Antlers Hotel · Photo: TheCatalyst31 · CC0How is Spirit Lake run?
Spirit Lake’s city government spent $6.3 million on day-to-day services in the year to June 30, 2023, about $1,156 per resident. Water and other utilities ($1.6 million) are counted separately.
What stands out about how Spirit Lake 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: roads & transportation, at 23%.
Thank you for being a neighbor
$1,166 per resident in 2022, close to the middle of similar cities
Spirit Lake’s day-to-day spending in 2022 ($1,166 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. Spirit Lake spent less than 50% 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 →
Iowa cities of 2,500–9,999 that don’t run their own schools, 2022 Census of Governments (every government counted that year; Spirit Lake itself left out).
Day-to-day spending is up 2% since 2022
Day-to-day services, in dollars, in the years Spirit Lake 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: $1,166 · 2023: $1,156.
Building projects, interest and enterprises (hospital, utilities) are left out, so a big construction year doesn’t read as growth.
The typical homeowner pays $2,262 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 1.05% 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 Spirit Lake’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 Spirit Lake’s Cost of living grade. Cost of living in Spirit Lake →
Who’s in charge in Spirit Lake
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
Spirit Lake’s meeting calendar isn’t in our feed yet. The city posts agendas and minutes on cityofspiritlake.org ↗.
One full-time city employee for every 151 residents
On the payroll in March 2022, from the Census Bureau’s Annual Survey of Public Employment & Payroll. Residents: the Census population in the 2023 finance file (5,420).
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.
Spirit Lake Community School District
Spirit Lake’s K–12 school district, shared with Orleans, Okoboji. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.
Of the $12,162 per pupil, $7,484 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.
Spirit Lake’s votes are counted by county
Iowa reports official results by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Spirit Lake alone, and we don’t estimate them. These are Dickinson County’s results.
Donald J TrumpRepublican69.5%7,775 votes
Kamala D HarrisDemocrat29.5%3,297 votesOthers: 1.1% (120 votes).
Most votes in Dickinson County: Donald J Trump
Iowa: Trump 55.7%, Harris 42.5%
100% of Spirit Lake lies in Dickinson County. Every 2024 race in Dickinson County is on the county’s page.
Dickinson 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 Spirit Lake.
- 1Your cityMayor & councilOfficials: cityofspiritlake.org ↗
- 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.
How Spirit Lake compares with the towns next door
Spirit Lake spent $1,166 per resident in 2022; the 2 neighbors that reported 2022 spent $799 to $1,973. Towns that run more services spend more. Tap a town to see its page.
Day-to-day spending in 2022, the last year every government was counted, for governments that reported it; hospital and utilities left out. Tax bill: the typical homeowner’s bill (Census ACS, 2020–24).
Reach Spirit Lake’s government
The official site has phone numbers, hours and forms. Neighbors add the rest to the Handbook.
Questions about Spirit Lake’s government
How much does Spirit Lake spend per resident?
About $1,156 per resident on day-to-day services in the year to June 30, 2023, as reported to the Census Bureau. In 2022, the last full count, its $1,166 was less than 50% of 91 Iowa cities of 2,500–9,999 that don’t run their own schools.
What is the property tax rate in Spirit Lake?
Homeowners report a typical bill of $2,262 a year (Census ACS, 2020–24), about 1.05% of the typical home’s value, vs 1.39% across Iowa. For the official rate per $1,000 of assessed value, see cityofspiritlake.org.
Who runs Spirit Lake’s government?
See cityofspiritlake.org for current officials. We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for Spirit Lake yet.
How did Spirit Lake vote in 2024?
Iowa counts votes by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Spirit Lake alone. Dickinson County, where 100% of Spirit Lake lies, voted Trump 69.5%, Harris 29.5% for president; its page has every race.
How many people work for Spirit Lake?
36 full-time and 13 part-time employees in March 2022, with a March payroll of $186,139 (about $2.2M a year if every month were the same), as reported to the Census Bureau.
Who represents Spirit Lake in the state legislature?
State Senate District 5 (Dave Rowley) and State House District 10 (John Wills). The House district also covers 23 other towns. Listed by Open States; districts from the Census Bureau.
Ask neighbors about Spirit Lake’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 →