How Elwood is run
Elwood spent $18 million in the year to April 30, 2024, about $8,203 per resident.
What stands out about how Elwood is run
Read from the town’s budget, meetings and records. The page puts what stands out first.
Joliet Township High School District 204
Elwood’s high school district, shared with Joliet, Plainfield, Rockdale, Joliet, Jackson and more. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.
Of the $20,589 per pupil, $10,951 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.
Illinois districts overall: 52% local, 38% state, 10% federal.
Elwood Community Consolidated School District 203 · $24,661 per pupil
Laraway Community Consolidated School District 70C · $36,981 per pupil
Wilmington Community Unit School District 209U · $12,668 per pupil
School year 2023–24. Census Bureau school finance survey.
Per resident, spending is up 60% since 2022
Spending per resident, by fiscal year. Prices rose too: about 4% a year in 2022–2024.
Spending per resident by year
* A Census Bureau estimate for that year (the town didn’t report most of its figures).
Who’s in charge in Elwood
Local officials aren’t in the public records we use for Elwood yet. Neighbors can add them.
About $8,203 per resident a year, or $22.47 a day
The biggest line: administration & buildings, at 11% of spending.
Thank you for being a neighbor
One full-time town employee for every 116 residents
On the payroll in March 2022.
By department full-time, plus part-time
Pay is March payroll times twelve, so it’s approximate. Part-timers count half in the bar lengths.
The typical homeowner pays $4,507 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 1.90% of the home’s value, vs 2.01% across Illinois.
Typical yearly bill next door and statewide
The Housing page’s calculator splits a monthly payment into loan, tax and insurance at Elwood’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. In a town this small the estimate has a wide margin.
How Elwood’s budget compares
Town budgets across the town line. Towns that run their own schools spend more. Tap a town to see its Town Hall.
| Town | Spent per resident | Debt per resident | Tax bill |
|---|---|---|---|
| Joliet | $3,393 | $2,937 | $5,694 |
| Elwood | $8,203 | $8,663 | $4,507 |
The town government’s own spending in its newest year (often a Census Bureau estimate). — = no figures.
From town hall to Washington
Every level of government that speaks for Elwood.
- 1Your cityMayor & councilLocal officials aren’t on record yet.
- 2Illinois HouseState representatives
- 3Illinois SenateState senator
- 4GovernorStatewide
- 5U.S. HouseSplit between districts
- 6U.S. SenateBoth represent all of Illinois
Democrat · Republican · other or independent. Tap a name for their official page.
Reach Elwood’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.
Questions about how Elwood is run?
Neighbors who’ve been to the meetings can help.
Your answer becomes a post in Town Square.
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. Representatives: Open States, the Census and congress-legislators.