Photo: Urbancam · Public domainHow is Ashland run?
Ashland’s town government spent $14.3 million on day-to-day services in the year to June 30, 2024, about $1,842 per resident.
What stands out about how Ashland is run
Read from the town’s budget and official records.
The typical homeowner pays $2,195 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 0.75% of the home’s value, vs 0.73% across Virginia.
Typical yearly bill next door and statewide
The Housing page’s calculator splits a monthly payment into loan, tax and insurance at Ashland’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 Ashland’s Cost of living grade. Cost of living in Ashland →
About $1,842 per resident a year, or $5.05 a day
Day-to-day services only. The biggest line: police, at 26%.
Thank you for being a neighbor
$1,420 per resident in 2022, close to the middle of similar cities
Ashland’s day-to-day spending in 2022 ($1,420 per resident, hospital and utilities left out) against 27 Virginia cities of 2,500–9,999 that don’t run their own schools: the median was $1,514, and the middle half spent $1,258–$1,804. Ashland spent less than 63% of them.
Includes sewer and trash ($264,000), as the Census Bureau counts them. Later years come from a Census sample, so the comparison stays on 2022. How Town Hall compares budgets →
Virginia cities of 2,500–9,999 that don’t run their own schools, 2022 Census of Governments (every government counted that year; Ashland itself left out).
Day-to-day spending is up 27% since 2022
Day-to-day services, in dollars, in the years Ashland 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: $1,420 · 2024: $1,842.
full-time in March 2025, down from 72 in 2022.
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 Ashland
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
Ashland’s meeting calendar isn’t in our feed yet. The town posts agendas and minutes on ashlandva.gov ↗.
One full-time town employee for every 111 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 (7,750).
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.
Hanover County Public Schools
Ashland’s K–12 school district. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.
Of the $14,164 per pupil, $9,276 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.
Virginia districts overall: 49% local, 41% state, 10% federal.
School year 2023–24. Census Bureau school finance survey.
Ashland’s votes are counted by county
Virginia reports official results by county and precinct, not by town, so there are no official results for Ashland alone, and we don’t estimate them. These are Hanover County’s results.
Donald J TrumpRepublican62.1%45,569 votes
Kamala D HarrisDemocrat36.4%26,733 votesOthers: 1.5% (1,102 votes).
Most votes in Hanover County: Donald J Trump
Virginia: Harris 51.8%, Trump 46.1%
100% of Ashland lies in Hanover County. Every 2024 race in Hanover County is on the county’s page.
Hanover 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 Ashland.
- 1Your townTown governmentOfficials: ashlandva.gov ↗
- 2Virginia House of DelegatesState representatives
- 3Virginia SenateState senator
- 4GovernorStatewide
- 5U.S. HouseYour representative in Congress
- 6U.S. SenateBoth represent all of Virginia
Democrat · Republican · other or independent. Tap a name for their official page.
Reach Ashland’s government
The official site has phone numbers, hours and forms. Neighbors add the rest to the Handbook.
Questions about Ashland’s government
How much does Ashland spend per resident?
About $1,842 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 $1,420 was less than 63% of 27 Virginia cities of 2,500–9,999 that don’t run their own schools.
What is the property tax rate in Ashland?
Homeowners report a typical bill of $2,195 a year (Census ACS, 2020–24), about 0.75% of the typical home’s value, vs 0.73% across Virginia. For the official rate per $1,000 of assessed value, see ashlandva.gov.
Who runs Ashland’s government?
See ashlandva.gov for current officials. We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for Ashland yet.
How did Ashland vote in 2024?
Virginia counts votes by county and precinct, not by town, so there are no official results for Ashland alone. Hanover County, where 100% of Ashland lies, voted Trump 62.1%, Harris 36.4% for president; its page has every race.
How many people work for Ashland?
70 full-time and 1 part-time employees in March 2025, with a March payroll of $421,684 (about $5.1M a year if every month were the same), as reported to the Census Bureau.
Who represents Ashland in the state legislature?
State Senate District 10 (Luther Cifers) and House of Delegates District 59 (Buddy Fowler). The House of Delegates district also covers two neighboring towns. Listed by Open States; districts from the Census Bureau.
Ask neighbors about Ashland’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 →