Photo: Bill Whittaker · CC BY-SA 3.0How is Fort Dodge run?
Fort Dodge’s city government spent $32.5 million on day-to-day services in the year to June 30, 2024, about $1,319 per resident. Water and other utilities ($8 million) and the airport ($725,000) are counted separately.
What stands out about how Fort Dodge is run
Read from the city’s budget and official records.
About $1,319 per resident a year, or $3.61 a day
Day-to-day services only. The biggest line: sewer & trash, at 25%.
Thank you for being a neighbor
$1,463 per resident in 2022, close to the middle of similar cities
Fort Dodge’s day-to-day spending in 2022 ($1,463 per resident, hospital and utilities left out) against 23 Iowa cities of 10,000–24,999 that don’t run their own schools: the median was $1,462, and the middle half spent $1,179–$1,838. Fort Dodge spent more than 52% of them.
Includes sewer and trash ($8.8 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 10,000–24,999 that don’t run their own schools, 2022 Census of Governments (every government counted that year; Fort Dodge itself left out).
Day-to-day spending is down 7% since 2022
Day-to-day services, in dollars, in the years Fort Dodge 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: $1,463 · 2023: $1,395 · 2024: $1,319.
full-time in March 2025, up from 196 in 2022.
Building projects, interest and enterprises (hospital, utilities) are left out, so a big construction year doesn’t read as growth.
The typical homeowner pays $2,439 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 1.69% 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 Fort Dodge’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 Fort Dodge’s Cost of living grade. Cost of living in Fort Dodge →
Who’s in charge in Fort Dodge
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
Fort Dodge’s meeting calendar isn’t in our feed yet. The city posts agendas and minutes on fortdodge.gov ↗.
One full-time city employee for every 111 residents
On the payroll in March 2025, from the Census Bureau’s Annual Survey of Public Employment & Payroll. Residents: the Census population in the 2024 finance file (24,657).
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.
Fort Dodge Community School District
Fort Dodge’s K–12 school district, shared with Badger, Otho. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.
Of the $12,949 per pupil, $7,721 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.
Fort Dodge’s votes are counted by county
Iowa reports official results by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Fort Dodge alone, and we don’t estimate them. These are Webster County’s results.
Donald J TrumpRepublican64.9%10,850 votes
Kamala D HarrisDemocrat33.8%5,641 votesOthers: 1.3% (215 votes).
Most votes in Webster County: Donald J Trump
Iowa: Trump 55.7%, Harris 42.5%
100% of Fort Dodge lies in Webster County. Every 2024 race in Webster County is on the county’s page.
Webster 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 Fort Dodge.
- 1Your cityMayor & councilOfficials: fortdodge.gov ↗
- 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 Fort Dodge’s government
The official site has phone numbers, hours and forms. Neighbors add the rest to the Handbook.
Questions about Fort Dodge’s government
How much does Fort Dodge spend per resident?
About $1,319 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 $1,463 was more than 52% of 23 Iowa cities of 10,000–24,999 that don’t run their own schools.
What is the property tax rate in Fort Dodge?
Homeowners report a typical bill of $2,439 a year (Census ACS, 2020–24), about 1.69% of the typical home’s value, vs 1.39% across Iowa. For the official rate per $1,000 of assessed value, see fortdodge.gov.
Who runs Fort Dodge’s government?
See fortdodge.gov for current officials. We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for Fort Dodge yet.
How did Fort Dodge vote in 2024?
Iowa counts votes by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Fort Dodge alone. Webster County, where 100% of Fort Dodge lies, voted Trump 64.9%, Harris 33.8% for president; its page has every race.
How many people work for Fort Dodge?
223 full-time and 17 part-time employees in March 2025, with a March payroll of $1.4M (about $16.9M a year if every month were the same), as reported to the Census Bureau.
Who represents Fort Dodge in the state legislature?
State Senate District 4 (Tim Kraayenbrink) and State House District 8 (Ann Meyer). The House district also covers six other towns. Listed by Open States; districts from the Census Bureau.
Ask neighbors about Fort Dodge’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 →