Crested Butte Denver and Rio Grande Railroad Depot · Photo: Int77345 · CC BY-SA 4.0Crested Butte spent more per resident in 2022 than 90% of similar cities
Crested Butte’s city government spent $9.1 million on day-to-day services in the year to December 31, 2024, about $5,522 per resident. Water and other utilities ($2.4 million) are counted separately.
What stands out about how Crested Butte is run
Read from the city’s budget and official records.
$4,050 per resident in 2022: more than 90% of them
Crested Butte’s day-to-day spending in 2022 ($4,050 per resident, hospital and utilities left out) against 150 Colorado cities of under 2,500 that don’t run their own schools: the median was $990, and the middle half spent $624–$1,732. Crested Butte spent more than 90% of them.
Includes sewer and trash ($1.2 million), as the Census Bureau counts them. Later years come from a Census sample, so the comparison stays on 2022. How Town Hall compares budgets →
Colorado cities of under 2,500 that don’t run their own schools, 2022 Census of Governments (every government counted that year; Crested Butte itself left out).
About $5,522 per resident a year, or $15.13 a day
Day-to-day services only. The biggest line: administration & buildings, at 35%.
Thank you for being a neighbor
Day-to-day spending is up 34% since 2022
Day-to-day services, in dollars, in the years Crested Butte 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: $4,050 · 2024: $5,522.
Building projects, interest and enterprises (hospital, utilities) are left out, so a big construction year doesn’t read as growth.
The typical homeowner pays $3,536 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 0.35% of the home’s value, vs 0.48% across Colorado.
Typical yearly bill next door and statewide
The Housing page’s calculator splits a monthly payment into loan, tax and insurance at Crested Butte’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 Crested Butte’s Cost of living grade. Cost of living in Crested Butte →
Who’s in charge in Crested Butte
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
Crested Butte’s meeting calendar isn’t in our feed yet. The city posts agendas and minutes on crestedbutte-co.gov ↗.
One full-time city employee for every 45 residents
On the payroll in March 2022, from the Census Bureau’s Annual Survey of Public Employment & Payroll (a Census estimate). Residents: the Census population in the 2024 finance file (1,654).
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.
Gunnison Watershed School District RE-1J
Crested Butte’s K–12 school district, shared with Gunnison, Marble, Mount Crested Butte, Pitkin. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.
Of the $16,300 per pupil, $9,036 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.
Colorado districts overall: 55% local, 37% state, 8% federal.
School year 2023–24. Census Bureau school finance survey.
Crested Butte’s votes are counted by county
Colorado reports official results by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Crested Butte alone, and we don’t estimate them. These are Gunnison County’s results.
Kamala D HarrisDemocrat62.9%6,887 votes
Donald J TrumpRepublican33.7%3,689 votesOthers: 3.3% (366 votes).
Most votes in Gunnison County: Kamala D Harris
Colorado: Harris 54.1%, Trump 43.1%
100% of Crested Butte lies in Gunnison County. Every 2024 race in Gunnison County is on the county’s page.
Gunnison 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 Crested Butte.
- 1Your cityMayor & councilOfficials: crestedbutte-co.gov ↗
- 2Colorado HouseState representatives
- 3Colorado SenateState senator
- 4GovernorStatewide
- 5U.S. HouseYour representative in Congress
- 6U.S. SenateBoth represent all of Colorado
Democrat · Republican · other or independent. Tap a name for their official page.
Reach Crested Butte’s government
The official site has phone numbers, hours and forms. Neighbors add the rest to the Handbook.
Questions about Crested Butte’s government
How much does Crested Butte spend per resident?
About $5,522 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 $4,050 was more than 90% of 150 Colorado cities of under 2,500 that don’t run their own schools.
What is the property tax rate in Crested Butte?
Homeowners report a typical bill of $3,536 a year (Census ACS, 2020–24), about 0.35% of the typical home’s value, vs 0.48% across Colorado. For the official rate per $1,000 of assessed value, see crestedbutte-co.gov.
Who runs Crested Butte’s government?
See crestedbutte-co.gov for current officials. We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for Crested Butte yet.
How did Crested Butte vote in 2024?
Colorado counts votes by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Crested Butte alone. Gunnison County, where 100% of Crested Butte lies, voted Harris 62.9%, Trump 33.7% for president; its page has every race.
How many people work for Crested Butte?
37 full-time and 13 part-time employees in March 2022, with a March payroll of $248,095 (about $3.0M a year if every month were the same); Census Bureau estimates.
Who represents Crested Butte in the state legislature?
State Senate District 5 (Marc Catlin) and State House District 58 (Larry Suckla). The House district also covers 21 other towns. Listed by Open States; districts from the Census Bureau.
Ask neighbors about Crested Butte’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 →