Photo: Sam Beebe · CC BY 2.0How is Deer Lodge run?
Deer Lodge’s city government spent $3 million on day-to-day services in the year to June 30, 2024, about $984 per resident. These are Census Bureau estimates: Deer Lodge didn’t report its figures, so this page shows them without comparisons.
What stands out about how Deer Lodge is run
Read from the city’s budget and official records.
About $984 per resident a year, or $2.70 a day
Day-to-day services only (a Census Bureau estimate). The biggest line: sewer & trash, at 60%.
Thank you for being a neighbor
Deer Lodge 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 Deer Lodge yet
Every year of Deer Lodge’s 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 →The typical homeowner pays $1,965 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 0.79% 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 Deer Lodge’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 Deer Lodge’s Cost of living grade. Cost of living in Deer Lodge →
Who’s in charge in Deer Lodge
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
One full-time city employee for every 189 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 (3,031).
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.
Deer Lodge Elementary School District
Deer Lodge’s elementary school district. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.
Of the $14,665 per pupil, $8,295 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.
Powell County High School District · $21,689 per pupil
School year 2023–24. Census Bureau school finance survey.
Deer Lodge’s votes are counted by county
Montana reports official results by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Deer Lodge alone, and we don’t estimate them. These are Powell County’s results.
Donald J TrumpRepublican75.1%2,466 votes
Kamala D HarrisDemocrat21.6%710 votesOthers: 3.2% (106 votes).
Most votes in Powell County: Donald J Trump
Montana: Trump 58.4%, Harris 38.5%
100% of Deer Lodge lies in Powell County. Every 2024 race in Powell County is on the county’s page.
Powell 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 Deer Lodge.
- 1Your cityMayor & councilLocal officials aren’t on record yet.
- 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 Deer Lodge’s government
Neighbors add phone numbers and hours to the Handbook.
Questions about Deer Lodge’s government
How much does Deer Lodge spend per resident?
About $984 per resident on day-to-day services in the year to June 30, 2024, a Census Bureau estimate (Deer Lodge didn’t report its figures). With building projects and interest, the whole budget was about $4.3 million.
What is the property tax rate in Deer Lodge?
Homeowners report a typical bill of $1,965 a year (Census ACS, 2020–24), about 0.79% of the typical home’s value, vs 0.72% across Montana. For the official rate per $1,000 of assessed value, see the city’s assessor.
Who runs Deer Lodge’s government?
We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for Deer Lodge yet.
How did Deer Lodge vote in 2024?
Montana counts votes by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Deer Lodge alone. Powell County, where 100% of Deer Lodge lies, voted Trump 75.1%, Harris 21.6% for president; its page has every race.
How many people work for Deer Lodge?
16 full-time and 46 part-time employees in March 2022, with a March payroll of $105,095 (about $1.3M a year if every month were the same); Census Bureau estimates.
Who represents Deer Lodge in the state legislature?
State Senate District 38 (Becky Beard) and State House District 76 (John Fitzpatrick). The House district also covers three neighboring towns. Listed by Open States; districts from the Census Bureau.
Ask neighbors about Deer Lodge’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 Deer Lodge, 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 →