Photo: Bobak Ha'Eri · CC BY 3.0How is Paynesville run?
Paynesville’s city government spent $3.8 million on day-to-day services in the year to December 31, 2024, about $1,485 per resident. Water and other utilities ($2.6 million) and the airport ($221,000) are counted separately.
What stands out about how Paynesville is run
Read from the city’s budget and official records.
About $1,485 per resident a year, or $4.07 a day
Day-to-day services only. The biggest line: sewer & trash, at 36%.
Thank you for being a neighbor
$1,283 per resident in 2022, close to the middle of similar cities
Paynesville’s day-to-day spending in 2022 ($1,283 per resident, hospital and utilities left out) against 133 Minnesota cities of 2,500–9,999 that don’t run their own schools: the median was $1,074, and the middle half spent $815–$1,405. Paynesville spent more than 65% of them.
Includes sewer and trash ($1.1 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 →
Minnesota cities of 2,500–9,999 that don’t run their own schools, 2022 Census of Governments (every government counted that year; Paynesville itself left out).
Day-to-day spending is up 17% since 2022
Day-to-day services, in dollars, in the years Paynesville 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: $1,283 · 2024: $1,485.
Building projects, interest and enterprises (hospital, utilities) are left out, so a big construction year doesn’t read as growth.
The typical homeowner pays $1,746 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 0.98% of the home’s value, vs 1.02% across Minnesota.
Typical yearly bill next door and statewide
The Housing page’s calculator splits a monthly payment into loan, tax and insurance at Paynesville’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 Paynesville’s Cost of living grade. Cost of living in Paynesville →
Who’s in charge in Paynesville
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
Paynesville’s meeting calendar isn’t in our feed yet. The city posts agendas and minutes on paynesvillemn.com ↗.
One full-time city employee for every 170 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 (2,555).
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.
Paynesville Public School District
Paynesville’s K–12 school district, shared with Lake Henry, Roscoe, Zion Township, Paynesville Township, Regal and more. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.
Of the $13,495 per pupil, $8,543 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.
Minnesota districts overall: 30% local, 62% state, 8% federal.
School year 2023–24. Census Bureau school finance survey.
Paynesville’s votes are counted by county
Minnesota reports official results by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Paynesville alone, and we don’t estimate them. These are Stearns County’s results.
Donald J TrumpRepublican62.3%53,932 votes
Kamala D HarrisDemocrat35.6%30,829 votesOthers: 2.2% (1,871 votes).
Most votes in Stearns County: Donald J Trump
Minnesota: Harris 50.9%, Trump 46.7%
100% of Paynesville lies in Stearns County. Every 2024 race in Stearns County is on the county’s page.
Stearns 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 Paynesville.
- 1Your cityMayor & councilOfficials: paynesvillemn.com ↗
- 2Minnesota HouseState representatives
- 3Minnesota SenateState senator
- 4GovernorStatewide
- 5U.S. HouseYour representative in Congress
- 6U.S. SenateBoth represent all of Minnesota
Democrat · Republican · other or independent. Tap a name for their official page.
Reach Paynesville’s government
The official site has phone numbers, hours and forms. Neighbors add the rest to the Handbook.
Questions about Paynesville’s government
How much does Paynesville spend per resident?
About $1,485 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 $1,283 was more than 65% of 133 Minnesota cities of 2,500–9,999 that don’t run their own schools.
What is the property tax rate in Paynesville?
Homeowners report a typical bill of $1,746 a year (Census ACS, 2020–24), about 0.98% of the typical home’s value, vs 1.02% across Minnesota. For the official rate per $1,000 of assessed value, see paynesvillemn.com.
Who runs Paynesville’s government?
See paynesvillemn.com for current officials. We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for Paynesville yet.
How did Paynesville vote in 2024?
Minnesota counts votes by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Paynesville alone. Stearns County, where 100% of Paynesville lies, voted Trump 62.3%, Harris 35.6% for president; its page has every race.
How many people work for Paynesville?
15 full-time and 42 part-time employees in March 2022, with a March payroll of $134,614 (about $1.6M a year if every month were the same), as reported to the Census Bureau.
Who represents Paynesville in the state legislature?
State Senate District 13 (Jeff Howe) and State House District 13A (Lisa Demuth). The House district also covers 25 other towns. Listed by Open States; districts from the Census Bureau.
Ask neighbors about Paynesville’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 →