Wabaunsee County Courthouse · Photo: Dylan Edwards · CC BY 4.0Alma spent more per resident in 2022 than 72% of similar cities
Alma’s city government spent $190,000 on day-to-day services in the year to December 31, 2024, about $231 per resident.
What stands out about how Alma is run
Read from the city’s budget and official records.
$720 per resident in 2022: more than 72% of them
Alma’s day-to-day spending in 2022 ($720 per resident, hospital and utilities left out) against 252 Kansas cities of under 2,500 that don’t run their own schools: the median was $516, and the middle half spent $249–$751. Alma spent more than 72% of them.
Includes sewer and trash ($137,000), as the Census Bureau counts them. Later years come from a Census sample, so the comparison stays on 2022. How Town Hall compares budgets →
Kansas cities of under 2,500 that don’t run their own schools, 2022 Census of Governments (every government counted that year; Alma itself left out).
About $231 per resident a year, or $0.63 a day
Day-to-day services only. The biggest line: sewer & trash, at 49%.
Thank you for being a neighbor
Day-to-day spending is down 66% since 2022
Day-to-day services, in dollars, in the years Alma 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: $720 · 2024: $231.
Building projects, interest and enterprises (hospital, utilities) are left out, so a big construction year doesn’t read as growth.
The typical homeowner pays $2,097 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 1.53% 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 Alma’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 Alma’s Cost of living grade. Cost of living in Alma →
Who’s in charge in Alma
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
Alma’s meeting calendar isn’t in our feed yet. The city posts agendas and minutes on cityofalma-kansas.net ↗.
One full-time city employee for every 137 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 (821).
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.
Wabaunsee Unified School District 329
Alma’s K–12 school district, shared with Alma Township, Maple Hill, McFarland, Paxico, Newbury Township and more. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.
Of the $16,374 per pupil, $9,668 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.
Alma’s votes are counted by county
Kansas reports official results by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Alma alone, and we don’t estimate them. These are Wabaunsee County’s results.
Donald J TrumpRepublican73.4%2,816 votes
Kamala D HarrisDemocrat24.6%944 votesOthers: 2.0% (76 votes).
Most votes in Wabaunsee County: Donald J Trump
Kansas: Trump 57.2%, Harris 41.0%
100% of Alma lies in Wabaunsee County. Every 2024 race in Wabaunsee County is on the county’s page.
Wabaunsee 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 Alma.
- 1Your cityMayor & councilOfficials: cityofalma-kansas.net ↗
- 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.
Reach Alma’s government
The official site has phone numbers, hours and forms. Neighbors add the rest to the Handbook.
Questions about Alma’s government
How much does Alma spend per resident?
About $231 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 $720 was more than 72% of 252 Kansas cities of under 2,500 that don’t run their own schools.
What is the property tax rate in Alma?
Homeowners report a typical bill of $2,097 a year (Census ACS, 2020–24), about 1.53% of the typical home’s value, vs 1.29% across Kansas. For the official rate per $1,000 of assessed value, see cityofalma-kansas.net.
Who runs Alma’s government?
See cityofalma-kansas.net for current officials. We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for Alma yet.
How did Alma vote in 2024?
Kansas counts votes by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Alma alone. Wabaunsee County, where 100% of Alma lies, voted Trump 73.4%, Harris 24.6% for president; its page has every race.
How many people work for Alma?
6 full-time and 15 part-time employees in March 2022, with a March payroll of $40,396 (about $484,752 a year if every month were the same), as reported to the Census Bureau.
Who represents Alma in the state legislature?
State Senate District 20 (Brenda Dietrich) and State House District 51 (Megan Steele). The House district also covers 28 other towns. Listed by Open States; districts from the Census Bureau.
Ask neighbors about Alma’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 →