Photo: Chris Light · CC BY-SA 4.0How is Ellinwood run?
Ellinwood’s city government spent $1.9 million on day-to-day services in the year to December 31, 2023, about $954 per resident. Water and other utilities ($3.1 million) are counted separately.
What stands out about how Ellinwood is run
Read from the city’s budget and official records.
About $954 per resident a year, or $2.61 a day
Day-to-day services only. The biggest line: police, at 23%.
Thank you for being a neighbor
No comparison or trend for Ellinwood yet
The fair comparison uses 2022, the last year the Census Bureau counted every government (later years are a sample), and Ellinwood’s 2022 figures are a Census estimate (it reported none of its 2022 dollars). It reported 2023 only (2022 is an estimate), so there is no trend yet either. The next full count is 2027.
How Town Hall compares budgets →full-time in March 2025, up from 17 in 2022. Both are Census estimates.
The typical homeowner pays $1,865 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 1.71% 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 Ellinwood’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 Ellinwood’s Cost of living grade. Cost of living in Ellinwood →
Who’s in charge in Ellinwood
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
Ellinwood’s meeting calendar isn’t in our feed yet. The city posts agendas and minutes on CityOfEllinwoodKS.com ↗.
One full-time city employee for every 90 residents
On the payroll in March 2025, from the Census Bureau’s Annual Survey of Public Employment & Payroll. Residents: the Census population in the 2023 finance file (1,989).
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.
Ellinwood Public Schools Unified School District 355
Ellinwood’s K–12 school district, shared with Comanche Township, Lakin Township, Byron Township. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.
Of the $16,448 per pupil, $9,583 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.
Ellinwood’s votes are counted by county
Kansas reports official results by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Ellinwood alone, and we don’t estimate them. These are Barton County’s results.
Donald J TrumpRepublican77.6%8,205 votes
Kamala D HarrisDemocrat20.9%2,207 votesOthers: 1.5% (158 votes).
Most votes in Barton County: Donald J Trump
Kansas: Trump 57.2%, Harris 41.0%
100% of Ellinwood lies in Barton County. Every 2024 race in Barton County is on the county’s page.
Barton 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 Ellinwood.
- 1Your cityMayor & councilOfficials: CityOfEllinwoodKS.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 Ellinwood compares with the towns next door
Ellinwood’s 2022 figures are a Census estimate, so it isn’t placed among them. Neighbors that reported 2022 spent $887 per resident. Tap a town to see its page.
| Town | Day-to-day, per resident (2022) | Tax bill |
|---|---|---|
| Lakin Township | $887 | $3,059 |
| Ellinwood | estimate | $1,865 |
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 Ellinwood’s government
The official site has phone numbers, hours and forms. Neighbors add the rest to the Handbook.
Questions about Ellinwood’s government
How much does Ellinwood spend per resident?
About $954 per resident on day-to-day services in the year to December 31, 2023, as reported to the Census Bureau.
What is the property tax rate in Ellinwood?
Homeowners report a typical bill of $1,865 a year (Census ACS, 2020–24), about 1.71% of the typical home’s value, vs 1.29% across Kansas. For the official rate per $1,000 of assessed value, see CityOfEllinwoodKS.com.
Who runs Ellinwood’s government?
See CityOfEllinwoodKS.com for current officials. We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for Ellinwood yet.
How did Ellinwood vote in 2024?
Kansas counts votes by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Ellinwood alone. Barton County, where 100% of Ellinwood lies, voted Trump 77.6%, Harris 20.9% for president; its page has every race.
How many people work for Ellinwood?
22 full-time and 23 part-time employees in March 2025, with a March payroll of $118,447 (about $1.4M a year if every month were the same), as reported to the Census Bureau.
Who represents Ellinwood in the state legislature?
State Senate District 33 (Tory Marie Blew) and State House District 113 (Brett Fairchild). The House district also covers 91 other towns. Listed by Open States; districts from the Census Bureau.
Ask neighbors about Ellinwood’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 →