Photo: Larry D. Moore · CC BY 4.0How is San Marcos run?
San Marcos’ city government spent $117.4 million on day-to-day services in the year to September 30, 2024, about $1,670 per resident. These are Census Bureau estimates: San Marcos didn’t report its figures, so this page shows them without comparisons.
What stands out about how San Marcos is run
Read from the city’s budget and official records.
About $1,670 per resident a year, or $4.58 a day
Day-to-day services only (a Census Bureau estimate). The biggest line: police, at 20%.
Thank you for being a neighbor
San Marcos didn’t report all of its 2024 figures to the Census Bureau, so most of these numbers are the Bureau’s estimates.
No comparison or trend for San Marcos yet
Every year of San Marcos’ figures is a Census Bureau estimate: the city reported none of its dollars for 2022–2024. Estimates are shown above, labeled, but never ranked against places that reported or drawn as a trend.
How Town Hall compares budgets →full-time in March 2025, up from 795 in 2022. Both are Census estimates.
The typical homeowner pays $4,774 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 1.54% 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 San Marcos’ 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 San Marcos’ Cost of living grade. Cost of living in San Marcos →
Who’s in charge in San Marcos
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
San Marcos’ meeting calendar isn’t in our feed yet. The city posts agendas and minutes on sanmarcostx.gov ↗.
One full-time city employee for every 84 residents
On the payroll in March 2025, from the Census Bureau’s Annual Survey of Public Employment & Payroll. Residents: the Census population in the 2024 finance file (70,301).
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.
San Marcos Consolidated Independent School District
San Marcos’ K–12 school district, shared with Martindale, Staples. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.
Of the $12,914 per pupil, $7,314 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.
Hays Consolidated Independent School District · $11,392 per pupil
School year 2023–24. Census Bureau school finance survey.
San Marcos’ votes are counted by county
Texas reports official results by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for San Marcos alone, and we don’t estimate them. These are Hays County’s results.
Kamala D HarrisDemocrat52.1%65,528 votes
Donald J TrumpRepublican46.4%58,438 votesOthers: 1.5% (1,861 votes).
Most votes in Hays County: Kamala D Harris
Texas: Trump 56.1%, Harris 42.5%
100% of San Marcos lies in Hays County; the rest in Caldwell County, Guadalupe County. Every 2024 race in Hays County is on the county’s page.
Hays 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 San Marcos.
- 1Your cityMayor & councilOfficials: sanmarcostx.gov ↗
- 2Texas HouseSan Marcos is split between 3 districts
- 3Texas SenateState senator
- 4GovernorStatewide
- 5U.S. HouseSplit between districts
- 6U.S. SenateBoth represent all of Texas
Democrat · Republican · other or independent. Tap a name for their official page.
How San Marcos compares with the towns next door
San Marcos’ own figures are Census estimates, so it isn’t placed among its neighbors. 0 of the 1 towns next door reported 2022 figures. Tap a town to see its page.
| Town | Day-to-day, per resident (2022) | Tax bill |
|---|---|---|
| Kyle | estimate | $6,170 |
| San Marcos | estimate | $4,774 |
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 San Marcos’ government
The official site has phone numbers, hours and forms. Neighbors add the rest to the Handbook.
Questions about San Marcos’ government
How much does San Marcos spend per resident?
About $1,670 per resident on day-to-day services in the year to September 30, 2024, a Census Bureau estimate (San Marcos didn’t report its figures). With building projects and interest, the whole budget was about $248.7 million.
What is the property tax rate in San Marcos?
Homeowners report a typical bill of $4,774 a year (Census ACS, 2020–24), about 1.54% of the typical home’s value, vs 1.49% across Texas. For the official rate per $1,000 of assessed value, see sanmarcostx.gov.
Who runs San Marcos’ government?
See sanmarcostx.gov for current officials. We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for San Marcos yet.
How did San Marcos vote in 2024?
Texas counts votes by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for San Marcos alone. Hays County, where 100% of San Marcos lies, voted Harris 52.1%, Trump 46.4% for president; its page has every race.
How many people work for San Marcos?
838 full-time and 50 part-time employees in March 2025, with a March payroll of $5.7M (about $68.2M a year if every month were the same), as reported to the Census Bureau.
Who represents San Marcos in the state legislature?
San Marcos is split among 3 State House districts, so your address decides. The Texas Legislature’s lookup finds yours. Its State Senate district is District 21 (Judith Zaffirini). Listed by Open States; districts from the Census Bureau.
Ask neighbors about San Marcos’ 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 San Marcos, 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 →