Photo: City of Hawarden Staff · Public domainHawarden runs its own hospital
Hawarden’s city government spent $3.1 million on day-to-day services in the year to June 30, 2024, about $1,156 per resident. It also runs a hospital ($19.3 million) and water utilities ($3.5 million), counted separately. Census Bureau figures.
What stands out about how Hawarden is run
Read from the city’s budget and official records.
About $1,156 per resident a year, or $3.17 a day
Day-to-day services only. The biggest line: sewer & trash, at 23%.
Thank you for being a neighbor
$1,143 per resident in 2022: more than 71% of them
Hawarden’s day-to-day spending in 2022 ($1,143 per resident, hospital and utilities left out) against 802 Iowa cities of under 2,500 that don’t run their own schools: the median was $900, and the middle half spent $632–$1,190. Hawarden spent more than 71% of them.
Includes sewer and trash ($656,000), as the Census Bureau counts them. Later years come from a Census sample, so the comparison stays on 2022. How Town Hall compares budgets →
Iowa cities of under 2,500 that don’t run their own schools, 2022 Census of Governments (every government counted that year; Hawarden itself left out).
Day-to-day spending is up 10% since 2022
Day-to-day services, in dollars, in the years Hawarden 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: $1,143 · 2023: $1,076 · 2024: $1,156. Per resident it went from $1,143 to $1,156 (up 1%), partly because the Census population behind it changed from 2,443 to 2,662.
full-time in March 2025 (hospital, health & welfare left out), the same as 24 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 $1,829 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 1.34% 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 Hawarden’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 Hawarden’s Cost of living grade. Cost of living in Hawarden →
Who’s in charge in Hawarden
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
Hawarden’s meeting calendar isn’t in our feed yet. The city posts agendas and minutes on cityofhawarden.com ↗.
One full-time city employee for every 111 residents, not counting hospital, health & welfare staff
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 (2,662).
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.
West Sioux Community School District
Hawarden’s K–12 school district, shared with Chatsworth, Ireton. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.
Of the $15,026 per pupil, $10,068 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.
Hawarden’s votes are counted by county
Iowa reports official results by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Hawarden alone, and we don’t estimate them. These are Sioux County’s results.
Donald J TrumpRepublican85.0%16,053 votes
Kamala D HarrisDemocrat13.9%2,626 votesOthers: 1.1% (202 votes).
Most votes in Sioux County: Donald J Trump
Iowa: Trump 55.7%, Harris 42.5%
100% of Hawarden lies in Sioux County. Every 2024 race in Sioux County is on the county’s page.
Sioux 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 Hawarden.
- 1Your cityMayor & councilOfficials: cityofhawarden.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 Hawarden’s government
The official site has phone numbers, hours and forms. Neighbors add the rest to the Handbook.
Questions about Hawarden’s government
How much does Hawarden spend per resident?
About $1,156 per resident on day-to-day services in the year to June 30, 2024, as reported to the Census Bureau. Hawarden also runs a hospital ($19.3 million), counted separately. In 2022, the last full count, its $1,143 was more than 71% of 802 Iowa cities of under 2,500 that don’t run their own schools.
What is the property tax rate in Hawarden?
Homeowners report a typical bill of $1,829 a year (Census ACS, 2020–24), about 1.34% of the typical home’s value, vs 1.39% across Iowa. For the official rate per $1,000 of assessed value, see cityofhawarden.com.
Who runs Hawarden’s government?
See cityofhawarden.com for current officials. We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for Hawarden yet.
How did Hawarden vote in 2024?
Iowa counts votes by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Hawarden alone. Sioux County, where 100% of Hawarden lies, voted Trump 85.0%, Harris 13.9% for president; its page has every race.
How many people work for Hawarden?
24 full-time and 26 part-time employees in March 2025 (plus 122 full-time hospital, health & welfare staff), with a March payroll of $661,949 (about $7.9M a year if every month were the same); Census Bureau estimates.
Who represents Hawarden in the state legislature?
State Senate District 2 (Jeff Taylor) and State House District 3 (Tom Jeneary). The House district also covers 13 other towns. Listed by Open States; districts from the Census Bureau.
Ask neighbors about Hawarden’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 →