Question

Can anyone help with this question? I'm so lost

The amount of taxes a city collects is proportional to the population of the city. In 2005 the population was 2 million and it had increased to 3 million by 2017. If 4 billion dollars in taxes were collected in 2005, how much was collected in 2017?

Answer 1

Since the amount of taxes collected is proportional to the population of the city, we can write the relationship between the amount of taxes and the population as:

T = kP

where T is the amount of taxes, P is the population, and k is the constant of proportionality.

From the information given, we can find the value of k:

4 billion = k * 2 million

k = 4 billion / 2 million = 2

So, for the population of 3 million in 2017, the amount of taxes collected would be:

T = k * P = 2 * 3 million = 6 billion

So, in 2017 the city collected 6 billion dollars in taxes.

Answer 2

The amount of taxes collected is proportional to the population, so if the population increased by 3 million - 2 million = 1 million, the amount of taxes collected should increase by the same factor.

So, in 2017, 4 billion * (3 million / 2 million) = 6 billion dollars in taxes were collected.