- Sum the tax amounts for all categories to find the total: \(\$241 + \$896 + \$154 + \$177 = \$1468\).
- Divide the Public Safety amount by the total: \(\frac{154}{1468} \approx 0.1049\).
- Multiply by 100 to express this as a percentage: \(10.49\%\).
- The correct option is \(\boxed{a}\).
Explanation
- Calculating the Total Tax Amount
To determine what percentage of the total property tax was allocated to Public Safety, we first calculate the total amount of taxes collected. The bill lists four categories with their respective dollar amounts:
- Roads: \(\$241\)
- Schools: \(\$896\)
- Public Safety: \(\$154\)
- Township: \(\$177\)
Summing these amounts provides the total tax:
\[\text{Total Tax} = 241 + 896 + 154 + 177 = 1468\]
The total tax amount is \(\$1468\).
- Calculating the Percentage for Public Safety
Next, we identify the amount allocated to Public Safety, which is given as \(\$154\). The percentage is calculated by dividing the amount for the specific category by the total tax amount and then multiplying the result by 100:
\[\text{Percentage} = \left( \frac{154}{1468} \right) \times 100\]
Performing the division:
\[\frac{154}{1468} \approx 0.1049046\]
Multiplying by 100 gives:
\[0.1049046 \times 100 \approx 10.49\%\]
- Conclusion and Selecting the Correct Answer
Comparing the calculated value of \(10.49\%\) with the given choices:
A\(10.49\%\)
B\(12.06\%\)
C\(11.72\%\)
D\(8.94\%\)
The calculated percentage matches choice (a). Thus, the correct portion of the taxes allocated to public safety is approximately \(10.49\%\). The final answer is \(\boxed{a}\).
Examples
Understanding how to calculate percentages from a total is an essential skill for managing personal finances, such as analyzing monthly budgets, reviewing utility bills, or understanding how tax dollars are distributed in your community. For example, if you want to know how much of your monthly income is spent on groceries versus rent, you can use the same approach of calculating the total budget and determining the ratio of each expense relative to that total to gain better insight into your financial habits.