Photo: Ichabod · CC BY-SA 3.0How is Abilene run?
Abilene’s city government spent $9.5 million on day-to-day services in the year to December 31, 2024, about $1,473 per resident. Water and other utilities ($2 million) are counted separately.
What stands out about how Abilene is run
Read from the city’s budget and official records.
About $1,473 per resident a year, or $4.04 a day
Day-to-day services only. The biggest line: police, at 17%.
Thank you for being a neighbor
$1,081 per resident in 2022, close to the middle of similar cities
Abilene’s day-to-day spending in 2022 ($1,081 per resident, hospital and utilities left out) against 30 Kansas cities of 2,500–9,999 that don’t run their own schools: the median was $949, and the middle half spent $786–$1,339. Abilene spent more than 57% of them.
Includes sewer and trash ($1.5 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 →
Kansas cities of 2,500–9,999 that don’t run their own schools, 2022 Census of Governments (every government counted that year; Abilene itself left out).
Day-to-day spending is up 43% since 2022
Day-to-day services, in dollars, in the years Abilene 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: $1,081 · 2023: $1,203 · 2024: $1,473. Per resident it went from $1,081 to $1,473 (up 36%), partly because the Census population behind it changed from 6,123 to 6,441.
full-time in March 2025, up from 52 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 $2,140 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 1.63% of the home’s value, vs 1.29% across Kansas.
Typical yearly bill next door and statewide
The Housing page’s calculator splits a monthly payment into loan, tax and insurance at Abilene’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 Abilene’s Cost of living grade. Cost of living in Abilene →
Who’s in charge in Abilene
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
Abilene’s meeting calendar isn’t in our feed yet. The city posts agendas and minutes on AbileneCityHall.com ↗.
One full-time city employee for every 107 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 (6,441).
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.
Abilene Unified School District 435
Abilene’s K–12 school district, shared with Grant Township, Buckeye Township, Willowdale Township, Lincoln Township, Garfield Township. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.
Of the $13,372 per pupil, $8,231 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.
Kansas districts overall: 28% local, 61% state, 11% federal.
School year 2023–24. Census Bureau school finance survey.
How Abilene voted in 2024
Official results for Abilene’s own voters, as certified after the November 5, 2024 general election, with the county and the state beside them.
Donald J TrumpRepublican71.5%2,103 votes
Kamala D HarrisDemocrat27.0%793 votesOthers: 1.5% (44 votes).
Most votes in Abilene: Donald J Trump
Dickinson County: Trump 76.7%, Harris 21.8% · Kansas: Trump 57.2%, Harris 41.0%
of Abilene’s 5,148 adult citizens voted for president in 2024. Across Kansas: 62%.
Votes ÷ citizens of voting age (Census CVAP, 2020–24 ACS).
Most votes in the district: Tracey Mann
Whole-district result
President, 2024: Abilene, its county and the state
| Trump | Harris | Others | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Abilene | 71.5% | 27.0% | 1.5% | 2,940 |
| Dickinson County | 76.7% | 21.8% | 1.5% | 9,144 |
| Kansas | 57.2% | 41.0% | 1.8% | 1,327,591 |
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 Abilene.
- 1Your cityMayor & councilOfficials: AbileneCityHall.com ↗
- 2Kansas HouseState representatives
- 3Kansas SenateState senator
- 4GovernorStatewide
- 5U.S. HouseYour representative in Congress
- 6U.S. SenateBoth represent all of Kansas
Democrat · Republican · other or independent. Tap a name for their official page.
How Abilene compares with the towns next door
Abilene spent $1,081 per resident in 2022. Most of its neighbors are townships, a different kind of government, so the like-for-like comparison is with similar cities, above. Tap a town to see its page.
| Town | Day-to-day, per resident (2022) | Tax bill |
|---|---|---|
| Lincoln Township | $80 | $2,378 |
| Grant Township | $142 | $2,233 |
| Abilene | $1,081 | $2,140 |
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 Abilene’s government
The official site has phone numbers, hours and forms. Neighbors add the rest to the Handbook.
Questions about Abilene’s government
How much does Abilene spend per resident?
About $1,473 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 $1,081 was more than 57% of 30 Kansas cities of 2,500–9,999 that don’t run their own schools.
What is the property tax rate in Abilene?
Homeowners report a typical bill of $2,140 a year (Census ACS, 2020–24), about 1.63% of the typical home’s value, vs 1.29% across Kansas. For the official rate per $1,000 of assessed value, see AbileneCityHall.com.
Who runs Abilene’s government?
See AbileneCityHall.com for current officials. We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for Abilene yet.
How did Abilene vote in 2024?
For president, Donald J Trump 71.5%, Kamala D Harris 27.0% (2,940 votes, official results). Dickinson County: Trump 76.7%, Harris 21.8%. Kansas: Trump 57.2%, Harris 41.0%.
How many people work for Abilene?
60 full-time and 33 part-time employees in March 2025, with a March payroll of $327,259 (about $3.9M a year if every month were the same), as reported to the Census Bureau.
Who represents Abilene in the state legislature?
State Senate District 24 (Scott Hill) and State House District 70 (Greg Wilson). The House district also covers 45 other towns. Listed by Open States; districts from the Census Bureau.
Ask neighbors about Abilene’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 →