Photo: Nyttend · Public domainHow is Bedford run?
Bedford’s city government spent $43 million on day-to-day services in the year to December 31, 2024, about $3,097 per resident. Water and other utilities ($2 million) are counted separately.
What stands out about how Bedford is run
Read from the city’s budget and official records.
North Lawrence Community Schools
Bedford’s K–12 school district, shared with Guthrie Township, Indian Creek Township, Marshall Township, Oolitic, Perry Township and more. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.
Of the $13,687 per pupil, $7,309 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.
Indiana districts overall: 33% local, 56% state, 11% federal.
School year 2023–24. Census Bureau school finance survey.
About $3,097 per resident a year, or $8.48 a day
Day-to-day services only. The biggest line: housing & development, at 41%.
Thank you for being a neighbor
$1,251 per resident in 2022, close to the middle of similar cities
Bedford’s day-to-day spending in 2022 ($1,251 per resident, hospital and utilities left out) against 35 Indiana cities of 10,000–24,999 that don’t run their own schools: the median was $1,179, and the middle half spent $976–$1,616. Bedford spent more than 63% of them.
Includes sewer and trash ($3.3 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 →
Indiana cities of 10,000–24,999 that don’t run their own schools, 2022 Census of Governments (every government counted that year; Bedford itself left out).
Day-to-day spending is up 160% since 2022
Day-to-day services, in dollars, in the years Bedford 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: $1,251 · 2023: $1,990 · 2024: $3,097. Per resident it went from $1,251 to $3,097 (up 148%), partly because the Census population behind it changed from 13,233 to 13,897.
full-time in March 2025, up from 157 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 $1,058 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 0.69% of the home’s value, vs 0.74% across Indiana.
Typical yearly bill next door and statewide
The Housing page’s calculator splits a monthly payment into loan, tax and insurance at Bedford’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 Bedford’s Cost of living grade. Cost of living in Bedford →
Who’s in charge in Bedford
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
Bedford’s meeting calendar isn’t in our feed yet. The city posts agendas and minutes on bedford.in.us ↗.
One full-time city employee for every 68 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 (13,897).
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.
From town hall to Washington
Every level of government that speaks for Bedford.
- 1Your cityMayor & councilOfficials: bedford.in.us ↗
- 2Indiana HouseState representatives
- 3Indiana SenateState senator
- 4GovernorStatewide
- 5U.S. HouseYour representative in Congress
- 6U.S. SenateBoth represent all of Indiana
Democrat · Republican · other or independent. Tap a name for their official page.
Reach Bedford’s government
The official site has phone numbers, hours and forms. Neighbors add the rest to the Handbook.
Questions about Bedford’s government
How much does Bedford spend per resident?
About $3,097 per resident on day-to-day services in the year to December 31, 2024, as reported to the Census Bureau. In 2022, the last full count, its $1,251 was more than 63% of 35 Indiana cities of 10,000–24,999 that don’t run their own schools.
What is the property tax rate in Bedford?
Homeowners report a typical bill of $1,058 a year (Census ACS, 2020–24), about 0.69% of the typical home’s value, vs 0.74% across Indiana. For the official rate per $1,000 of assessed value, see bedford.in.us.
Who runs Bedford’s government?
See bedford.in.us for current officials. We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for Bedford yet.
How many people work for Bedford?
205 full-time and 12 part-time employees in March 2025, with a March payroll of $918,754 (about $11.0M a year if every month were the same); Census Bureau estimates.
Who represents Bedford in the state legislature?
State Senate District 44 (Eric Koch) and State House District 65 (Chris May). The House district also covers 32 other towns. Listed by Open States; districts from the Census Bureau.
Ask neighbors about Bedford’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 →