Photo: USDA NRCS Montana · Public domainHow is Chester run?
Chester’s town government spent $678,000 on day-to-day services in the year to June 30, 2022, about $779 per resident. These are Census Bureau estimates: Chester didn’t report its figures, so this page shows them without comparisons.
What stands out about how Chester is run
Read from the town’s budget and official records.
About $779 per resident a year, or $2.13 a day
Day-to-day services only (a Census Bureau estimate). The biggest line: sewer & trash, at 33%.
Thank you for being a neighbor
Chester didn’t report all of its 2022 figures to the Census Bureau, so most of these numbers are the Bureau’s estimates.
No comparison or trend for Chester yet
Every year of Chester’s figures is a Census Bureau estimate: the town reported none of its dollars for 2022. 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 $1,528 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 0.88% of the home’s value, vs 0.72% across Montana.
Typical yearly bill next door and statewide
The Housing page’s calculator splits a monthly payment into loan, tax and insurance at Chester’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. In a town this small the estimate has a wide margin.
Tax bills are one input to Chester’s Cost of living grade. Cost of living in Chester →
Who’s in charge in Chester
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
Chester’s meeting calendar isn’t in our feed yet. The town posts agendas and minutes on chester-montana.com ↗.
One full-time town employee for every 174 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 2022 finance file (870).
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.
Chester-Joplin-Inverness Elementary School District
Chester’s elementary school district. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.
Of the $14,780 per pupil, $9,746 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.
Montana districts overall: 44% local, 39% state, 17% federal.
Chester-Joplin-Inverness High School District · $27,145 per pupil
School year 2023–24. Census Bureau school finance survey.
Chester’s votes are counted by county
Montana reports official results by county and precinct, not by town, so there are no official results for Chester alone, and we don’t estimate them. These are Liberty County’s results.
Donald J TrumpRepublican76.1%752 votes
Kamala D HarrisDemocrat21.7%214 votesOthers: 2.2% (22 votes).
Most votes in Liberty County: Donald J Trump
Montana: Trump 58.4%, Harris 38.5%
100% of Chester lies in Liberty County. Every 2024 race in Liberty County is on the county’s page.
Liberty 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 Chester.
- 1Your townTown governmentOfficials: chester-montana.com ↗
- 2Montana HouseState representatives
- 3Montana SenateState senator
- 4GovernorStatewide
- 5U.S. HouseYour representative in Congress
- 6U.S. SenateBoth represent all of Montana
Democrat · Republican · other or independent. Tap a name for their official page.
Reach Chester’s government
The official site has phone numbers, hours and forms. Neighbors add the rest to the Handbook.
Questions about Chester’s government
How much does Chester spend per resident?
About $779 per resident on day-to-day services in the year to June 30, 2022, a Census Bureau estimate (Chester didn’t report its figures). With building projects and interest, the whole budget was about $983,000.
What is the property tax rate in Chester?
Homeowners report a typical bill of $1,528 a year (Census ACS, 2020–24), about 0.88% of the typical home’s value, vs 0.72% across Montana. For the official rate per $1,000 of assessed value, see chester-montana.com.
Who runs Chester’s government?
See chester-montana.com for current officials. We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for Chester yet.
How did Chester vote in 2024?
Montana counts votes by county and precinct, not by town, so there are no official results for Chester alone. Liberty County, where 100% of Chester lies, voted Trump 76.1%, Harris 21.7% for president; its page has every race.
How many people work for Chester?
5 full-time and 7 part-time employees in March 2022, with a March payroll of $17,631 (about $211,572 a year if every month were the same); Census Bureau estimates.
Who represents Chester in the state legislature?
State Senate District 14 (Russel Tempel) and State House District 28 (Eric Albus). The House district also covers six other towns. Listed by Open States; districts from the Census Bureau.
Ask neighbors about Chester’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 Chester, 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 →