Photo: Claude W. Stimson · Public domainHow is Hot Springs run?
Hot Springs’ town government spent $372,000 on day-to-day services in the year to June 30, 2022, about $634 per resident. Water and other utilities ($220,000) are counted separately.
What stands out about how Hot Springs is run
Read from the town’s budget and official records.
About $634 per resident a year, or $1.74 a day
Day-to-day services only. The biggest line: sewer & trash, at 52%.
Thank you for being a neighbor
$634 per resident in 2022, close to the middle of similar cities
Hot Springs’ day-to-day spending in 2022 ($634 per resident, hospital and utilities left out) against 51 Montana cities of under 2,500 that don’t run their own schools: the median was $810, and the middle half spent $431–$1,030. Hot Springs spent less than 65% of them.
Includes sewer and trash ($193,000), as the Census Bureau counts them. Later years come from a Census sample, so the comparison stays on 2022. How Town Hall compares budgets →
Montana cities of under 2,500 that don’t run their own schools, 2022 Census of Governments (every government counted that year; Hot Springs itself left out).
No trend yet
Hot Springs reported only 2022 to the Census Bureau, so there is no trend yet.
The typical homeowner pays $984 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 0.65% 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 Hot Springs’ 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 Hot Springs’ Cost of living grade. Cost of living in Hot Springs →
Who’s in charge in Hot Springs
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
One full-time town employee for every 117 residents
On the payroll in March 2022, from the Census Bureau’s Annual Survey of Public Employment & Payroll. Residents: the Census population in the 2022 finance file (587).
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.
Hot Springs K-12
Hot Springs’ K–12 school district. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.
Of the $20,101 per pupil, $11,264 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.
School year 2023–24. Census Bureau school finance survey.
Hot Springs’ votes are counted by county
Montana reports official results by county and precinct, not by town, so there are no official results for Hot Springs alone, and we don’t estimate them. These are Sanders County’s results.
Donald J TrumpRepublican76.2%6,150 votes
Kamala D HarrisDemocrat21.1%1,705 votesOthers: 2.7% (214 votes).
Most votes in Sanders County: Donald J Trump
Montana: Trump 58.4%, Harris 38.5%
100% of Hot Springs lies in Sanders County. Every 2024 race in Sanders County is on the county’s page.
Sanders 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 Hot Springs.
- 1Your townTown governmentLocal 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 Hot Springs’ government
Neighbors add phone numbers and hours to the Handbook.
Questions about Hot Springs’ government
How much does Hot Springs spend per resident?
About $634 per resident on day-to-day services in the year to June 30, 2022, as reported to the Census Bureau. In 2022, the last full count, its $634 was less than 65% of 51 Montana cities of under 2,500 that don’t run their own schools.
What is the property tax rate in Hot Springs?
Homeowners report a typical bill of $984 a year (Census ACS, 2020–24), about 0.65% of the typical home’s value, vs 0.72% across Montana. For the official rate per $1,000 of assessed value, see the town’s assessor.
Who runs Hot Springs’ government?
We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for Hot Springs yet.
How did Hot Springs vote in 2024?
Montana counts votes by county and precinct, not by town, so there are no official results for Hot Springs alone. Sanders County, where 100% of Hot Springs lies, voted Trump 76.2%, Harris 21.1% for president; its page has every race.
How many people work for Hot Springs?
5 full-time and 13 part-time employees in March 2022, with a March payroll of $30,630 (about $367,560 a year if every month were the same), as reported to the Census Bureau.
Who represents Hot Springs in the state legislature?
State Senate District 7 (Greg Hertz) and State House District 14 (Paul Fielder). The House district also covers two neighboring towns. Listed by Open States; districts from the Census Bureau.
Ask neighbors about Hot Springs’ 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 →