Photo: Jeffrey Beall · CC BY-SA 3.0How is Olathe run?
Olathe’s town government spent $1.6 million on day-to-day services in the year to December 31, 2024, about $822 per resident. Water and other utilities ($322,000) are counted separately.
What stands out about how Olathe is run
Read from the town’s budget and official records.
About $822 per resident a year, or $2.25 a day
Day-to-day services only. The biggest line: police, at 39%.
Thank you for being a neighbor
$873 per resident in 2022, close to the middle of similar cities
Olathe’s day-to-day spending in 2022 ($873 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 $998, and the middle half spent $624–$1,753. Olathe spent less than 55% of them.
Includes sewer and trash ($424,000), as the Census Bureau counts them. Later years come from a Census sample, so the comparison stays on 2022. How Town Hall compares budgets →
Colorado cities of under 2,500 that don’t run their own schools, 2022 Census of Governments (every government counted that year; Olathe itself left out).
Day-to-day spending is up 2% since 2022
Day-to-day services, in dollars, in the years Olathe 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: $873 · 2024: $822. Per resident it went from $873 to $822 (down 6%), partly because the Census population behind it changed from 1,824 to 1,980.
Building projects, interest and enterprises (hospital, utilities) are left out, so a big construction year doesn’t read as growth.
The typical homeowner pays $944 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 0.38% 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 Olathe’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 Olathe’s Cost of living grade. Cost of living in Olathe →
Who’s in charge in Olathe
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
Olathe’s meeting calendar isn’t in our feed yet. The town posts agendas and minutes on colorado.gov/cs/Satellite/TownOfOlathe/CBON/1249690167851 ↗.
One full-time town employee for every 180 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 (1,980).
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.
Montrose County School District RE-1J
Olathe’s K–12 school district, shared with Montrose. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.
Of the $12,650 per pupil, $6,927 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.
Olathe’s votes are counted by county
Colorado reports official results by county and precinct, not by town, so there are no official results for Olathe alone, and we don’t estimate them. These are Montrose County’s results.
Donald J TrumpRepublican65.2%16,704 votes
Kamala D HarrisDemocrat32.6%8,354 votesOthers: 2.2% (568 votes).
Most votes in Montrose County: Donald J Trump
Colorado: Harris 54.1%, Trump 43.1%
100% of Olathe lies in Montrose County. Every 2024 race in Montrose County is on the county’s page.
Montrose 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 Olathe.
- 1Your townTown government
- 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 Olathe’s government
The official site has phone numbers, hours and forms. Neighbors add the rest to the Handbook.
Questions about Olathe’s government
How much does Olathe spend per resident?
About $822 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 $873 was less than 55% of 150 Colorado cities of under 2,500 that don’t run their own schools.
What is the property tax rate in Olathe?
Homeowners report a typical bill of $944 a year (Census ACS, 2020–24), about 0.38% of the typical home’s value, vs 0.48% across Colorado. For the official rate per $1,000 of assessed value, see colorado.gov/cs/Satellite/TownOfOlathe/CBON/1249690167851.
Who runs Olathe’s government?
See colorado.gov/cs/Satellite/TownOfOlathe/CBON/1249690167851 for current officials. We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for Olathe yet.
How did Olathe vote in 2024?
Colorado counts votes by county and precinct, not by town, so there are no official results for Olathe alone. Montrose County, where 100% of Olathe lies, voted Trump 65.2%, Harris 32.6% for president; its page has every race.
How many people work for Olathe?
11 full-time and 17 part-time employees in March 2022, with a March payroll of $58,935 (about $707,220 a year if every month were the same), as reported to the Census Bureau.
Who represents Olathe 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 Olathe’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 →