Photo: User:Velela · Public domainHow is Red Lodge run?
Red Lodge’s city government spent $4.9 million on day-to-day services in the year to June 30, 2024, about $1,960 per resident. Water and other utilities ($598,000) are counted separately.
What stands out about how Red Lodge is run
Read from the city’s budget and official records.
About $1,960 per resident a year, or $5.37 a day
Day-to-day services only. The biggest line: sewer & trash, at 26%.
Thank you for being a neighbor
No comparison or trend for Red Lodge yet
The fair comparison uses 2022, the last year the Census Bureau counted every government (later years are a sample), and Red Lodge’s 2022 figures are a Census estimate (it reported none of its 2022 dollars). It reported 2024 only (2022 and 2023 are estimates), so there is no trend yet either. The next full count is 2027.
How Town Hall compares budgets →The typical homeowner pays $2,541 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 0.67% 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 Red 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 Red Lodge’s Cost of living grade. Cost of living in Red Lodge →
Who’s in charge in Red Lodge
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
Red Lodge’s meeting calendar isn’t in our feed yet. The city posts agendas and minutes on cityofredlodge.net ↗.
One full-time city employee for every 126 residents
On the payroll in March 2022, from the Census Bureau’s Annual Survey of Public Employment & Payroll. Residents: the Census population in the 2024 finance file (2,510).
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.
Red Lodge Elementary School District
Red Lodge’s elementary school district. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.
Of the $12,530 per pupil, $7,413 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.
Red Lodge High School District · $16,756 per pupil
School year 2023–24. Census Bureau school finance survey.
Red 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 Red Lodge alone, and we don’t estimate them. These are Carbon County’s results.
Donald J TrumpRepublican64.7%4,719 votes
Kamala D HarrisDemocrat32.2%2,353 votesOthers: 3.1% (225 votes).
Most votes in Carbon County: Donald J Trump
Montana: Trump 58.4%, Harris 38.5%
100% of Red Lodge lies in Carbon County. Every 2024 race in Carbon County is on the county’s page.
Carbon 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 Red Lodge.
- 1Your cityMayor & councilOfficials: cityofredlodge.net ↗
- 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 Red Lodge’s government
The official site has phone numbers, hours and forms. Neighbors add the rest to the Handbook.
Questions about Red Lodge’s government
How much does Red Lodge spend per resident?
About $1,960 per resident on day-to-day services in the year to June 30, 2024, as reported to the Census Bureau.
What is the property tax rate in Red Lodge?
Homeowners report a typical bill of $2,541 a year (Census ACS, 2020–24), about 0.67% of the typical home’s value, vs 0.72% across Montana. For the official rate per $1,000 of assessed value, see cityofredlodge.net.
Who runs Red Lodge’s government?
See cityofredlodge.net for current officials. We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for Red Lodge yet.
How did Red Lodge vote in 2024?
Montana counts votes by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Red Lodge alone. Carbon County, where 100% of Red Lodge lies, voted Trump 64.7%, Harris 32.2% for president; its page has every race.
How many people work for Red Lodge?
20 full-time and 13 part-time employees in March 2022, with a March payroll of $124,238 (about $1.5M a year if every month were the same), as reported to the Census Bureau.
Who represents Red Lodge in the state legislature?
State Senate District 28 (Forrest Mandeville) and State House District 55 (Brad Barker). The House district also covers four other towns. Listed by Open States; districts from the Census Bureau.
Ask neighbors about Red 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; 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 →