Photo: Roastedbeanz1 · CC BY 4.0How is Waveland run?
Waveland’s city government spent $8.6 million on day-to-day services in the year to September 30, 2024, about $1,242 per resident. Water and other utilities ($1.6 million) are counted separately.
What stands out about how Waveland is run
Read from the city’s budget and official records.
About $1,242 per resident a year, or $3.40 a day
Day-to-day services only. The biggest line: police, at 22%.
Thank you for being a neighbor
No comparison for Waveland yet
The fair comparison uses 2022, the last year the Census Bureau counted every government (later years are a sample). Waveland’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 is up 3% since 2023
Day-to-day services, in dollars, in the years Waveland 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: $1,186 · 2024: $1,242.
Building projects, interest and enterprises (hospital, utilities) are left out, so a big construction year doesn’t read as growth.
The typical homeowner pays $1,627 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 0.74% 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 Waveland’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 Waveland’s Cost of living grade. Cost of living in Waveland →
Who’s in charge in Waveland
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
One full-time city employee for every 118 residents
On the payroll in March 2022, from the Census Bureau’s Annual Survey of Public Employment & Payroll (a Census estimate). Residents: the Census population in the 2024 finance file (6,943).
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.
Bay St. Louis-Waveland School District
Waveland’s K–12 school district, shared with Bay St. Louis. 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.
Waveland’s votes are counted by county
Mississippi reports official results by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Waveland 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 Waveland 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 Waveland.
- 1Your cityMayor & councilLocal officials aren’t on record yet.
- 2Mississippi HouseState representatives
- 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 Waveland compares with the towns next door
Waveland’s 2022 figures are a Census estimate, so it isn’t placed among them. None of its neighbors reported 2022 figures. Tap a town to see its page.
| Town | Day-to-day, per resident (2022) | Tax bill |
|---|---|---|
| Bay St. Louis | estimate | $1,976 |
| Waveland | estimate | $1,627 |
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 Waveland’s government
Neighbors add phone numbers and hours to the Handbook.
Questions about Waveland’s government
How much does Waveland spend per resident?
About $1,242 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 Waveland?
Homeowners report a typical bill of $1,627 a year (Census ACS, 2020–24), about 0.74% of the typical home’s value, vs 0.72% across Mississippi. For the official rate per $1,000 of assessed value, see the city’s assessor.
Who runs Waveland’s government?
We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for Waveland yet.
How did Waveland vote in 2024?
Mississippi counts votes by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Waveland alone. Hancock County, where 100% of Waveland lies, voted Trump 78.8%, Harris 20.1% for president; its page has every race.
How many people work for Waveland?
59 full-time and 35 part-time employees in March 2022, with a March payroll of $299,021 (about $3.6M a year if every month were the same); Census Bureau estimates.
Who represents Waveland in the state legislature?
Waveland is split among 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 Waveland’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 →