How is Centralia run?
Centralia’s city government spent $563,000 on day-to-day services in the year to December 31, 2024, about $1,158 per resident. Water and other utilities ($425,000) are counted separately.
What stands out about how Centralia is run
Read from the city’s budget and official records.
About $1,158 per resident a year, or $3.17 a day
Day-to-day services only. The biggest line: roads & transportation, at 11%.
Thank you for being a neighbor
$599 per resident in 2022, close to the middle of similar cities
Centralia’s day-to-day spending in 2022 ($599 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. Centralia spent more than 58% of them.
Includes sewer and trash ($105,000), 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; Centralia itself left out).
Day-to-day spending is up 82% since 2022
Day-to-day services, in dollars, in the years Centralia 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: $599 · 2024: $1,158. Per resident it went from $599 to $1,158 (up 93%), partly because the Census population behind it changed from 516 to 486.
Building projects, interest and enterprises (hospital, utilities) are left out, so a big construction year doesn’t read as growth.
The typical homeowner pays $1,179 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 1.36% 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 Centralia’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 Centralia’s Cost of living grade. Cost of living in Centralia →
Who’s in charge in Centralia
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
Centralia’s meeting calendar isn’t in our feed yet. The city posts agendas and minutes on cityofcentraliaks.org ↗.
One full-time city employee for every 162 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 (486).
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.
Vermillion Unified School District 380
Centralia’s K–12 school district, shared with Corning, Frankfort, Goff, Home Township, Noble Township and more. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.
Of the $13,403 per pupil, $8,368 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.
Centralia’s votes are counted by county
Kansas reports official results by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Centralia alone, and we don’t estimate them. These are Nemaha County’s results.
Donald J TrumpRepublican82.8%4,655 votes
Kamala D HarrisDemocrat15.8%888 votesOthers: 1.4% (77 votes).
Most votes in Nemaha County: Donald J Trump
Kansas: Trump 57.2%, Harris 41.0%
100% of Centralia lies in Nemaha County. Every 2024 race in Nemaha County is on the county’s page.
Nemaha 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 Centralia.
- 1Your cityMayor & councilOfficials: cityofcentraliaks.org ↗
- 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 Centralia’s government
The official site has phone numbers, hours and forms. Neighbors add the rest to the Handbook.
Questions about Centralia’s government
How much does Centralia spend per resident?
About $1,158 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 $599 was more than 58% of 252 Kansas cities of under 2,500 that don’t run their own schools.
What is the property tax rate in Centralia?
Homeowners report a typical bill of $1,179 a year (Census ACS, 2020–24), about 1.36% of the typical home’s value, vs 1.29% across Kansas. For the official rate per $1,000 of assessed value, see cityofcentraliaks.org.
Who runs Centralia’s government?
See cityofcentraliaks.org for current officials. We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for Centralia yet.
How did Centralia vote in 2024?
Kansas counts votes by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Centralia alone. Nemaha County, where 100% of Centralia lies, voted Trump 82.8%, Harris 15.8% for president; its page has every race.
How many people work for Centralia?
3 full-time and 1 part-time employees in March 2022, with a March payroll of $12,056 (about $144,672 a year if every month were the same), as reported to the Census Bureau.
Who represents Centralia in the state legislature?
State Senate District 1 (Craig Bowser) and State House District 62 (Sean Willcott). The House district also covers 53 other towns. Listed by Open States; districts from the Census Bureau.
Ask neighbors about Centralia’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 →