Photo: Thomas R Machnitzki ([email protected]) · CC BY 3.0How is Olive Branch run?
Olive Branch’s city government spent $49.7 million on day-to-day services in the year to September 30, 2024, about $1,057 per resident. Water and other utilities ($20.7 million) and the airport ($3.3 million) are counted separately.
What stands out about how Olive Branch is run
Read from the city’s budget, meetings and official records.
About $1,057 per resident a year, or $2.90 a day
Day-to-day services only. The biggest line: police, at 30%.
Thank you for being a neighbor
$1,035 per resident in 2022, close to the middle of similar cities
Olive Branch’s day-to-day spending in 2022 ($1,035 per resident, hospital and utilities left out) against 18 Mississippi cities of 25,000–49,999 that don’t run their own schools: the median was $1,048, and the middle half spent $969–$1,247. Olive Branch spent less than 56% of them.
Includes sewer and trash ($6.6 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 →
Mississippi cities of 25,000–49,999 that don’t run their own schools, 2022 Census of Governments (every government counted that year; Olive Branch itself left out).
Day-to-day spending is up 21% since 2022
Day-to-day services, in dollars, in the years Olive Branch 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: $1,035 · 2023: $1,131 · 2024: $1,057. Per resident it went from $1,035 to $1,057 (up 2%), partly because the Census population behind it changed from 39,646 to 47,086.
full-time in March 2025, up from 425 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 $1,864 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 0.64% 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 Olive Branch’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 Olive Branch’s Cost of living grade. Cost of living in Olive Branch →
Recent meetings
From Olive Branch’s own agenda portal, checked daily. Agendas can change up to the meeting, so check before you go.
No upcoming meetings are posted yet.
Recent meetings
- Aug27GeneralThursday · 4:00 pm · 9200 Pigeon Roost Road, Rm 143Design Review Advisory Committee MeetingAgenda ↗Meeting page ↗
Most meetings are open to the public, and many have a public comment period at the start.
Agenda portal ↗Who’s in charge in Olive Branch
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
One full-time city employee for every 102 residents
On the payroll in March 2025, from the Census Bureau’s Annual Survey of Public Employment & Payroll. Residents: the Census population in the 2024 finance file (47,086).
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.
DeSoto County School District
Olive Branch’s K–12 school district, shared with Hernando, Horn Lake, Southaven, Walls. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.
Of the $9,732 per pupil, $5,780 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.
School year 2023–24. Census Bureau school finance survey.
Olive Branch’s votes are counted by county
Mississippi reports official results by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Olive Branch alone, and we don’t estimate them. These are DeSoto County’s results.
Donald J TrumpRepublican60.8%48,064 votes
Kamala D HarrisDemocrat36.7%29,023 votesOthers: 2.5% (1,995 votes).
Most votes in DeSoto County: Donald J Trump
Mississippi: Trump 60.9%, Harris 38.0%
100% of Olive Branch lies in DeSoto County. Every 2024 race in DeSoto County is on the county’s page.
DeSoto 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
Olive Branch sends 5 representatives to the Mississippi House alone.
- 1Your cityMayor & councilOfficials: obms.us ↗
- 2Mississippi HouseOlive Branch is split between 5 districts
- 3Mississippi SenateState senatorKevin BlackwellTheresa Gillespie Isom
- 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 Olive Branch compares with the towns next door
Olive Branch spent $1,035 per resident in 2022; the neighbor that reported 2022 spent $948. Towns that run more services spend more. Tap a town to see its page.
| Town | Day-to-day, per resident (2022) | Tax bill |
|---|---|---|
| Southaven | $948 | $1,515 |
| Olive Branch | $1,035 | $1,864 |
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 Olive Branch’s government
The official site has phone numbers, hours and forms. Neighbors add the rest to the Handbook.
Questions about Olive Branch’s government
How much does Olive Branch spend per resident?
About $1,057 per resident on day-to-day services in the year to September 30, 2024, as reported to the Census Bureau. In 2022, the last full count, its $1,035 was less than 56% of 18 Mississippi cities of 25,000–49,999 that don’t run their own schools.
What is the property tax rate in Olive Branch?
Homeowners report a typical bill of $1,864 a year (Census ACS, 2020–24), about 0.64% of the typical home’s value, vs 0.72% across Mississippi. For the official rate per $1,000 of assessed value, see obms.us.
Who runs Olive Branch’s government?
See obms.us for current officials. We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for Olive Branch yet.
How did Olive Branch vote in 2024?
Mississippi counts votes by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Olive Branch alone. DeSoto County, where 100% of Olive Branch lies, voted Trump 60.8%, Harris 36.7% for president; its page has every race.
How many people work for Olive Branch?
462 full-time and 40 part-time employees in March 2025, with a March payroll of $2.5M (about $30.3M a year if every month were the same), as reported to the Census Bureau.
Who represents Olive Branch in the state legislature?
Olive Branch is split among 5 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 Olive Branch’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 →