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Town Hall · Delray Beach

How Delray Beach is run

Delray Beach spent $309.1 million in the year to September 30, 2024, about $4,612 per resident.

Town website
Photo: Quintin Soloviev
City budget
$309.1 million
spent, year to September 30, 2024
Per resident
$4,612
Above typical Florida cities ($3,112)
Long-term debt
$37.9 million
$565 per resident
City staff
891
full-time · 79 part-time
Typical tax bill
$3,351
a year · FL $2,730

What stands out about how Delray Beach is run

Read from the town’s budget, meetings and records. The page puts what stands out first.

★ What stands out · Who runs it

Who runs Delray Beach

From public records, which can lag behind an election. Tell us if a name is out of date.

Your share of the budget

About $4,612 per resident a year, or $12.64 a day

The biggest line: administration & buildings, at 20% of spending.

Where the money comes from
Property taxes 39%Interest, fines & other 18%Utility sales 12%Fees & charges 10%From the state 7%Other taxes & licenses 7%Sales taxes 5%From the federal government 2%From other local governments <1%
The school district

Palm Beach County School District

Delray Beach’s K–12 school district, shared with Atlantis, Belle Glade, Boca Raton, Boynton Beach, Briny Breezes and more. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.

Schools in Delray Beach →
$15,224
per pupil · FL $13,006
189,777
students
$1.5 billion
long-term debt

Of the $15,224 per pupil, $9,697 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.

The district: schools, scores and graduation →

Where the district’s money comes from
Local 69%State 18%Federal 13%

Florida districts overall: 55% local, 29% state, 15% federal.

School year 2023–24. Census Bureau school finance survey.

Over the years

Per resident, spending is up 29% since 2022

Spending per resident, by fiscal year. Prices rose too: about 4% a year in 2022–2024.

Spending per resident by year

2022$3,581
2023$5,342
2024$4,612
City staff
891

full-time in 2025, up from 828 in 2022.

$309.1 million
spent in 2024
$355.6 million
spent in 2023

* A Census Bureau estimate for that year (the town didn’t report most of its figures).

Who works for Delray Beach

One full-time town employee for every 75 residents

On the payroll in March 2025.

By department full-time, plus part-time

Police231 + 6 pt
Fire187 + 5 pt
Administration & buildings144 + 8 pt
Parks & libraries83 + 51 pt
Sewer & trash86
Water & other utilities69 + 1 pt
Roads & transportation26
Housing & development24 + 4 pt
Courts, inspections & corrections8 + 1 pt
Other33 + 3 pt
891
full-time
79
part-time
$101,400
average full-time pay, before benefits
148
sworn police officers
144
full-time firefighters

Pay is March payroll times twelve, so it’s approximate. Part-timers count half in the bar lengths.

Property tax

The typical homeowner pays $3,351 a year

Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 0.80% of the home’s value, vs 0.76% across Florida.

What homes cost →

Typical yearly bill next door and statewide

Gulf Stream$10,000+
Highland Beach$7,391
Boca Raton$6,063
Delray Beach$3,351
Boynton Beach$2,891
Florida$2,730
$3,351
typical bill a year
0.80%
effective rate
$420,300
typical home value (Census)
Your own bill

The Housing page’s calculator splits a monthly payment into loan, tax and insurance at Delray Beach’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.

Next door

How Delray Beach’s budget compares

Delray Beach ranks 4th lowest of 5 for spending per resident. Towns that run their own schools spend more. Tap a town to see its Town Hall.

Spends the leastSpends the mostNo figures
TownSpent per residentDebt per residentTax bill
Boynton Beach$2,867$1,898$2,891
Highland Beach$3,960$2,118$7,391
Boca Raton$4,543$607$6,063
Delray Beach$4,612$565$3,351
Gulf Stream$7,192—$10K+

The town government’s own spending in its newest year (often a Census Bureau estimate). — = no figures.

Who represents Delray Beach

From town hall to Washington

Every level of government that speaks for Delray Beach.

Politics & elections →
  1. 1
    Your cityMayor & council
  2. 2
    Florida HouseState representatives
  3. 3
    Florida SenateState senator
  4. 4
    GovernorStatewide
  5. 5
    U.S. HouseYour representative in Congress
  6. 6
    U.S. SenateBoth represent all of Florida

Democrat · Republican · other or independent. Tap a name for their official page.

Reach Delray Beach’s government

Numbers and hours come from neighbors and the town’s own site (the Handbook). A new one goes live once two neighbors confirm it.

The Handbook →
Official websitedelraybeachfl.gov ↗

Questions about how Delray Beach is run?

Neighbors who’ve been to the meetings can help.

Town Square →
Weigh in
Does Delray Beach get good value for its tax dollars?

Your answer becomes a post in Town Square.

Ask neighbors

Budget and staff: U.S. Census Bureau, Census of Governments and Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances and the Annual Survey of Public Employment & Payroll. School district: Census school finance survey. Property tax: Census American Community Survey, 5-year estimates. Officials: Open States and Wikidata. Representatives: Open States, the Census and congress-legislators.

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