Photo: Nicolas Henderson from Coppell, Texas · CC BY 2.0How is O'Brien run?
O'Brien’s city government spent $15,000 on day-to-day services in the year to June 30, 2024, about $170 per resident. Water and other utilities ($17,000) are counted separately.
What stands out about how O'Brien is run
Read from the city’s budget and official records.
About $170 per resident a year, or $0.47 a day
Day-to-day services only. The biggest line: administration & buildings, at 40%.
Thank you for being a neighbor
$515 per resident in 2022, close to the middle of similar cities
O'Brien’s day-to-day spending in 2022 ($515 per resident, hospital and utilities left out) against 346 Texas cities of under 2,500 that don’t run their own schools: the median was $428, and the middle half spent $184–$752. O'Brien spent more than 57% of them.
Includes sewer and trash ($30,000), as the Census Bureau counts them. Later years come from a Census sample, so the comparison stays on 2022. How Town Hall compares budgets →
Texas cities of under 2,500 that don’t run their own schools, 2022 Census of Governments (every government counted that year; O'Brien itself left out).
Day-to-day spending is down 72% since 2022
Day-to-day services, in dollars, in the years O'Brien 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: $515 · 2024: $170.
Building projects, interest and enterprises (hospital, utilities) are left out, so a big construction year doesn’t read as growth.
Who’s in charge in O'Brien
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
Knox City-O'Brien Consolidated Independent School District
O'Brien’s K–12 school district, shared with Knox City. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.
Of the $21,675 per pupil, $12,180 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.
Texas districts overall: 51% local, 36% state, 13% federal.
School year 2023–24. Census Bureau school finance survey.
O'Brien’s votes are counted by county
Texas reports official results by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for O'Brien alone, and we don’t estimate them. These are Haskell County’s results.
Donald J TrumpRepublican85.4%1,915 votes
Kamala D HarrisDemocrat13.9%312 votesOthers: 0.7% (16 votes).
Most votes in Haskell County: Donald J Trump
Texas: Trump 56.1%, Harris 42.5%
100% of O'Brien lies in Haskell County. Every 2024 race in Haskell County is on the county’s page.
Haskell 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 O'Brien.
- 1Your cityMayor & councilLocal officials aren’t on record yet.
- 2Texas HouseState representatives
- 3Texas SenateState senator
- 4GovernorStatewide
- 5U.S. HouseYour representative in Congress
- 6U.S. SenateBoth represent all of Texas
Democrat · Republican · other or independent. Tap a name for their official page.
Reach O'Brien’s government
Neighbors add phone numbers and hours to the Handbook.
Questions about O'Brien’s government
How much does O'Brien spend per resident?
About $170 per resident on day-to-day services in the year to June 30, 2024, as reported to the Census Bureau. In 2022, the last full count, its $515 was more than 57% of 346 Texas cities of under 2,500 that don’t run their own schools.
Who runs O'Brien’s government?
We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for O'Brien yet.
How did O'Brien vote in 2024?
Texas counts votes by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for O'Brien alone. Haskell County, where 100% of O'Brien lies, voted Trump 85.4%, Harris 13.9% for president; its page has every race.
How many people work for O'Brien?
0 full-time and 4 part-time employees in March 2022, with a March payroll of $4,023 (about $48,276 a year if every month were the same), as reported to the Census Bureau.
Who represents O'Brien in the state legislature?
State Senate District 28 (Charles Perry) and State House District 69 (James Frank). The House district also covers 39 other towns. Listed by Open States; districts from the Census Bureau.
Ask neighbors about O'Brien’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 →