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Seward County, KS, Courthouse IMG 5985Photo: Billy Hathorn · CC BY-SA 3.0
Town Hall · Liberal

How is Liberal run?

Liberal’s city government spent $32 million on day-to-day services in the year to December 31, 2024, about $1,662 per resident. Water and other utilities ($4.5 million) and the airport ($899,000) are counted separately.

Town website
Election Day

Today

General election in Kansas.

Register or check: vote.gov ↗
Day-to-day spending, 2024
$32.0M
year to December 31, 2024
Per resident, 2024
$1,662
2022 was an estimate · not compared
Long-term debt
$42.3M
end of 2024, reported
City staff, 2025
243
full-time · 53 part-time · March payroll $1.3M
Typical tax bill
$2,363
1.72% of home value · KS 1.29%

What stands out about how Liberal is run

Read from the city’s budget, meetings and official records.

Agendas posted online6 upcoming meetings posted, with agendas.Runs its own water & sewer27% of day-to-day spending goes to water, sewer and trash (2024).A shared school districtShares Liberal Unified School District 480 with 1 other town.Its own police and fire35 sworn officers and 21 full-time firefighters on the payroll.
★ What stands out · Meetings

6 upcoming meetings at town hall

From Liberal’s own agenda portal, checked daily. Agendas can change up to the meeting, so check before you go.

Recent meetings

Go in person

Most meetings are open to the public, and many have a public comment period at the start.

Agenda portal ↗
Your share of the 2024 budget

About $1,662 per resident a year, or $4.55 a day

Day-to-day services only. The biggest line: sewer & trash, at 18%.

Where the money comes from
From the state 41%Fees & charges 17%Property taxes 16%Utility sales 14%Interest, fines & other 8%Sales taxes 5%From other local governments 1%Other taxes & licenses <1%
Not in the receipt.Building projects $283,000; interest on debt $831,000. With these and the enterprises, the whole budget was $38.7 million.
Compared with similar places

No comparison for Liberal yet

The fair comparison uses 2022, the last year the Census Bureau counted every government (later years are a sample). Liberal’s 2022 figures are a Census estimate (it reported none of its 2022 dollars), so it has no like-for-like peer figure. It reported 2024; the next full count is 2027.

How Town Hall compares budgets →
Over the years

Day-to-day spending is up 19% since 2023

Day-to-day services, in dollars, in the years Liberal reported to the Census Bureau. Prices rose too: about 4% a year in 2022–2024.

Day-to-day spending by fiscal year

2023$27 million
2024$32 million

Per resident: 2023: $1,374 · 2024: $1,662.

City staff
243

full-time in March 2025, up from 209 in 2022.

Building projects, interest and enterprises (hospital, utilities) are left out, so a big construction year doesn’t read as growth.

Property tax

The typical homeowner pays $2,363 a year

Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 1.72% of the home’s value, vs 1.29% across Kansas.

What homes cost →

Typical yearly bill next door and statewide

Kansas$2,798
Liberal$2,363
$2,363
typical bill a year
1.72%
effective rate
$137,100
typical home value (Census)
Your own bill

The Housing page’s calculator splits a monthly payment into loan, tax and insurance at Liberal’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 Liberal’s Cost of living grade. Cost of living in Liberal →

Who runs it

Who’s in charge in Liberal

Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.

See CityOfLiberal.org for Liberal’s current officialsWe name an official only when a public source lists a current term. None does for Liberal yet.CityOfLiberal.org ↗
Who works for Liberal

One full-time city employee for every 79 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 (19,274).

By department full-time, plus part-time, March 2025

Police52 + 1 pt
Parks & libraries33 + 33 pt
Roads & transportation31 + 9 pt
Administration & buildings33 + 5 pt
Fire21 + 5 pt
Sewer & trash22
Water & other utilities18
Courts, inspections & corrections8
Health & welfare7
Other18
243
full-time
53
part-time
$1.3M
payroll for March 2025
$15.4M
a year, estimated (March × 12)
$61,300
average full-time pay, before benefits (March × 12)
35
sworn police officers
21
full-time firefighters
Not compared.Staff are compared with the same group as the budget, and Liberal’s 2022 budget was a Census estimate, so there is no group to compare with.

The Census reports one month’s payroll (March); yearly figures are that month × 12, an estimate. Part-timers count half in the bar lengths.

The school district

Liberal Unified School District 480

Liberal’s K–12 school district, shared with Liberal Township. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.

Schools in Liberal →
$13,425
per pupil · KS $14,966
4,676
students
$101.4 million
long-term debt

Of the $13,425 per pupil, $7,863 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.

The district: schools, scores and graduation →

Where the district’s money comes from
Local 11%State 73%Federal 16%

Kansas districts overall: 28% local, 61% state, 11% federal.

School year 2023–24. Census Bureau school finance survey.

Elections · 2024 general election

How Liberal voted in 2024

Official results for Liberal’s own voters, as certified after the November 5, 2024 general election, with the county and the state beside them.

President3,872 votes · results as certified
Donald J TrumpDonald J TrumpRepublican65.7%2,543 votes
Kamala D HarrisKamala D HarrisDemocrat32.4%1,255 votes

Others: 1.9% (74 votes).

Most votes in Liberal: Donald J Trump

Seward County: Trump 68.6%, Harris 29.7% · Kansas: Trump 57.2%, Harris 41.0%

Turnout
38%

of Liberal’s 10,288 adult citizens voted for president in 2024. Across Kansas: 62%.

Votes ÷ citizens of voting age (Census CVAP, 2020–24 ACS).

U.S. House · Kansas’s 1st District304,458 votes
Tracey MannRepublican69.1%
Paul BuskirkDemocrat30.9%

Most votes in the district: Tracey Mann

Whole-district result

President, 2024: Liberal, its county and the state

TrumpHarrisOthersVotes
Liberal65.7%32.4%1.9%3,872
Seward County68.6%29.7%1.7%4,565
Kansas57.2%41.0%1.8%1,327,591
DemocratRepublicanLibertarianIndependent / other

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.

Who represents Liberal

From town hall to Washington

Every level of government that speaks for Liberal.

2024 results ↑
  1. 1
    Your cityMayor & council
    Officials: CityOfLiberal.org ↗
  2. 2
    Kansas HouseState representatives
    Shannon Francis
  3. 3
    Kansas SenateState senator
    Ron Ryckman
  4. 4
    GovernorStatewide
    Laura Kelly
  5. 5
    U.S. HouseYour representative in Congress
    Tracey Mann
  6. 6
    U.S. SenateBoth represent all of Kansas
    Jerry MoranRoger Marshall

Democrat · Republican · other or independent. Tap a name for their official page.

Reach Liberal’s government

The official site has phone numbers, hours and forms. Neighbors add the rest to the Handbook.

The Handbook →
Official websiteCityOfLiberal.org ↗

Questions about Liberal’s government

How much does Liberal spend per resident?

About $1,662 per resident on day-to-day services in the year to December 31, 2024, as reported to the Census Bureau.

What is the property tax rate in Liberal?

Homeowners report a typical bill of $2,363 a year (Census ACS, 2020–24), about 1.72% of the typical home’s value, vs 1.29% across Kansas. For the official rate per $1,000 of assessed value, see CityOfLiberal.org.

Who runs Liberal’s government?

See CityOfLiberal.org for current officials. We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for Liberal yet.

How did Liberal vote in 2024?

For president, Donald J Trump 65.7%, Kamala D Harris 32.4% (3,872 votes, official results). Seward County: Trump 68.6%, Harris 29.7%. Kansas: Trump 57.2%, Harris 41.0%.

How many people work for Liberal?

243 full-time and 53 part-time employees in March 2025, with a March payroll of $1.3M (about $15.4M a year if every month were the same), as reported to the Census Bureau.

Who represents Liberal in the state legislature?

State Senate District 38 (Ron Ryckman) and State House District 125 (Shannon Francis). The House district also covers seven other towns. Listed by Open States; districts from the Census Bureau.

When is the next public meeting in Liberal?

The next posted meeting is City Commission Work Session on Tuesday, November 10, at 4:00 pm in City Commission Chambers, 950 S. Grant Ave., from the city’s own agenda portal.

Ask neighbors about Liberal’s government

Neighbors who’ve been to the meetings can help.

Town Square →
Ask neighbors

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 →