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The Economic Benefit of Iowa Remaining a Low Crime State

Introduction

Crime can be a major indicator of economic health. Any type of crime imposes direct and indirect costs on victims, communities, government departments, and the broader economy. Tangible costs are particularly centralized into law enforcement agencies, healthcare facilities, and the legal system, forcing costs onto victims to seek retribution, medical and mental health treatment, and legal counsel. These costs weigh down the economy. Perpetrators also impose direct costs onto the economy by being imprisoned; they are effectively taken out of the labor force, resulting in a further drain on economic productivity.[1] Additionally, intangible costs of crime can reduce an economy’s level of output. Victims and communities stricken with crime unnecessarily face additional burdens and stresses that reduce their quality of life.

Every state experiences crime, and any amount of crime comes with a cost. However, crime rates above the national average indicate a state has an added cost burden associated with criminality compared with other states. The opposite is also true. A crime rate below the national average represents a cost savings to a state compared with what is typical. Like every state, Iowa experiences crime, but its relatively low rates of crime compared with the rest of the nation is a boon to its residents, businesses, and economy. In 2023, Iowa ranked 35th lowest in crime per capita across the United States.[2] This report relies on prior research published in the Journal of Benefit-Cost Analysis to quantify the costs of crime depending on the type.[3] Using these costs as a basis, it calculates the direct cost of crime for the average state and for Iowa. The difference between the two represents Iowa’s direct savings from maintaining relatively low rates of crime. For this report, Common Sense Institute also employs dynamic economic modeling to estimate the indirect economic benefit of Iowa’s below-average crime rates.

Key Findings

  • Iowa is one of the safest U.S. states. According to the FBI’s 2023 crime statistics, Iowa had the 15th lowest level of crime concentration in the nation.
  • Across three major crime categories, the FBI data ranks Iowa—
    • 17th lowest in crimes against persons per capita.
    • 14th lowest in crimes against property per capita.
    • 33rd lowest in crimes against society per capita.
  • While crime has risen 8.6% since its 2022 low, crime has fallen by 6.86% since 2019.
  • In 2023, Iowa saved $3.8 billion in direct costs associated with crime compared to the average U.S. state.
  • If Iowa had the same rate of crime as the average state in 2023—
    • Its GDP would have been between $516 and $749 million lower.
    • Statewide personal income would have been between $252 and $552 million lower.
    • The economy would have had between 4,400 and 6,900 fewer jobs.
    • Its labor force would have had between 1,000 and 9,600 fewer workers.

Direct Cost Savings from Iowa’s Low Crime

Thanks to low crime rates compared with other states, Iowa’s economy bears a lower cost burden from crime than the average U.S. state. This gives Iowans a relative edge in economic and personal security, allowing higher levels of productivity and lower economic and societal cost burdens associated with crime. To estimate the tangible and intangible costs of crime, CSI utilizes a model presented by Miller, et al., published in the Journal of Benefit-Cost Analysis, "Incidence and Costs of Personal and Property Crimes in the United States, 2017.”[4] This section publishes the cost of each individual crime according to the Miller study. Based those estimates, it then calculates the cost of crime for the average state and for Iowa to determine the direct cost savings from Iowa’s low crime.

The Miller model assigns a cost estimate of economic damage for each type of crime. The economic damage categories include seven tangible categories and a single quality of life, intangible category. Tangible costs are monetary expenditures experienced by victims, government agencies, or anyone paying out of pocket. Whether these costs require replacing a stolen item, visiting the emergency room, scheduling a therapist, hiring a lawyer, imprisoning a criminal, or even cutting back working hours, these costs directly reflect the monetary burdens experienced by individuals or government. Table 1 outlines these cost estimates in 2017 dollars. Note that the tables do not incorporate all crimes listed in the study due to data constraints.

Table 1. Cost per Crime in Thousands of 2017 Dollars

Type of Crime

Medical

Mental Health

Productivity

Property Loss

Public Services

Adjudication and Sanctioning

Perpetrator work loss

Subtotal tangible loss

Quality of Life

Total

Murder

$12.74

$11.98

$1,828.64

$0.20

$148.83

$478.07

$177.87

$2,658.32

$5,150.84

$7,809.16

Rape

$1.84

$4.11

$4.58

$0.18

$0.03

$0.85

$0.35

$11.92

$214.52

$226.44

Rape (PR)

$3.33

$6.50

$7.18

$0.18

$0.90

$44.66

$18.41

$81.16

$319.63

$400.79

Robbery

$1.44

$0.16

$3.40

$1.28

$0.65

$6.75

$2.91

$16.58

$11.15

$27.72

Robbery (PR)

$1.96

$0.20

$4.64

$1.29

$1.32

$13.78

$5.93

$29.11

$14.66

$43.77

Assault

$1.73

$0.18

$1.19

$0.04

$1.89

$2.71

$1.00

$8.75

$20.58

$29.33

Assault (PR)

$2.09

$0.40

$2.29

$0.08

$4.32

$6.17

$2.29

$17.64

$21.15

$38.78

Arson

$2.65

$0.05

$3.39

$19.52

$4.00

$2.60

$0.51

$33.01

$6.43

$39.44

Burglary

$0.00

$0.00

$0.02

$1.64

$0.24

$0.39

$0.38

$2.68

$0.00

$2.68

Burglary (PR)

$0.00

$0.00

$0.04

$2.88

$0.58

$0.94

$0.93

$5.37

$0.00

$5.37

Larceny/theft

$0.00

$0.00

$0.02

$0.47

$0.68

$1.94

$0.17

$3.26

$0.00

$3.26

Larceny/theft (PR)

$0.00

$0.00

$0.03

$1.05

$0.90

$2.57

$0.23

$4.78

$0.00

$4.78

Motor vehicle theft

$0.00

$0.00

$0.10

$6.21

$0.57

$1.55

$0.61

$9.04

$0.00

$9.04

Motor vehicle theft (PR)

$0.00

$0.00

$0.12

$7.22

$0.72

$1.96

$0.77

$10.78

$0.00

$10.78

Fraud

$0.00

$0.00

$0.06

$1.85

$0.07

$0.05

$0.02

$2.05

$0.00

$2.05

Buying stolen property

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$1.32

$5.39

$1.57

$9.42

$0.00

$9.42

Vandalism

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$0.39

$0.02

$0.69

$0.25

$1.35

$0.00

$1.35

Weapons carrying

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$0.08

$2.57

$1.07

$3.73

$0.00

$3.73

Prostitution and pandering

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$0.08

$0.26

$0.11

$0.44

$0.00

$0.44

Drug possession and sales

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$5.05

$3.60

$1.50

$10.15

$0.00

$10.15

Source: Miller, et al.

Table 1 estimates the individual cost breakdowns for the 16 types of crimes listed in column one. Row one specifics the nature of the cost. For example, a single murder is estimated to have $12,735 in medical costs, $11,976 in mental health costs, and so forth. The total average cost of a single murder in the United States is in the last column at $7.8 million. Areas with high murder rates typically have higher costs associated with crime, as murder is the most costly crime. The estimates in table 1 can be used to determine total cost burden of crime on an economy. Common Sense Institute determines the direct cost savings that Iowa gains from lower crime by finding the difference in total cost of crime between Iowa and the average state. These calculations rely simply on the total cost of crime in the bottom right cell of table 1. Estimates for indirect cost savings, estimated in the next section entitled “Economic Impact of Iowa’s Cost of Crime Savings,” will utilize the individual cost categories.

A control state proportional to Iowa’s population is needed to estimate Iowa’s direct cost savings. This control state’s crime level is derived from the average of per capita FBI data on all fifty states minus Iowa. This estimate is then normalized to Iowa’s population to avoid overinflating national data. For instance, large states like California or Texas could inflate crime estimates, so normalizing the average to Iowa’s population best reflects a state with equal population conditions. This final crime level estimate acts as the volume of crime in the specific crime type. If the state has 100 reported murders, the total costs associated with murder would be 100 times $7.8 million, or $780 million. However, direct FBI data only reflects police reported crimes.

The FBI’s NIBRS database does not include non-police reported crimes. Instead, non-police reported crimes in tables G and H of Appendix B were estimated using the Bureau of Justice Statistics 2023 National Crime Victimization Survey’s available estimates for the percentage of victimizations reported to the police. These non-police reported rate estimates are available in Table F of Appendix B.[5] These statistics provide an estimate that the average U.S. state suffered at least $9.2 billion in costs from crime. Of the total cost, 41.07% is attributable to tangible costs and 58.93% to quality-of-life costs. Of the $3.8 billion in tangible losses, $1.36 billion or 36% went towards adjudication and sanctioning, 19.4% to productivity, 17.2% to public services, and 10.7% to perpetrator work loss. See table G of Appendix B for exact cost of crime calculations for the average state.

Data on Iowa statewide crime levels come from the Iowa Department of Public Safety’s annual Offense Trend Report.[6] This report applies the police-reported and estimated non-police reported crimes to the Miller model to estimate Iowa’s cost of crime. According to the most updated statistics, Iowa’s cost of crime in 2023 was $5.4 billion. Unlike the average state, the distribution between tangible and intangible costs was closer to 50-50 in Iowa. Again, the largest percentage of tangible costs, 38%, were directed towards adjudication and sanctioning. Next was public services at 21.7% and productivity at 12.9%. Iowa saves an estimated $3.8 billion in direct costs of crime, as seen in table 2.

Table 2. Direct Cost of Crime in the Average U.S. State and Iowa in Millions of Inflation-Adjusted 2023 Dollars

 

Direct Cost of Crime

Difference/ Cost Savings

Average U.S. State

$9,237.21

 

Iowa

$5,420.35

$3,816.87

 

This represents only the direct cost savings to the state resulting from below average crime rates. The following section uses dynamic economic modeling to estimate the indirect economic benefits of lower crime for Iowa.

Economic Benefit of Iowa’s Low Crime

In addition to estimating the direct cost savings of Iowa’s low crime, Common Sense Institute used the REMI model to estimate the indirect economic benefits of the same.[7] As in the “Direct Cost of Crime” section of this report, CSI bases the indirect economic benefits on the difference between Iowa’s actual cost of crime and the average state’s cost of crime. To determine the cost savings of lower-than-average crime, CSI simulates the impact of increasing Iowa’s cost of crime to the level equivalent to the average state. In other words, the simulation represents how the state’s economy would react to a sudden increase in crime equal to the national average. Limitations to this analysis are explained in Appendix A.

Table 3 shows the model inputs used to simulate the economic benefits for the state. Each dollar amount listed is in millions of dollars and reflects the difference in cost between Iowa and the average state. Medical and mental health costs are included given that these costs are better confined in their respective industries. The exogenous final demand variables reflect the direct increased costs for medical and mental health care, and the consumer and state spending variables reflect a hypothetical 50-50 split on who pays for that cost.

Table 3. REMI Inputs

Model Input

Related Cost

Nominal $ (Millions)

Economic Output

Productivity, Perpetrator Work Loss

-476

Exogenous Final Demand

Medical

81

Exogenous Final Demand

Mental Health

26

Consumer Spending

Medical, Mental Health

-53

State and Local Government Spending

Medical, Mental Health

-53

Non-Pecuniary (Amenity) Aspects*

Quality of Life

-2,796

*REMI outputs regarding the quality of life variable were only simulated and reported in table 4.

Table 3 reflects the exact inputs CSI used to run its REMI simulation. The first column shows the input variable in REMI. The second column shows the related cost associated with one of the nine columns in table 1. The final column shows the cost input based on CSI’s calculations described in the previous section, “Direct Cost Savings of Iowa’s Low Crime.” The first row shows if Iowa had the same crime rates as the average state, state output would be $476 million less thanks to loss of productivity and perpetrator work loss. Rows two and three represent an increase in demand for medical and mental health services totaling $106 million. Rows four and five represent an increase in spending by the public and private sector of $106 million for medical and mental health services. The final and largest input comes from the “Quality of Life” cost category from column 10 of table 1. Common Sense Institute ran two simulations, one with and one without this final input variable. Table 4 shows the indirect economic impact of a hypothetical scenario in which Iowa’s crime mirrors the average state. This first simulation includes the input for quality of life.

Table 4. Additional Indirect Costs in 2023 if Iowa had the National Average Crime Rate, Includes Quality of Life Costs

Total Employment

-6,900

Labor Force

-9,600

Output (millions)

-$1,350

Gross Domestic Product (millions)

-$749

Personal Income (millions)

-$552

Source: REMI
Note: Includes quality of life costs

Incorporating quality-of-life costs, Iowa’s GDP would be $749 million smaller and statewide personal income would be $552 less if it had average crime. Employment would decline by an estimated 6,900 jobs. More significantly, the labor force would have declined by about 9,600 workers. This stark drop is attributable to REMI’s amenities variable, which calculates quality of life costs as the added non-economic benefit a migrant gains from moving into Iowa. If a state has a positive value, it implies the migrant is willing to move to and work in the state’s economy at a lower wage. Miller’s model does not quantify quality of life in the same way, but incorporating this variable can provide a reasonable estimate of how quality of life costs relating to crime can impact an economy. These figures represent the cost savings of Iowa’s below average crime and come in addition to the $3.8 billion in direct savings show in table 2. Table 5 shows the simulation outputs without factoring in quality of life costs.

Table 5. Additional Indirect Costs in 2023 if Iowa had the National Average Crime Rate

Total Employment

-4,400

Labor Force

-1,000

Output (millions)

-$949

Gross Domestic Product (millions)

-$516

Personal Income (millions)

-$252

Source: REMI
Note: Excludes quality of life costs

Under the more conservative simulation that excludes the quality of life variable, Iowa would lose $516 million in GDP and $252 million in statewide personal income if it had average crime. Total employment and personal income would also decline by 4,400 jobs and the labor force would lose about 1,000 workers.

Crime Rates in Iowa

Crime can impact any person or community. Rural and urban counties, wealthy and poverty-stricken neighborhoods, businesses and citizens are all impacted by crime in some way on a day-to-day basis. The actions of a few malicious actors can ripple throughout society and its economy, leaving victims with greater financial and emotional costs and institutions needing to rectify injustices. While Iowa’s crime rate is lower than the national average, improvements can always be made. State policymakers should continue to be vigilant on crime and implement legislation and policies that can further reduce crime rates. Before quantifying the benefits of Iowa’s low crime, this report first analyzes crime in Iowa at the absolute level—not compared with other states—and where it’s trending.

Crime in Iowa has fallen by 6.86% since 2019, however, it was up in 2023 from a low point in 2022, as seen in figure 2. In 2023 alone, Iowa’s Department of Public Safety recorded 10,742 offenses in shoplifting, 10,554 in larceny, and 19,356 in simple assault.[8] Together these combined for only 30% of all reported crime offenses. In total, at least 111,862 Iowans and businesses were impacted by dangerous criminal behaviors, up 8.6% since 2022. During this period, only aggravated assault, burglary, rape, and theft fell. The remaining 10 major crime types increased by as little as 2.1% to as much as 28.9%.

Figure 1. Change in Average Monthly Crime Rate per 100,000 from 2019 to 2023[9] 

Figure 1 visualizes the five-year percentage change of a portion of reported crime types between 2019 and 2023. While many individual offenses have ticked higher, the overall number of offenses has dropped by roughly 8,234 cases.

Figure 2. Total Annual Crime Offenses in Iowa from 2019 to 2023

 

Crime Trends Across the United States

Although crime is an ongoing issue in the state, Iowa fares far better than the broader U.S. Consequently, the state gains a socioeconomic advantage for its citizens by having lower levels of crime. Citizens feel safer and relatively less burdened, leading to higher productivity and quality of life. A consistent data source across states is required to gauge the size of Iowa’s relative advantage. The FBI recently updated its National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) with 2023 data, providing apples-to-apples data to compare Iowa’s average crime rate with the rest of the country.[10] The Bureau splits crime into three broad categories with varying classifications in each: crimes against persons, crimes against property, and crimes against society. Figures 3-5 show how each state ranks in per capita crimes against persons, property, and society in 2023. States are ranked from highest crime levels to lowest, or worst to best; darker colored states have more crime per capita. Crimes against persons is split among five classifications: offenses of assault, homicide, human trafficking, kidnapping/abduction, and sex. In 2023, Iowa ranked as the 17th best in crimes against persons per 100,000 residents.

Figure 3. Crimes Against Persons per 100,000 in the United States in 2023

The Bureau splits crimes against property into 12 broad classifications: arson, bribery, burglary/breaking and entering, counterfeiting/forgery, destruction/damage/vandalism, embezzlement, extortion/blackmail, fraud offenses, larceny/theft offenses, motor vehicle theft, robbery, and stolen property offenses. In 2023, Iowa ranked as the 14th best in crimes against property per 100,000 residents. 

Figure 4. Crimes Against Property per 100,000 in the United States in 2023 

The Bureau splits crimes against society into six broad classifications: offenses for animal cruelty, drug/narcotic, gambling, pornography/obscene material, prostitution, and weapon law violations. In 2023, Iowa ranked as the 33rd best in crimes against society per 100,000 residents.

Figure 5. Crimes Against Society per 100,000 in the United States in 2023 

In total criminal offenses, Iowa’s per capita crime concentration was 86% of the national average in 2023. This ranks the state 15th best in crime concentration. Figure 6 visualizes the crime concentration of all fifty states plus D.C. compared with this national average. Common Sense Institute calculates concentration of crime as the ratio of a state’s crime per capita to the U.S. average crime per capita. States above 100% crime concentration imply crime occurs at a higher rate in these states than the average U.S. state.

Figure 6. Crime Concentration per State relative to the U.S. Average, 2023

Bottom Line

Since eliminating crime entirely is impossible, states will always bear some costs associated with crime. But state policymakers have a duty to minimize these costs for constituents by enacting policies that mitigate and reduce criminality. Nearly every state suffers some level of crime that is difficult to redress and improve upon. For instance, state policymakers cannot directly impact family conditions, climate, cultural factors, or personal attitudes, all of which are listed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) as possible motivators of crime.[11] However, this does not excuse the role of policymakers in the sphere of crime reduction. Other motivators, such as poverty, job security, and criminal justice polices, are well within the direct or indirect influence of state and local public policy. Therefore, the difference in crime between states is to some extent attributable to public policies. Iowa’s ability to maintain crime levels well below the national average testifies to the state’s focus on public safety and a strong economy. Iowans significantly benefit from fewer dollars being siphoned out of the productive economy and used to address crime. Lower crime ultimately produces a safter and more productive state. Policymakers should continue to be vigilant in addressing crime in their state to minimize the cost of crime.

Appendix A. Methodology

Common Sense Institute calculated the total cost savings from low crime using direct costs of crime on the state and inputting those costs into a macroeconomic model to simulate the indirect costs. The total cost savings include direct, static costs and indirect, dynamic costs associated with low crime. The direct costs were input as shown in Table 3. CSI based the calculations in Table 3 as the difference between Iowa’s actual cost of crime and the average state’s cost of crime. This was derived from Miller’s cost of crime model in Table 1. Cost estimates for Iowa and the average state are in Tables 7 and 8. This means the inputs simulate the impact of increasing Iowa’s cost of crime to the level equivalent to the average state. The indirect, dynamic costs come from REMI. However, limitations to this analysis exist.

To accurately estimate Iowa’s cost savings from lower crime, some cost categories from the “Direct Cost of Crime” section are excluded from analysis in the “Economic Benefit of Iowa’s Low Crime” section of this report. The excluded cost categories involve public services, adjudication and sanctioning, and property loss. Medical and mental health costs are not as scrutinized in the simulation since they largely remain in the healthcare sector. The same cannot be certain for public services, adjudication and sanctioning, and property loss. Transactions in these categories involve complex and fluid movement of money, making it challenging to pinpoint the final destination of these costs. Modeling the indirect costs of crime requires precision in tracking these flows. For example, while there are upfront costs in redressing a crime, the money will disperse into wages, equipment, infrastructure, and more across various sectors. Property loss also poses a unique challenge in that costs can vary depending on the item stolen, meaning not all are equally replaceable.

Addressing these complex challenges would require micro data from nonpublic sources. For public services and adjudication and sanctioning, the data must capture the precise movement of funds across all impacted sectors. For property loss, microdata should detail the types of items stolen and replacement rates.

Appendix B. Additional Figures and Tables

Figure 7. Total Crime in Iowa per 100,000

Figure 8. Iowa Counties Exceeding State Crime Concentration 

Figure 9. Iowa Counties Exceeding State Concentration, Crimes Against Property

Figure 10. Iowa Counties Exceeding State Concentration, Crimes Against Persons

Figure 11. Iowa Counties Exceeding State Concentration, Crimes Against Society

Table 6. Percent of Victimization Reported to Police, by Type of Crime, 2022 and 2023

Type of Crime

2022

2023

Rape/sexual assault

21.40%

46%

Robbery

64%

42.40%

Assault*

40.60%

44.90%

Burglary

44.90%

42.20%

Motor vehicle theft

80.90%

72.40%

Other theft

26.40%

24.80%

*Includes aggrivated assault and simple assault
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics

Table 7. 2023 Cost per Crime Type in an Average U.S. State, Millions of 2023 Dollars

Average U.S. State

Medical

Mental Health

Productivity

Property Loss

Public Services

Adjudication and Sanctioning

Perpetrator work loss

Subtotal: tangible loss

Quality of Life

Total

Murder

$3.40

$3.20

$487.96

$0.05

$39.71

$127.57

$47.46

$709.36

$1,374.47

$2,083.82

Rape

$6.64

$14.87

$16.56

$0.64

$0.09

$3.08

$1.27

$43.16

$776.52

$819.68

Rape (PR)

$10.28

$20.06

$22.13

$0.54

$2.78

$137.72

$56.77

$250.27

$985.64

$1,235.91

Other sexual assault (PR)

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

Robbery

$4.25

$0.46

$10.07

$3.79

$1.92

$20.00

$8.60

$49.10

$33.01

$82.10

Robbery (PR)

$4.27

$0.43

$10.11

$2.80

$2.88

$30.04

$12.92

$63.45

$31.94

$95.40

Assault

$102.67

$10.48

$70.58

$2.61

$111.96

$160.16

$59.33

$517.79

$1,218.59

$1,736.37

Assault (PR)

$100.84

$19.44

$110.59

$3.81

$208.19

$297.79

$110.30

$850.87

$1,020.41

$1,871.28

Arson

$1.11

$0.02

$1.42

$8.20

$1.68

$1.09

$0.21

$13.87

$2.70

$16.57

Burglary

$0.00

$0.00

$0.27

$19.41

$2.84

$4.56

$4.54

$31.63

$0.00

$31.63

Burglary (PR)

$0.00

$0.00

$0.34

$24.88

$5.02

$8.07

$8.04

$46.35

$0.00

$46.35

Larceny/theft

$0.00

$0.00

$2.31

$71.48

$104.22

$297.44

$26.13

$501.58

$0.00

$501.58

Larceny/theft (PR)

$0.00

$0.00

$1.57

$53.33

$45.68

$130.28

$11.46

$242.32

$0.00

$242.32

Motor vehicle theft

$0.00

$0.00

$0.42

$25.59

$2.33

$6.39

$2.50

$37.23

$0.00

$37.23

Motor vehicle theft (PR)

$0.00

$0.00

$1.27

$78.00

$7.73

$21.22

$8.29

$116.51

$0.00

$116.51

Fraud

$0.00

$0.00

$0.70

$22.73

$0.89

$0.64

$0.20

$25.17

$0.00

$25.17

Buying stolen property

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$2.28

$9.31

$2.72

$16.30

$0.00

$16.30

Vandalism

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$9.10

$0.54

$16.05

$5.79

$31.48

$0.00

$31.48

Weapons carrying

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$0.37

$12.05

$5.02

$17.44

$0.00

$17.44

Prostitution/pandering

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$0.01

$0.05

$0.02

$0.08

$0.00

$0.08

Drug possession/sales

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$114.36

$81.56

$34.04

$229.96

$0.00

$229.96

Gambling

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$0.01

$0.00

$0.02

$0.00

$0.02

All Police Reported Crime

$119.90

$43.14

$636.10

$203.45

$432.14

$873.47

$303.23

$2,613.45

$3,415.17

$6,028.61

Total Crime in the Average U.S. State

$233.46

$68.95

$736.31

$326.96

$655.49

$1,365.11

$405.60

$3,793.93

$5,443.28

$9,237.21

Source: Miller, et al., Federal Bureau of Investigations, Bureau of Justice Statistics
Note: Normalized to Iowa’s population

Table 8. 2023 Cost per Crime Type in Iowa, Millions of 2023 Dollars

Iowa

Medical

Mental Health

Productivity

Property Loss

Public Services

Adjudication and Sanctioning

Perpetrator work loss

Subtotal: tangible loss

Quality of Life

Total

Murder

$1.21

$1.13

$173.29

$0.02

$14.10

$45.31

$16.86

$251.92

$488.13

$740.05

Rape

$2.68

$6.01

$6.69

$0.26

$0.04

$1.25

$0.51

$17.44

$313.70

$331.13

Rape (PR)

$4.15

$8.10

$8.94

$0.22

$1.12

$55.63

$22.93

$101.10

$398.16

$499.26

Robbery

$1.73

$0.19

$4.10

$1.54

$0.78

$8.13

$3.50

$19.97

$13.42

$33.39

Robbery (PR)

$1.74

$0.17

$4.11

$1.14

$1.17

$12.22

$5.26

$25.81

$12.99

$38.80

Assault

$77.21

$14.89

$84.67

$2.92

$159.41

$228.02

$84.45

$651.50

$781.32

$1,432.82

Assault (PR)

$62.92

$12.13

$69.00

$2.38

$129.90

$185.81

$68.82

$530.90

$636.68

$1,167.58

Arson

$1.20

$0.02

$1.54

$8.86

$1.82

$1.18

$0.23

$14.98

$2.92

$17.90

Burglary

$0.00

$0.00

$0.27

$19.29

$2.82

$4.54

$4.51

$31.44

$0.00

$31.44

Burglary (PR)

$0.00

$0.00

$0.33

$24.73

$4.99

$8.02

$7.99

$46.07

$0.00

$46.07

Larceny/theft

$0.00

$0.00

$1.90

$58.97

$85.99

$245.41

$21.56

$413.84

$0.00

$413.84

Larceny/theft (PR)

$0.00

$0.00

$1.30

$44.00

$37.69

$107.49

$9.45

$199.93

$0.00

$199.93

Motor vehicle theft

$0.00

$0.00

$0.26

$15.71

$1.43

$3.92

$1.53

$22.86

$0.00

$22.86

Motor vehicle theft (PR)

$0.00

$0.00

$0.78

$47.89

$4.74

$13.03

$5.09

$71.53

$0.00

$71.53

Fraud

$0.00

$0.00

$0.48

$15.59

$0.61

$0.44

$0.13

$17.26

$0.00

$17.26

Buying stolen property

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$1.14

$4.63

$1.35

$8.11

$0.00

$8.11

Vandalism

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$7.10

$0.42

$12.53

$4.52

$24.57

$0.00

$24.57

Weapons carrying

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$0.23

$7.54

$3.14

$10.91

$0.00

$10.91

Prostitution/pandering

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$0.01

$0.02

$0.01

$0.03

$0.00

$0.03

Drug possession/sales

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$155.57

$110.96

$46.31

$312.84

$0.00

$312.84

Gambling

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

$0.01

$0.01

$0.02

$0.00

$0.02

All Police Reported Crime

$71.22

$21.56

$259.78

$151.93

$353.52

$564.82

$192.09

$1,615.98

$1,538.89

$3,154.87

Total Crime in Iowa

$152.84

$42.65

$357.67

$250.62

$603.99

$1,056.08

$308.16

$2,773.02

$2,647.33

$5,420.35

Source: Miller, et al., Iowa Department of Public Safety, Bureau of Justice Statistics

Endnotes


[1] George Brauchler, Steven L. Byers, Mitch Morrissey, “The Cost of Crime and its Economic Impact on Colorado: Crime’s Impact on the Economy and Residents,” Common Sense Institute, July 13, 2023, https://www.commonsenseinstituteus.org/colorado/research/crime-and-public-safety/the-cost-of-crime-and-its-economic-impact-on-colorado-crimes-impact-on-the-economy-and-residents.

[2] Federal Bureau of Investigation, Crime Data Explorer, 2023,  https://cde.ucr.cjis.gov/LATEST/webapp/.

[3] Miller, Ted R., Mark A. Cohen, David I. Swedler, Bina Ali, and Delia V. Hendrie, “Incidence and Costs of Personal and Property Crimes in the USA, 2017,” Journal of Benefit-Cost Analysis 12, no. 1 (2021): 24–54, https://doi.org/10.1017/bca.2020.36.

[4] Miller, Ted R., Mark A. Cohen, David I. Swedler, Bina Ali, and Delia V. Hendrie, “Incidence and Costs of Personal and Property Crimes in the USA, 2017,” Journal of Benefit-Cost Analysis 12, no. 1 (2021): 24–54, https://doi.org/10.1017/bca.2020.36.

[5] Tapp, Susannah N., and Emilie J. Coen, “Criminal Victimization, 2023,” NCJ 309335, U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics, September 12, 2024. https://bjs.ojp.gov/library/publications/criminal-victimization-2023.

[6] Iowa Department of Public Safety, “Annual Trend Report,” 2023, https://icrime.dps.state.ia.us/CrimeInIowa/Report/AnnualTrendReport.

[7] Regional Economic Models Inc. (REMI), REMI PI+ Model, Version 3.2 (2024).

[8] Iowa Department of Public Safety, “Annual Trend Report,” 2023, https://icrime.dps.state.ia.us/CrimeInIowa/Report/AnnualTrendReport.

[9] * Fraud includes false pretense/swindle/confidence game, credit card/automatic teller machine fraud, impersonation, welfare fraud, wire fraud, identity theft, and hacking/computer invasion. All other larceny includes all types of theft besides pocket-picking, purse-snatching, shoplifting, theft from buildings, theft from coin-operated machines or devices, theft from motor vehicles, theft from motor vehicle parts/accessories.

[10] Federal Bureau of Investigation, Crime Data Explorer, 2023,  https://cde.ucr.cjis.gov/LATEST/webapp/.

[11] Federal Bureau of Investigation, “Variables Affecting Crime,” U.S. Department of Justice, 2012, https://ucr.fbi.gov/nibrs/2012/resources/variables-affecting-crime.

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