Photo: Quintin Soloviev · CC BY 4.0How is Garden City run?
Garden City’s city government spent $60.3 million on day-to-day services in the year to December 31, 2024, about $2,190 per resident. Water and other utilities ($35.2 million) and the airport ($1.4 million) are counted separately.
What stands out about how Garden City is run
Read from the city’s budget and official records.
About $2,190 per resident a year, or $6.00 a day
Day-to-day services only. The biggest line: administration & buildings, at 22%.
Thank you for being a neighbor
$1,173 per resident in 2022, close to the middle of similar cities
Garden City’s day-to-day spending in 2022 ($1,173 per resident, hospital and utilities left out) against 20 Kansas cities of 25,000–49,999 that don’t run their own schools: the median was $1,064, and the middle half spent $784–$1,392. Garden City spent more than 60% of them.
Includes sewer and trash ($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 25,000–49,999 that don’t run their own schools, 2022 Census of Governments (every government counted that year; Garden City itself left out).
Day-to-day spending is up 98% since 2022
Day-to-day services, in dollars, in the years Garden City 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: $1,173 · 2023: $1,307 · 2024: $2,190. Per resident it went from $1,173 to $2,190 (up 87%), partly because the Census population behind it changed from 26,003 to 27,519.
full-time in March 2025, up from 337 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 $2,846 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 1.48% 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 Garden City’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 Garden City’s Cost of living grade. Cost of living in Garden City →
Who’s in charge in Garden City
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
Garden City’s meeting calendar isn’t in our feed yet. The city posts agendas and minutes on garden-city.org ↗.
One full-time city employee for every 74 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 (27,519).
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.
Garden City Unified School District 457
Garden City’s K–12 school district, shared with Pierceville Township, Pleasant Valley Township, Ivanhoe Township, Garden City Township, Garfield Township and more. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.
Of the $13,297 per pupil, $7,628 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.
Garden City’s votes are counted by county
Kansas reports official results by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Garden City alone, and we don’t estimate them. These are Finney County’s results.
Donald J TrumpRepublican66.5%7,166 votes
Kamala D HarrisDemocrat31.8%3,425 votesOthers: 1.8% (191 votes).
Most votes in Finney County: Donald J Trump
Kansas: Trump 57.2%, Harris 41.0%
100% of Garden City lies in Finney County. Every 2024 race in Finney County is on the county’s page.
Finney 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 Garden City.
- 1Your cityMayor & councilOfficials: garden-city.org ↗
- 2Kansas HouseGarden City is split between 2 districts
- 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 Garden City compares with the towns next door
Garden City spent $1,173 per resident in 2022. Towns that run more services spend more. Tap a town to see its page.
| Town | Day-to-day, per resident (2022) | Tax bill |
|---|---|---|
| Garden City Township | estimate | $3,007 |
| Garden City | $1,173 | $2,846 |
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 Garden City’s government
The official site has phone numbers, hours and forms. Neighbors add the rest to the Handbook.
Questions about Garden City’s government
How much does Garden City spend per resident?
About $2,190 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 $1,173 was more than 60% of 20 Kansas cities of 25,000–49,999 that don’t run their own schools.
What is the property tax rate in Garden City?
Homeowners report a typical bill of $2,846 a year (Census ACS, 2020–24), about 1.48% of the typical home’s value, vs 1.29% across Kansas. For the official rate per $1,000 of assessed value, see garden-city.org.
Who runs Garden City’s government?
See garden-city.org for current officials. We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for Garden City yet.
How did Garden City vote in 2024?
Kansas counts votes by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Garden City alone. Finney County, where 100% of Garden City lies, voted Trump 66.5%, Harris 31.8% for president; its page has every race.
How many people work for Garden City?
371 full-time and 84 part-time employees in March 2025, with a March payroll of $2.2M (about $26.6M a year if every month were the same), as reported to the Census Bureau.
Who represents Garden City in the state legislature?
Garden City is split among 2 State House districts, so your address decides. The Kansas Legislature’s lookup finds yours. Its State Senate district is District 39 (Bill Clifford). Listed by Open States; districts from the Census Bureau.
Ask neighbors about Garden City’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 →