Masonic Temple · Photo: User:Smuckola · CC BY-SA 4.0How is Salina run?
Salina’s city government spent $51.9 million on day-to-day services in the year to December 31, 2023, about $1,116 per resident. That is its newest year reported to the Census Bureau. Water and other utilities ($4.8 million) and the airport ($1.8 million) are counted separately.
What stands out about how Salina is run
Read from the city’s budget and official records.
About $1,116 per resident a year, or $3.06 a day
Day-to-day services only. The biggest line: sewer & trash, at 27%.
Thank you for being a neighbor
$1,012 per resident in 2022, close to the middle of similar cities
Salina’s day-to-day spending in 2022 ($1,012 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 $1,100, and the middle half spent $784–$1,392. Salina spent less than 60% of them.
Includes sewer and trash ($8.4 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; Salina itself left out).
Day-to-day spending is up 11% since 2022
Day-to-day services, in dollars, in the years Salina 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: $1,012 · 2023: $1,116.
full-time in March 2025, up from 430 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 $2,317 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 1.34% 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 Salina’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 Salina’s Cost of living grade. Cost of living in Salina →
Who’s in charge in Salina
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
One full-time city employee for every 98 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 (46,481).
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.
Salina Unified School District 305
Salina’s K–12 school district, shared with Smoky Hill Township, Elm Creek Township, Cambria Township, Greeley Township. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.
Of the $20,224 per pupil, $12,373 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.
Smoky Valley Unified School District 400 · $10,808 per pupil
Southeast of Saline Unified School District 306 · $15,012 per pupil
School year 2023–24. Census Bureau school finance survey.
How Salina voted in 2024
Official results for Salina’s own voters, as certified after the November 5, 2024 general election, with the county and the state beside them.
Donald J TrumpRepublican61.7%11,707 votes
Kamala D HarrisDemocrat36.4%6,901 votesOthers: 1.9% (354 votes).
Most votes in Salina: Donald J Trump
Saline County: Trump 64.9%, Harris 33.3% · Kansas: Trump 57.2%, Harris 41.0%
of Salina’s 34,772 adult citizens voted for president in 2024. Across Kansas: 62%.
Votes ÷ citizens of voting age (Census CVAP, 2020–24 ACS).
Most votes in the district: Tracey Mann
Whole-district result
President, 2024: Salina, its county and the state
| Trump | Harris | Others | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Salina | 61.7% | 36.4% | 1.9% | 18,962 |
| Saline County | 64.9% | 33.3% | 1.8% | 23,226 |
| Kansas | 57.2% | 41.0% | 1.8% | 1,327,591 |
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 Salina.
- 1Your cityMayor & councilLocal officials aren’t on record yet.
- 2Kansas HouseSalina is split between 3 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 Salina compares with the towns next door
Salina spent $1,012 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Greeley Township | estimate | $3,560 |
| Smoky Hill Township | estimate | $2,429 |
| Smolan Township | estimate | $2,391 |
| Elm Creek Township | estimate | $3,933 |
| Walnut Township | estimate | $2,786 |
| Cambria Township | estimate | $1,921 |
| Salina | $1,012 | $2,317 |
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 Salina’s government
Neighbors add phone numbers and hours to the Handbook.
Questions about Salina’s government
How much does Salina spend per resident?
About $1,116 per resident on day-to-day services in the year to December 31, 2023, as reported to the Census Bureau. In 2022, the last full count, its $1,012 was less 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 Salina?
Homeowners report a typical bill of $2,317 a year (Census ACS, 2020–24), about 1.34% of the typical home’s value, vs 1.29% across Kansas. For the official rate per $1,000 of assessed value, see the city’s assessor.
Who runs Salina’s government?
We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for Salina yet.
How did Salina vote in 2024?
For president, Donald J Trump 61.7%, Kamala D Harris 36.4% (18,962 votes, official results). Saline County: Trump 64.9%, Harris 33.3%. Kansas: Trump 57.2%, Harris 41.0%.
How many people work for Salina?
476 full-time and 77 part-time employees in March 2025, with a March payroll of $2.9M (about $34.3M a year if every month were the same), as reported to the Census Bureau.
Who represents Salina in the state legislature?
Salina is split among 3 State House districts, so your address decides. The Kansas Legislature’s lookup finds yours. Its State Senate district is District 24 (Scott Hill). Listed by Open States; districts from the Census Bureau.
Ask neighbors about Salina’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 →