Photo: HornColumbia · CC BY-SA 3.0How is Centralia run?
Centralia’s city government spent $4.1 million on day-to-day services in the year to March 31, 2024, about $882 per resident. These are Census Bureau estimates: Centralia didn’t report its figures, so this page shows them without comparisons.
What stands out about how Centralia is run
Read from the city’s budget and official records.
About $882 per resident a year, or $2.42 a day
Day-to-day services only (a Census Bureau estimate). The biggest line: sewer & trash, at 25%.
Thank you for being a neighbor
Centralia didn’t report all of its 2024 figures to the Census Bureau, so most of these numbers are the Bureau’s estimates.
No comparison or trend for Centralia yet
Every year of Centralia’s figures is a Census Bureau estimate: the city reported none of its dollars for 2022–2024. Estimates are shown above, labeled, but never ranked against places that reported or drawn as a trend.
How Town Hall compares budgets →The typical homeowner pays $1,505 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 0.86% of the home’s value, vs 0.85% across Missouri.
Typical yearly bill next door and statewide
The Housing page’s calculator splits a monthly payment into loan, tax and insurance at Centralia’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 Centralia’s Cost of living grade. Cost of living in Centralia →
Who’s in charge in Centralia
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
Centralia’s meeting calendar isn’t in our feed yet. The city posts agendas and minutes on centraliamo.org ↗.
One full-time city employee for every 120 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 (4,679).
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.
Centralia R-VI School District
Centralia’s K–12 school district. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.
Of the $11,154 per pupil, $6,362 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.
Missouri districts overall: 54% local, 35% state, 11% federal.
School year 2023–24. Census Bureau school finance survey.
Centralia’s votes are counted by county
Missouri reports official results by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Centralia alone, and we don’t estimate them. These are Boone County’s results.
Kamala D HarrisDemocrat53.8%48,452 votes
Donald J TrumpRepublican44.0%39,673 votesOthers: 2.2% (1,985 votes).
Most votes in Boone County: Kamala D Harris
Missouri: Trump 58.5%, Harris 40.1%
100% of Centralia lies in Boone County; the rest in Audrain County. Every 2024 race in Boone County is on the county’s page.
Boone 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 Centralia.
- 1Your cityMayor & councilOfficials: centraliamo.org ↗
- 2Missouri HouseState representatives
- 3Missouri SenateState senator
- 4GovernorStatewide
- 5U.S. HouseYour representative in Congress
- 6U.S. SenateBoth represent all of Missouri
Democrat · Republican · other or independent. Tap a name for their official page.
Reach Centralia’s government
The official site has phone numbers, hours and forms. Neighbors add the rest to the Handbook.
Questions about Centralia’s government
How much does Centralia spend per resident?
About $882 per resident on day-to-day services in the year to March 31, 2024, a Census Bureau estimate (Centralia didn’t report its figures). With building projects and interest, the whole budget was about $9 million.
What is the property tax rate in Centralia?
Homeowners report a typical bill of $1,505 a year (Census ACS, 2020–24), about 0.86% of the typical home’s value, vs 0.85% across Missouri. For the official rate per $1,000 of assessed value, see centraliamo.org.
Who runs Centralia’s government?
See centraliamo.org for current officials. We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for Centralia yet.
How did Centralia vote in 2024?
Missouri counts votes by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Centralia alone. Boone County, where 100% of Centralia lies, voted Harris 53.8%, Trump 44.0% for president; its page has every race.
How many people work for Centralia?
39 full-time and 51 part-time employees in March 2022, with a March payroll of $194,745 (about $2.3M a year if every month were the same), as reported to the Census Bureau.
Who represents Centralia in the state legislature?
State Senate District 19 (Stephen Webber) and State House District 44 (John Martin). The House district also covers five other towns. Listed by Open States; districts from the Census Bureau.
Ask neighbors about Centralia’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 (for Centralia, the Bureau’s estimates); 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 →