Photo: Kenneth C. Zirkel · CC BY-SA 4.0How is Woonsocket run?
Woonsocket’s city government spent $187.4 million on day-to-day services in the year to June 30, 2023, about $4,347 per resident. That is its newest year reported to the Census Bureau. Water and other utilities ($8.5 million) are counted separately.
What stands out about how Woonsocket is run
Read from the city’s budget and official records.
Woonsocket School District
Woonsocket’s K–12 school district. The schools are run by Woonsocket, so this money is part of the budget above.
Of the $20,060 per pupil, $11,385 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.
Rhode Island districts overall: 48% local, 40% state, 13% federal.
School year 2023–24. Census Bureau school finance survey.
About $4,347 per resident a year, or $11.91 a day
Schools are part of the city’s budget, so they lead the receipt: 67% of day-to-day spending.
Thank you for being a neighbor
Woonsocket runs its own schools, so school spending is part of this budget. Comparisons are with U.S. cities of 25,000–49,999 that run their own schools.
$4,228 per resident in 2022, close to the middle of similar cities
Woonsocket’s day-to-day spending in 2022 ($4,228 per resident, hospital and utilities left out) against 42 U.S. cities of 25,000–49,999 that run their own schools: the median was $4,168, and the middle half spent $3,741–$4,820. Woonsocket spent more than 52% of them.
Includes sewer and trash ($15.1 million), as the Census Bureau counts them. Later years come from a Census sample, so the comparison stays on 2022. How Town Hall compares budgets →
U.S. cities of 25,000–49,999 that run their own schools, 2022 Census of Governments (every government counted that year; Woonsocket itself left out).
Day-to-day spending is up 7% since 2022
Day-to-day services, in dollars, in the years Woonsocket reported to the Census Bureau. Prices rose too: about 4% a year in 2022–2024.
Day-to-day spending by fiscal year
Per resident: 2022: $4,228 · 2023: $4,347.
full-time in March 2025, down from 1,124 in 2022.
Building projects, interest and enterprises (hospital, utilities) are left out, so a big construction year doesn’t read as growth.
The typical homeowner pays $3,960 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 1.27% of the home’s value, vs 1.21% across Rhode Island.
Typical yearly bill next door and statewide
The Housing page’s calculator splits a monthly payment into loan, tax and insurance at Woonsocket’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 Woonsocket’s Cost of living grade. Cost of living in Woonsocket →
Who’s in charge in Woonsocket
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
Woonsocket’s meeting calendar isn’t in our feed yet. The city posts agendas and minutes on woonsocketri.org ↗.
One full-time city employee for every 39 residents
On the payroll in March 2025, from the Census Bureau’s Annual Survey of Public Employment & Payroll. Residents: the Census population in the 2023 finance file (43,118).
By department full-time, plus part-time, March 2025
The Census reports one month’s payroll (March); yearly figures are that month × 12, an estimate. Part-timers count half in the bar lengths.
How Woonsocket voted in 2024
Official results for Woonsocket’s own voters, as certified after the November 5, 2024 general election, with the county and the state beside them.
Donald J TrumpRepublican49.7%6,650 votes
Kamala D HarrisDemocrat48.1%6,434 votesOthers: 2.1% (286 votes).
Most votes in Woonsocket: Donald J Trump
Providence County: Harris 55.7%, Trump 41.7% · Rhode Island: Harris 55.6%, Trump 41.8%
of Woonsocket’s 30,455 adult citizens voted for president in 2024. Across Rhode Island: 62%.
Votes ÷ citizens of voting age (Census CVAP, 2020–24 ACS).
Most votes in Woonsocket: Sheldon Whitehouse
Providence County: Whitehouse 61.3%, Morgan 38.4% · Rhode Island: Whitehouse 59.9%, Morgan 39.8%
Most votes in the district: Gabriel Amo
Whole-district result
President, 2024: Woonsocket, its county and the state
| Trump | Harris | Others | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Woonsocket | 49.7% | 48.1% | 2.1% | 13,370 |
| Providence County | 41.7% | 55.7% | 2.6% | 269,679 |
| Rhode Island | 41.8% | 55.6% | 2.6% | 513,086 |
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 Woonsocket.
- 1Your cityMayor & councilOfficials: woonsocketri.org ↗
- 2Rhode Island HouseWoonsocket is split between 3 districts
- 3Rhode Island SenateState senator
- 4GovernorStatewide
- 5U.S. HouseYour representative in Congress
- 6U.S. SenateBoth represent all of Rhode Island
Democrat · Republican · other or independent. Tap a name for their official page.
How Woonsocket compares with the towns next door
Woonsocket spent $4,228 per resident in 2022. Most of its neighbors are townships, a different kind of government, so the like-for-like comparison is with similar cities, above. Tap a town to see its page.
| Town | Day-to-day, per resident (2022) | Tax bill |
|---|---|---|
| Cumberland | $3,258 runs schools | $4,870 |
| North Smithfield | $3,885 runs schools | $5,219 |
| Woonsocket | $4,228 | $3,960 |
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 Woonsocket’s government
The official site has phone numbers, hours and forms. Neighbors add the rest to the Handbook.
Questions about Woonsocket’s government
How much does Woonsocket spend per resident?
About $4,347 per resident on day-to-day services in the year to June 30, 2023, as reported to the Census Bureau. In 2022, the last full count, its $4,228 was more than 52% of 42 U.S. cities of 25,000–49,999 that run their own schools.
What is the property tax rate in Woonsocket?
Homeowners report a typical bill of $3,960 a year (Census ACS, 2020–24), about 1.27% of the typical home’s value, vs 1.21% across Rhode Island. For the official rate per $1,000 of assessed value, see woonsocketri.org.
Who runs Woonsocket’s government?
See woonsocketri.org for current officials. We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for Woonsocket yet.
How did Woonsocket vote in 2024?
For president, Donald J Trump 49.7%, Kamala D Harris 48.1% (13,370 votes, official results). Providence County: Harris 55.7%, Trump 41.7%. Rhode Island: Harris 55.6%, Trump 41.8%.
How many people work for Woonsocket?
1,114 full-time and 171 part-time employees in March 2025, with a March payroll of $7.4M (about $88.6M a year if every month were the same), as reported to the Census Bureau.
Who represents Woonsocket in the state legislature?
Woonsocket is split among 3 State House districts and 2 State Senate districts, so your address decides. The Rhode Island Legislature’s lookup finds yours. Listed by Open States; districts from the Census Bureau.
Ask neighbors about Woonsocket’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 →