Photo: Renelibrary · CC BY-SA 4.0How is Palmer run?
Palmer’s town government spent $2.1 million on day-to-day services in the year to September 30, 2022, about $982 per resident. These are Census Bureau estimates: Palmer didn’t report its figures, so this page shows them without comparisons.
What stands out about how Palmer is run
Read from the town’s budget and official records.
The typical homeowner pays $3,366 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 1.49% 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 Palmer’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 Palmer’s Cost of living grade. Cost of living in Palmer →
About $982 per resident a year, or $2.69 a day
Day-to-day services only (a Census Bureau estimate). The biggest line: courts, inspections & corrections, at 30%.
Thank you for being a neighbor
Revenue is well above spending. That usually means Palmer collects property taxes for the school district and county and passes them on, so only its own spending is counted.
Palmer didn’t report all of its 2022 figures to the Census Bureau, so most of these numbers are the Bureau’s estimates.
No comparison or trend for Palmer yet
Every year of Palmer’s figures is a Census Bureau estimate: the town reported none of its dollars for 2022. Estimates are shown above, labeled, but never ranked against places that reported or drawn as a trend.
How Town Hall compares budgets →Who’s in charge in Palmer
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
Palmer’s meeting calendar isn’t in our feed yet. The town posts agendas and minutes on ci.palmer.tx.us ↗.
One full-time town employee for every 99 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 (2,169).
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.
Palmer Independent School District
Palmer’s K–12 school district. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.
Of the $12,665 per pupil, $7,023 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.
Palmer’s votes are counted by county
Texas reports official results by county and precinct, not by town, so there are no official results for Palmer alone, and we don’t estimate them. These are Ellis County’s results.
Donald J TrumpRepublican64.9%64,763 votes
Kamala D HarrisDemocrat33.9%33,850 votesOthers: 1.2% (1,205 votes).
Most votes in Ellis County: Donald J Trump
Texas: Trump 56.1%, Harris 42.5%
100% of Palmer lies in Ellis County. Every 2024 race in Ellis County is on the county’s page.
Ellis 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 Palmer.
- 1Your townTown governmentOfficials: ci.palmer.tx.us ↗
- 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.
How Palmer compares with the towns next door
Palmer’s own figures are Census estimates, so it isn’t placed among its neighbors. 1 of the 1 towns next door reported 2022 figures, from $8,271 per resident. Tap a town to see its page.
| Town | Day-to-day, per resident (2022) | Tax bill |
|---|---|---|
| Ennis | $8,271 | $4,061 |
| Palmer | estimate | $3,366 |
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 Palmer’s government
The official site has phone numbers, hours and forms. Neighbors add the rest to the Handbook.
Questions about Palmer’s government
How much does Palmer spend per resident?
About $982 per resident on day-to-day services in the year to September 30, 2022, a Census Bureau estimate (Palmer didn’t report its figures). With building projects and interest, the whole budget was about $2.6 million.
What is the property tax rate in Palmer?
Homeowners report a typical bill of $3,366 a year (Census ACS, 2020–24), about 1.49% of the typical home’s value, vs 1.49% across Texas. For the official rate per $1,000 of assessed value, see ci.palmer.tx.us.
Who runs Palmer’s government?
See ci.palmer.tx.us for current officials. We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for Palmer yet.
How did Palmer vote in 2024?
Texas counts votes by county and precinct, not by town, so there are no official results for Palmer alone. Ellis County, where 100% of Palmer lies, voted Trump 64.9%, Harris 33.9% for president; its page has every race.
How many people work for Palmer?
22 full-time and 0 part-time employees in March 2022, with a March payroll of $107,698 (about $1.3M a year if every month were the same), as reported to the Census Bureau.
Who represents Palmer in the state legislature?
State Senate District 2 (Bob Hall) and State House District 10 (Brian Harrison). The House district also covers 19 other towns. Listed by Open States; districts from the Census Bureau.
Ask neighbors about Palmer’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 (for Palmer, the Bureau’s estimates); 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 →