Photo: Nicolas Henderson from Coppell, Texas · CC BY 2.0How is Palacios run?
Palacios’ city government spent $3.3 million on day-to-day services in the year to September 30, 2022, about $720 per resident. Water and other utilities ($528,000) and the airport ($200,000) are counted separately.
What stands out about how Palacios is run
Read from the city’s budget and official records.
About $720 per resident a year, or $1.97 a day
Day-to-day services only. The biggest line: police, at 40%.
Thank you for being a neighbor
$720 per resident in 2022, close to the middle of similar cities
Palacios’ day-to-day spending in 2022 ($720 per resident, hospital and utilities left out) against 175 Texas cities of 2,500–9,999 that don’t run their own schools: the median was $898, and the middle half spent $630–$1,292. Palacios spent less than 65% of them.
Includes sewer and trash ($504,000), 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 2,500–9,999 that don’t run their own schools, 2022 Census of Governments (every government counted that year; Palacios itself left out).
No trend yet
Palacios reported only 2022 to the Census Bureau, so there is no trend yet.
The typical homeowner pays $2,695 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 1.75% of the home’s value, vs 1.49% across Texas.
Typical yearly bill next door and statewide
The Housing page’s calculator splits a monthly payment into loan, tax and insurance at Palacios’ 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 Palacios’ Cost of living grade. Cost of living in Palacios →
Who’s in charge in Palacios
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
One full-time city employee for every 134 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 (4,545).
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.
Palacios Independent School District
Palacios’ K–12 school district. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.
Of the $16,730 per pupil, $9,288 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.
Palacios’ votes are counted by county
Texas reports official results by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Palacios alone, and we don’t estimate them. These are Matagorda County’s results.
Donald J TrumpRepublican74.8%9,957 votes
Kamala D HarrisDemocrat24.3%3,231 votesOthers: 0.9% (124 votes).
Most votes in Matagorda County: Donald J Trump
Texas: Trump 56.1%, Harris 42.5%
100% of Palacios lies in Matagorda County. Every 2024 race in Matagorda County is on the county’s page.
Matagorda 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 Palacios.
- 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 Palacios’ government
Neighbors add phone numbers and hours to the Handbook.
Questions about Palacios’ government
How much does Palacios spend per resident?
About $720 per resident on day-to-day services in the year to September 30, 2022, as reported to the Census Bureau. In 2022, the last full count, its $720 was less than 65% of 175 Texas cities of 2,500–9,999 that don’t run their own schools.
What is the property tax rate in Palacios?
Homeowners report a typical bill of $2,695 a year (Census ACS, 2020–24), about 1.75% of the typical home’s value, vs 1.49% across Texas. For the official rate per $1,000 of assessed value, see the city’s assessor.
Who runs Palacios’ government?
We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for Palacios yet.
How did Palacios vote in 2024?
Texas counts votes by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Palacios alone. Matagorda County, where 100% of Palacios lies, voted Trump 74.8%, Harris 24.3% for president; its page has every race.
How many people work for Palacios?
34 full-time and 5 part-time employees in March 2022, with a March payroll of $131,861 (about $1.6M a year if every month were the same), as reported to the Census Bureau.
Who represents Palacios in the state legislature?
State Senate District 17 (Joan Huffman) and State House District 30 (A.J. Louderback). The House district also covers 13 other towns. Listed by Open States; districts from the Census Bureau.
Ask neighbors about Palacios’ 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 →