Photo: Frank Kovalchek from Anchorage, Alaska, USA · CC BY 2.0How is Bay St. Louis run?
Bay St. Louis’ city government spent $11.7 million on day-to-day services in the year to September 30, 2024, about $1,103 per resident. These are Census Bureau estimates: Bay St. Louis didn’t report its figures, so this page shows them without comparisons.
What stands out about how Bay St. Louis is run
Read from the city’s budget and official records.
About $1,103 per resident a year, or $3.02 a day
Day-to-day services only (a Census Bureau estimate). The biggest line: roads & transportation, at 22%.
Thank you for being a neighbor
Bay St. Louis 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 Bay St. Louis yet
Every year of Bay St. Louis’ 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 →full-time in March 2025, up from 112 in 2022. Both are Census estimates.
The typical homeowner pays $1,976 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 0.76% of the home’s value, vs 0.72% across Mississippi.
Typical yearly bill next door and statewide
The Housing page’s calculator splits a monthly payment into loan, tax and insurance at Bay St. Louis’ 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 Bay St. Louis’ Cost of living grade. Cost of living in Bay St. Louis →
Who’s in charge in Bay St. Louis
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
Bay St. Louis’ meeting calendar isn’t in our feed yet. The city posts agendas and minutes on baystlouisms.org ↗.
One full-time city employee for every 94 residents
On the payroll in March 2025, from the Census Bureau’s Annual Survey of Public Employment & Payroll (a Census estimate). Residents: the Census population in the 2024 finance file (10,596).
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.
Bay St. Louis-Waveland School District
Bay St. Louis’ K–12 school district, shared with Waveland. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.
Of the $16,586 per pupil, $8,305 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.
Mississippi districts overall: 33% local, 45% state, 23% federal.
Hancock County School District · $12,161 per pupil
School year 2023–24. Census Bureau school finance survey.
Bay St. Louis’ votes are counted by county
Mississippi reports official results by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Bay St. Louis alone, and we don’t estimate them. These are Hancock County’s results.
Donald J TrumpRepublican78.8%16,684 votes
Kamala D HarrisDemocrat20.1%4,262 votesOthers: 1.1% (229 votes).
Most votes in Hancock County: Donald J Trump
Mississippi: Trump 60.9%, Harris 38.0%
100% of Bay St. Louis lies in Hancock County. Every 2024 race in Hancock County is on the county’s page.
Hancock 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 Bay St. Louis.
- 1Your cityMayor & councilOfficials: baystlouisms.org ↗
- 2Mississippi HouseBay St. Louis is split between 2 districts
- 3Mississippi SenateState senator
- 4GovernorStatewide
- 5U.S. HouseYour representative in Congress
- 6U.S. SenateBoth represent all of Mississippi
Democrat · Republican · other or independent. Tap a name for their official page.
How Bay St. Louis compares with the towns next door
Bay St. Louis’ own figures are Census estimates, so it isn’t placed among its neighbors. 1 of the 2 towns next door reported 2022 figures, from $786 per resident. Tap a town to see its page.
| Town | Day-to-day, per resident (2022) | Tax bill |
|---|---|---|
| Diamondhead | $786 | $1,790 |
| Waveland | estimate | $1,627 |
| Bay St. Louis | estimate | $1,976 |
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 Bay St. Louis’ government
The official site has phone numbers, hours and forms. Neighbors add the rest to the Handbook.
Questions about Bay St. Louis’ government
How much does Bay St. Louis spend per resident?
About $1,103 per resident on day-to-day services in the year to September 30, 2024, a Census Bureau estimate (Bay St. Louis didn’t report its figures). With building projects and interest, the whole budget was about $18.3 million.
What is the property tax rate in Bay St. Louis?
Homeowners report a typical bill of $1,976 a year (Census ACS, 2020–24), about 0.76% of the typical home’s value, vs 0.72% across Mississippi. For the official rate per $1,000 of assessed value, see baystlouisms.org.
Who runs Bay St. Louis’ government?
See baystlouisms.org for current officials. We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for Bay St. Louis yet.
How did Bay St. Louis vote in 2024?
Mississippi counts votes by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Bay St. Louis alone. Hancock County, where 100% of Bay St. Louis lies, voted Trump 78.8%, Harris 20.1% for president; its page has every race.
How many people work for Bay St. Louis?
113 full-time and 1 part-time employees in March 2025, with a March payroll of $462,232 (about $5.5M a year if every month were the same); Census Bureau estimates.
Who represents Bay St. Louis in the state legislature?
Bay St. Louis is split among 2 State House districts and 2 State Senate districts, so your address decides. The Mississippi Legislature’s lookup finds yours. Listed by Open States; districts from the Census Bureau.
Ask neighbors about Bay St. Louis’ 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 Bay St. Louis, 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 →