Photo: Billwhittaker · CC BY-SA 3.0How is Denison run?
Denison’s city government spent $9.4 million on day-to-day services in the year to June 30, 2024, about $1,152 per resident. Water and other utilities ($11.6 million) and the airport ($240,000) are counted separately.
What stands out about how Denison is run
Read from the city’s budget and official records.
About $1,152 per resident a year, or $3.16 a day
Day-to-day services only. The biggest line: sewer & trash, at 29%.
Thank you for being a neighbor
$1,121 per resident in 2022, close to the middle of similar cities
Denison’s day-to-day spending in 2022 ($1,121 per resident, hospital and utilities left out) against 91 Iowa cities of 2,500–9,999 that don’t run their own schools: the median was $1,177, and the middle half spent $1,027–$1,402. Denison spent less than 60% of them.
Includes sewer and trash ($2.6 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 →
Iowa cities of 2,500–9,999 that don’t run their own schools, 2022 Census of Governments (every government counted that year; Denison itself left out).
Day-to-day spending is up 2% since 2022
Day-to-day services, in dollars, in the years Denison 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: $1,121 · 2023: $1,198 · 2024: $1,152.
full-time in March 2025, down from 73 in 2022. Both are Census estimates.
Building projects, interest and enterprises (hospital, utilities) are left out, so a big construction year doesn’t read as growth.
The typical homeowner pays $2,527 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 1.68% of the home’s value, vs 1.39% across Iowa.
Typical yearly bill next door and statewide
The Housing page’s calculator splits a monthly payment into loan, tax and insurance at Denison’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.
Tax bills are one input to Denison’s Cost of living grade. Cost of living in Denison →
Who’s in charge in Denison
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
Denison’s meeting calendar isn’t in our feed yet. The city posts agendas and minutes on denisonia.com ↗.
One full-time city employee for every 115 residents
On the payroll in March 2025, from the Census Bureau’s Annual Survey of Public Employment & Payroll (a Census estimate). Residents: the Census population in the 2024 finance file (8,172).
By department full-time, plus part-time, March 2025
The Census reports one month’s payroll (March); yearly figures are that month × 12, an estimate. Part-timers count half in the bar lengths.
Denison Community School District
Denison’s K–12 school district, shared with Buck Grove, Deloit, Kiron. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.
Of the $13,411 per pupil, $7,940 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.
Iowa districts overall: 43% local, 49% state, 8% federal.
School year 2023–24. Census Bureau school finance survey.
Denison’s votes are counted by county
Iowa reports official results by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Denison alone, and we don’t estimate them. These are Crawford County’s results.
Donald J TrumpRepublican71.3%4,651 votes
Kamala D HarrisDemocrat27.8%1,812 votesOthers: 1.0% (62 votes).
Most votes in Crawford County: Donald J Trump
Iowa: Trump 55.7%, Harris 42.5%
100% of Denison lies in Crawford County. Every 2024 race in Crawford County is on the county’s page.
Crawford 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 Denison.
- 1Your cityMayor & councilOfficials: denisonia.com ↗
- 2Iowa HouseState representatives
- 3Iowa SenateState senator
- 4GovernorStatewide
- 5U.S. HouseYour representative in Congress
- 6U.S. SenateBoth represent all of Iowa
Democrat · Republican · other or independent. Tap a name for their official page.
Reach Denison’s government
The official site has phone numbers, hours and forms. Neighbors add the rest to the Handbook.
Questions about Denison’s government
How much does Denison spend per resident?
About $1,152 per resident on day-to-day services in the year to June 30, 2024, as reported to the Census Bureau. In 2022, the last full count, its $1,121 was less than 60% of 91 Iowa cities of 2,500–9,999 that don’t run their own schools.
What is the property tax rate in Denison?
Homeowners report a typical bill of $2,527 a year (Census ACS, 2020–24), about 1.68% of the typical home’s value, vs 1.39% across Iowa. For the official rate per $1,000 of assessed value, see denisonia.com.
Who runs Denison’s government?
See denisonia.com for current officials. We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for Denison yet.
How did Denison vote in 2024?
Iowa counts votes by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Denison alone. Crawford County, where 100% of Denison lies, voted Trump 71.3%, Harris 27.8% for president; its page has every race.
How many people work for Denison?
71 full-time and 24 part-time employees in March 2025, with a March payroll of $434,216 (about $5.2M a year if every month were the same); Census Bureau estimates.
Who represents Denison in the state legislature?
State Senate District 6 (Jason Schultz) and State House District 12 (Steven Holt). The House district also covers 24 other towns. Listed by Open States; districts from the Census Bureau.
Ask neighbors about Denison’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 →