surplus revenues that help cover costs for less-concentrated, relatively wealthy neighborhoods where property tax receipts can’t fund all the infrastructure needs.

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTOR
Between 2020 and 2022, under close editorial supervision, Gigafact contracted a group of freelance writers and editors to test the concepts for fact briefs and provide inputs to our software development process. We call this effort Gigafact Foundry. Over the course of these two years, Gigafact Foundry writers published over 1500 fact briefs in response to claims they found online. Their important work forms the basis of Gigafact formats and editorial guidelines, and is available to the public on Gigafact.org. Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of relevant information to be found, not all fact briefs produced by Gigafact Foundry reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date and need to be looked at with fresh eyes, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.
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