Mills House · Photo: Valis55 · CC BY-SA 3.0How is Kensett run?
Kensett’s city government spent $1.2 million on day-to-day services in the year to December 31, 2024, about $816 per resident. Water and other utilities ($308,000) are counted separately.
What stands out about how Kensett is run
Read from the city’s budget and official records.
About $816 per resident a year, or $2.24 a day
Day-to-day services only. The biggest line: sewer & trash, at 37%.
Thank you for being a neighbor
$265 per resident in 2022, close to the middle of similar cities
Kensett’s day-to-day spending in 2022 ($265 per resident, hospital and utilities left out) against 181 Arkansas cities of under 2,500 that don’t run their own schools: the median was $356, and the middle half spent $179–$644. Kensett spent less than 63% of them.
Includes sewer and trash ($239,000), as the Census Bureau counts them. Later years come from a Census sample, so the comparison stays on 2022. How Town Hall compares budgets →
Arkansas cities of under 2,500 that don’t run their own schools, 2022 Census of Governments (every government counted that year; Kensett itself left out).
Day-to-day spending is up 169% since 2022
Day-to-day services, in dollars, in the years Kensett reported to the Census Bureau. Prices rose too: about 4% a year in 2022–2024.
Day-to-day spending by fiscal year
Per resident: 2022: $265 · 2024: $816. Per resident it went from $265 to $816 (up 208%), partly because the Census population behind it changed from 1,615 to 1,412.
Building projects, interest and enterprises (hospital, utilities) are left out, so a big construction year doesn’t read as growth.
The typical homeowner pays $344 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 0.38% of the home’s value, vs 0.55% across Arkansas.
Typical yearly bill next door and statewide
The Housing page’s calculator splits a monthly payment into loan, tax and insurance at Kensett’s rate.
Can I afford it? →The median bill homeowners report to the Census survey (bills of $10,000+ are reported as “$10,000+”). The effective rate is that bill ÷ the median home value: a rough guide, not the official tax rate. In a town this small the estimate has a wide margin.
Tax bills are one input to Kensett’s Cost of living grade. Cost of living in Kensett →
Who’s in charge in Kensett
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
One full-time city employee for every 118 residents
On the payroll in March 2022, from the Census Bureau’s Annual Survey of Public Employment & Payroll. Residents: the Census population in the 2024 finance file (1,412).
By department full-time, plus part-time, March 2022
The Census reports one month’s payroll (March); yearly figures are that month × 12, an estimate. Part-timers count half in the bar lengths.
Riverview School District
Kensett’s K–12 school district, shared with Georgetown, Griffithville, West Point, Judsonia. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.
Of the $14,689 per pupil, $7,681 goes to the classroom (teachers, aides, supplies); the rest to buses, buildings, counselors and administration. Building projects and debt payments aren’t in the per-pupil figure.
Arkansas districts overall: 16% local, 70% state, 14% federal.
School year 2023–24. Census Bureau school finance survey.
Kensett’s votes are counted by county
Arkansas reports official results by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Kensett alone, and we don’t estimate them. These are White County’s results.
Donald J TrumpRepublican79.5%24,514 votes
Kamala D HarrisDemocrat18.3%5,641 votesOthers: 2.2% (682 votes).
Most votes in White County: Donald J Trump
Arkansas: Trump 64.2%, Harris 33.6%
100% of Kensett lies in White County. Every 2024 race in White County is on the county’s page.
White County’s 2024 results →Official 2024 general election returns, as certified (MIT Election Data + Science Lab). Percentages are of votes for candidates; blank and spoiled ballots aren’t counted. Candidates are listed by votes, and party colors are neutral on purpose.
Portraits: Kamala D Harris: official vice-presidential portrait, Lawrence Jackson, The White House, 2021; Donald J Trump: official portrait, Shealah Craighead, The White House, 2017. All are U.S. government works in the public domain. A race shows photos only when every candidate has an official portrait; otherwise every candidate in it gets initials.
From town hall to Washington
Every level of government that speaks for Kensett.
- 1Your cityMayor & councilLocal officials aren’t on record yet.
- 2Arkansas HouseState representatives
- 3Arkansas SenateState senatorDistrict 18
- 4GovernorStatewide
- 5U.S. HouseYour representative in Congress
- 6U.S. SenateBoth represent all of Arkansas
Democrat · Republican · other or independent. Tap a name for their official page.
How Kensett compares with the towns next door
Kensett spent $265 per resident in 2022; the neighbor that reported 2022 spent $1,144. Towns that run more services spend more. Tap a town to see its page.
| Town | Day-to-day, per resident (2022) | Tax bill |
|---|---|---|
| Searcy | $1,144 | $1,108 |
| Kensett | $265 | $344 |
Day-to-day spending in 2022, the last year every government was counted, for governments that reported it; hospital and utilities left out. Tax bill: the typical homeowner’s bill (Census ACS, 2020–24).
Reach Kensett’s government
Neighbors add phone numbers and hours to the Handbook.
Questions about Kensett’s government
How much does Kensett spend per resident?
About $816 per resident on day-to-day services in the year to December 31, 2024, as reported to the Census Bureau. In 2022, the last full count, its $265 was less than 63% of 181 Arkansas cities of under 2,500 that don’t run their own schools.
What is the property tax rate in Kensett?
Homeowners report a typical bill of $344 a year (Census ACS, 2020–24), about 0.38% of the typical home’s value, vs 0.55% across Arkansas. For the official rate per $1,000 of assessed value, see the city’s assessor.
Who runs Kensett’s government?
We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for Kensett yet.
How did Kensett vote in 2024?
Arkansas counts votes by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Kensett alone. White County, where 100% of Kensett lies, voted Trump 79.5%, Harris 18.3% for president; its page has every race.
How many people work for Kensett?
12 full-time and 28 part-time employees in March 2022, with a March payroll of $49,333 (about $591,996 a year if every month were the same), as reported to the Census Bureau.
Who represents Kensett in the state legislature?
State Senate District 18 and State House District 58 (Les Eaves). The House district also covers two neighboring towns. Listed by Open States; districts from the Census Bureau.
Ask neighbors about Kensett’s government
Neighbors who’ve been to the meetings can help.
Budget and staff: U.S. Census Bureau, Census of Governments (2022, every government) and Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances (2023–24, a sample) and the Annual Survey of Public Employment & Payroll; day-to-day spending is current operations, with hospitals, utilities and airports apart. School district: Census school finance survey, 2023–24. Property tax: Census American Community Survey, 2020–24. Elections: official 2024 returns via the MIT Election Data + Science Lab; turnout uses Census citizen voting-age population (CVAP, 2020–24). Officials: Open States, names shown only with a current term (checked October 9, 2026). Districts: Census Bureau (119th Congress, 2024 state districts); legislators: Open States and congress-legislators. How Town Hall works →