Photo: Joe Mabel · CC BY 3.0How is Puyallup run?
Puyallup’s city government spent $65.9 million on day-to-day services in the year to December 31, 2024, about $1,553 per resident. Water and other utilities ($5.9 million) are counted separately.
What stands out about how Puyallup is run
Read from the city’s budget and official records.
About $1,553 per resident a year, or $4.25 a day
Day-to-day services only. The biggest line: police, at 36%.
Thank you for being a neighbor
$1,368 per resident in 2022, close to the middle of similar cities
Puyallup’s day-to-day spending in 2022 ($1,368 per resident, hospital and utilities left out) against 18 Washington cities of 25,000–49,999 that don’t run their own schools: the median was $1,434, and the middle half spent $986–$1,615. Puyallup spent more than 50% of them.
Includes sewer and trash ($13.2 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 →
Washington cities of 25,000–49,999 that don’t run their own schools, 2022 Census of Governments (every government counted that year; Puyallup itself left out).
Day-to-day spending is up 13% since 2022
Day-to-day services, in dollars, in the years Puyallup 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: $1,368 · 2023: $1,420 · 2024: $1,553.
Building projects, interest and enterprises (hospital, utilities) are left out, so a big construction year doesn’t read as growth.
The typical homeowner pays $4,950 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 0.90% of the home’s value, vs 0.81% across Washington.
Typical yearly bill next door and statewide
The Housing page’s calculator splits a monthly payment into loan, tax and insurance at Puyallup’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 Puyallup’s Cost of living grade. Cost of living in Puyallup →
Who’s in charge in Puyallup
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
Puyallup’s meeting calendar isn’t in our feed yet. The city posts agendas and minutes on cityofpuyallup.org ↗.
One full-time city employee for every 143 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 (42,452).
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.
Puyallup School District
Puyallup’s K–12 school district, shared with Edgewood, Fife. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.
Of the $17,830 per pupil, $9,937 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.
Washington districts overall: 27% local, 66% state, 8% federal.
School year 2023–24. Census Bureau school finance survey.
Puyallup’s votes are counted by county
Washington reports official results by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Puyallup alone, and we don’t estimate them. These are Pierce County’s results.
Kamala D HarrisDemocrat53.5%235,151 votes
Donald J TrumpRepublican42.8%188,148 votesOthers: 3.7% (16,216 votes).
Most votes in Pierce County: Kamala D Harris
Washington: Harris 57.2%, Trump 39.0%
100% of Puyallup lies in Pierce County. Every 2024 race in Pierce County is on the county’s page.
Pierce 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 Puyallup.
- 1Your cityMayor & councilOfficials: cityofpuyallup.org ↗
- 2Washington HouseState representatives
- 3Washington SenateState senator
- 4GovernorStatewide
- 5U.S. HouseYour representative in Congress
- 6U.S. SenateBoth represent all of Washington
Democrat · Republican · other or independent. Tap a name for their official page.
How Puyallup compares with the towns next door
Puyallup spent $1,368 per resident in 2022; the 2 neighbors that reported 2022 spent $812 to $2,378. Towns that run more services spend more. Tap a town to see its page.
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 Puyallup’s government
The official site has phone numbers, hours and forms. Neighbors add the rest to the Handbook.
Questions about Puyallup’s government
How much does Puyallup spend per resident?
About $1,553 per resident on day-to-day services in the year to December 31, 2024, as reported to the Census Bureau. In 2022, the last full count, its $1,368 was more than 50% of 18 Washington cities of 25,000–49,999 that don’t run their own schools.
What is the property tax rate in Puyallup?
Homeowners report a typical bill of $4,950 a year (Census ACS, 2020–24), about 0.90% of the typical home’s value, vs 0.81% across Washington. For the official rate per $1,000 of assessed value, see cityofpuyallup.org.
Who runs Puyallup’s government?
See cityofpuyallup.org for current officials. We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for Puyallup yet.
How did Puyallup vote in 2024?
Washington counts votes by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Puyallup alone. Pierce County, where 100% of Puyallup lies, voted Harris 53.5%, Trump 42.8% for president; its page has every race.
How many people work for Puyallup?
296 full-time and 54 part-time employees in March 2022, with a March payroll of $2.2M (about $26.8M a year if every month were the same), as reported to the Census Bureau.
Who represents Puyallup in the state legislature?
State Senate District 25 (Chris Gildon) and State House District 25 (Cyndy Jacobsen and Michael Keaton). The House district also covers parts of 1 neighboring town. Listed by Open States; districts from the Census Bureau.
Ask neighbors about Puyallup’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 →