Photo: Michlaovic · Public domainHow is Laurel run?
Laurel’s city government spent $28.6 million on day-to-day services in the year to September 30, 2024, about $1,676 per resident. Water and other utilities ($4.9 million) are counted separately.
What stands out about how Laurel is run
Read from the city’s budget and official records.
About $1,676 per resident a year, or $4.59 a day
Day-to-day services only. The biggest line: sewer & trash, at 21%.
Thank you for being a neighbor
No comparison for Laurel yet
The fair comparison uses 2022, the last year the Census Bureau counted every government (later years are a sample). Laurel’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 →Day-to-day spending has held about steady since 2023
Day-to-day services, in dollars, in the years Laurel reported to the Census Bureau. Prices rose too: about 4% a year in 2022–2024.
Day-to-day spending by fiscal year
Per resident: 2023: $1,678 · 2024: $1,676.
full-time in March 2025, up from 270 in 2022. Both are Census estimates.
Building projects, interest and enterprises (hospital, utilities) are left out, so a big construction year doesn’t read as growth.
The typical homeowner pays $1,268 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 1.01% 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 Laurel’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 Laurel’s Cost of living grade. Cost of living in Laurel →
Who’s in charge in Laurel
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
Laurel’s meeting calendar isn’t in our feed yet. The city posts agendas and minutes on laurelms.com ↗.
One full-time city employee for every 63 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 (17,066).
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.
Laurel School District
Laurel’s K–12 school district. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.
Of the $12,464 per pupil, $6,262 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.
Jones County School District · $10,265 per pupil
School year 2023–24. Census Bureau school finance survey.
Laurel’s votes are counted by county
Mississippi reports official results by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Laurel alone, and we don’t estimate them. These are Jones County’s results.
Donald J TrumpRepublican73.0%20,265 votes
Kamala D HarrisDemocrat26.2%7,272 votesOthers: 0.8% (218 votes).
Most votes in Jones County: Donald J Trump
Mississippi: Trump 60.9%, Harris 38.0%
100% of Laurel lies in Jones County. Every 2024 race in Jones County is on the county’s page.
Jones 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 Laurel.
- 1Your cityMayor & councilOfficials: laurelms.com ↗
- 2Mississippi HouseLaurel is split between 2 districts
- 3Mississippi SenateState senator
- 4GovernorStatewide
- 5U.S. HouseSplit between districts
- 6U.S. SenateBoth represent all of Mississippi
Democrat · Republican · other or independent. Tap a name for their official page.
How Laurel compares with the towns next door
Laurel’s 2022 figures are a Census estimate, so it isn’t placed among them. Neighbors that reported 2022 spent $795 per resident. Tap a town to see its page.
| Town | Day-to-day, per resident (2022) | Tax bill |
|---|---|---|
| Ellisville | $795 | $1,097 |
| Laurel | estimate | $1,268 |
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 Laurel’s government
The official site has phone numbers, hours and forms. Neighbors add the rest to the Handbook.
Questions about Laurel’s government
How much does Laurel spend per resident?
About $1,676 per resident on day-to-day services in the year to September 30, 2024, as reported to the Census Bureau.
What is the property tax rate in Laurel?
Homeowners report a typical bill of $1,268 a year (Census ACS, 2020–24), about 1.01% of the typical home’s value, vs 0.72% across Mississippi. For the official rate per $1,000 of assessed value, see laurelms.com.
Who runs Laurel’s government?
See laurelms.com for current officials. We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for Laurel yet.
How did Laurel vote in 2024?
Mississippi counts votes by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Laurel alone. Jones County, where 100% of Laurel lies, voted Trump 73.0%, Harris 26.2% for president; its page has every race.
How many people work for Laurel?
273 full-time and 34 part-time employees in March 2025, with a March payroll of $1.1M (about $13.7M a year if every month were the same); Census Bureau estimates.
Who represents Laurel in the state legislature?
Laurel 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 Laurel’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 →