Photo: Nyttend · Public domainHow is Brownstown run?
Brownstown’s village government spent $463,000 on day-to-day services in the year to March 31, 2024, about $678 per resident. Water and other utilities ($184,000) are counted separately.
What stands out about how Brownstown is run
Read from the village’s budget and official records.
About $678 per resident a year, or $1.86 a day
Day-to-day services only. The biggest line: administration & buildings, at 53%.
Thank you for being a neighbor
$596 per resident in 2022, close to the middle of similar cities
Brownstown’s day-to-day spending in 2022 ($596 per resident, hospital and utilities left out) against 637 Illinois cities of under 2,500 that don’t run their own schools: the median was $501, and the middle half spent $342–$713. Brownstown spent more than 62% of them.
Includes sewer and trash ($73,000), as the Census Bureau counts them. Later years come from a Census sample, so the comparison stays on 2022. How Town Hall compares budgets →
Illinois cities of under 2,500 that don’t run their own schools, 2022 Census of Governments (every government counted that year; Brownstown itself left out).
Day-to-day spending is up 6% since 2022
Day-to-day services, in dollars, in the years Brownstown 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: $596 · 2024: $678. Per resident it went from $596 to $678 (up 14%), partly because the Census population behind it changed from 733 to 683.
Building projects, interest and enterprises (hospital, utilities) are left out, so a big construction year doesn’t read as growth.
The typical homeowner pays $952 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 1.31% of the home’s value, vs 2.01% across Illinois.
Typical yearly bill next door and statewide
The Housing page’s calculator splits a monthly payment into loan, tax and insurance at Brownstown’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 Brownstown’s Cost of living grade. Cost of living in Brownstown →
Who’s in charge in Brownstown
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
One full-time village employee for every 342 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 (683).
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.
Brownstown Community Unit School District 201
Brownstown’s K–12 school district, shared with Otego Township, Sefton Township. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.
Of the $12,754 per pupil, $7,596 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.
Illinois districts overall: 52% local, 38% state, 10% federal.
School year 2023–24. Census Bureau school finance survey.
Brownstown’s votes are counted by county
Illinois reports official results by county and precinct, not by village, so there are no official results for Brownstown alone, and we don’t estimate them. These are Fayette County’s results.
Donald J TrumpRepublican81.5%7,847 votes
Kamala D HarrisDemocrat17.0%1,632 votesOthers: 1.5% (147 votes).
Most votes in Fayette County: Donald J Trump
Illinois: Harris 54.4%, Trump 43.5%
100% of Brownstown lies in Fayette County. Every 2024 race in Fayette County is on the county’s page.
Fayette 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 Brownstown.
- 1Your cityMayor & councilLocal officials aren’t on record yet.
- 2Illinois HouseState representatives
- 3Illinois SenateState senator
- 4GovernorStatewide
- 5U.S. HouseYour representative in Congress
- 6U.S. SenateBoth represent all of Illinois
Democrat · Republican · other or independent. Tap a name for their official page.
Reach Brownstown’s government
Neighbors add phone numbers and hours to the Handbook.
Questions about Brownstown’s government
How much does Brownstown spend per resident?
About $678 per resident on day-to-day services in the year to March 31, 2024, as reported to the Census Bureau. In 2022, the last full count, its $596 was more than 62% of 637 Illinois cities of under 2,500 that don’t run their own schools.
What is the property tax rate in Brownstown?
Homeowners report a typical bill of $952 a year (Census ACS, 2020–24), about 1.31% of the typical home’s value, vs 2.01% across Illinois. For the official rate per $1,000 of assessed value, see the village’s assessor.
Who runs Brownstown’s government?
We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for Brownstown yet.
How did Brownstown vote in 2024?
Illinois counts votes by county and precinct, not by village, so there are no official results for Brownstown alone. Fayette County, where 100% of Brownstown lies, voted Trump 81.5%, Harris 17.0% for president; its page has every race.
How many people work for Brownstown?
2 full-time and 3 part-time employees in March 2022, with a March payroll of $17,694 (about $212,328 a year if every month were the same), as reported to the Census Bureau.
Who represents Brownstown in the state legislature?
State Senate District 55 (Jason Plummer) and State House District 110 (Blaine Wilhour). The House district also covers 118 other towns. Listed by Open States; districts from the Census Bureau.
Ask neighbors about Brownstown’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 →