Photo: Carol M. Highsmith · Public domainHow is Buena Vista run?
Buena Vista’s city government spent $35 million on day-to-day services in the year to June 30, 2024, about $5,307 per resident. Water and other utilities ($773,000) are counted separately.
What stands out about how Buena Vista is run
Read from the city’s budget and official records.
Buena Vista City Public Schools
Buena Vista’s K–12 school district. The schools are run by Buena Vista, so this money is part of the budget above.
Of the $17,093 per pupil, $8,612 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.
About $5,307 per resident a year, or $14.54 a day
Schools are part of the city’s budget, so they lead the receipt: 42% of day-to-day spending.
Thank you for being a neighbor
Buena Vista runs its own schools, so school spending is part of this budget. Comparisons are with Virginia cities that run their own schools.
$4,750 per resident in 2022, close to the middle of similar cities
Buena Vista’s day-to-day spending in 2022 ($4,750 per resident, hospital and utilities left out) against 34 Virginia cities that run their own schools: the median was $4,700, and the middle half spent $4,188–$5,540. Buena Vista spent more than 50% of them.
Includes sewer and trash ($1.9 million), 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 that run their own schools, 2022 Census of Governments (every government counted that year; Buena Vista itself left out).
Day-to-day spending is up 15% since 2022
Day-to-day services, in dollars, in the years Buena Vista 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: $4,750 · 2023: $5,263 · 2024: $5,307.
Building projects, interest and enterprises (hospital, utilities) are left out, so a big construction year doesn’t read as growth.
The typical homeowner pays $1,421 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 0.91% 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 Buena Vista’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 Buena Vista’s Cost of living grade. Cost of living in Buena Vista →
Who’s in charge in Buena Vista
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
Buena Vista’s meeting calendar isn’t in our feed yet. The city posts agendas and minutes on buenavistavirginia.org ↗.
One full-time city employee for every 29 residents
On the payroll in March 2022, from the Census Bureau’s Annual Survey of Public Employment & Payroll. Residents: the Census population in the 2024 finance file (6,591).
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.
How Buena Vista voted in 2024
Official results for Buena Vista’s own voters, as certified after the November 5, 2024 general election, with the county and the state beside them.
Donald J TrumpRepublican71.0%2,035 votes
Kamala D HarrisDemocrat26.8%767 votesOthers: 2.3% (65 votes).
Most votes in Buena Vista: Donald J Trump
Buena Vista city: Trump 71.0%, Harris 26.8% · Virginia: Harris 51.8%, Trump 46.1%
of Buena Vista’s 5,121 adult citizens voted for president in 2024. Across Virginia: 71%.
Votes ÷ citizens of voting age (Census CVAP, 2020–24 ACS).
Most votes in Buena Vista: Hung Cao
Buena Vista city: Cao 66.7%, Kaine 33.2% · Virginia: Kaine 54.4%, Cao 45.4%
Most votes in the district: Ben L Cline
Whole-district result
President, 2024: Buena Vista, its county and the state
| Trump | Harris | Others | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buena Vista | 71.0% | 26.8% | 2.3% | 2,867 |
| Buena Vista city | 71.0% | 26.8% | 2.3% | 2,867 |
| Virginia | 46.1% | 51.8% | 2.1% | 4,503,288 |
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 Buena Vista.
- 1Your cityMayor & councilOfficials: buenavistavirginia.org ↗
- 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 Buena Vista’s government
The official site has phone numbers, hours and forms. Neighbors add the rest to the Handbook.
Questions about Buena Vista’s government
How much does Buena Vista spend per resident?
About $5,307 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 $4,750 was more than 50% of 34 Virginia cities that run their own schools.
What is the property tax rate in Buena Vista?
Homeowners report a typical bill of $1,421 a year (Census ACS, 2020–24), about 0.91% of the typical home’s value, vs 0.73% across Virginia. For the official rate per $1,000 of assessed value, see buenavistavirginia.org.
Who runs Buena Vista’s government?
See buenavistavirginia.org for current officials. We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for Buena Vista yet.
How did Buena Vista vote in 2024?
For president, Donald J Trump 71.0%, Kamala D Harris 26.8% (2,867 votes, official results). Buena Vista city: Trump 71.0%, Harris 26.8%. Virginia: Harris 51.8%, Trump 46.1%.
How many people work for Buena Vista?
224 full-time and 59 part-time employees in March 2022, with a March payroll of $916,708 (about $11.0M a year if every month were the same), as reported to the Census Bureau.
Who represents Buena Vista in the state legislature?
State Senate District 3 (Chris Head) and House of Delegates District 37 (Terry Austin). The House of Delegates district also covers 10 other towns. Listed by Open States; districts from the Census Bureau.
Ask neighbors about Buena Vista’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 →