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Town Hall · Keene

How Keene is run

Keene spent $7.5 million in the year to September 30, 2022, about $1,145 per resident.

Town website
Photo: Renelibrary
City budget
$7.5 million
spent, year to September 30, 2022
Per resident
$1,145
Below typical Texas cities ($1,280)
Long-term debt
$8.5 million
$1,283 per resident
City staff
44
full-time · 8 part-time
Typical tax bill
$2,769
a year · TX $4,232

What stands out about how Keene is run

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

★ What stands out · Property tax

The typical homeowner pays $2,769 a year

Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 1.23% of the home’s value, vs 1.49% across Texas.

What homes cost →

Typical yearly bill next door and statewide

Texas$4,232
Cleburne$3,162
Keene$2,769
$2,769
typical bill a year
1.23%
effective rate
$225,300
typical home value (Census)
Your own bill

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

Your share of the budget

About $1,145 per resident a year, or $3.14 a day

The biggest line: administration & buildings, at 28% of spending.

Where the money comes from
Utility sales 28%Property taxes 28%Sales taxes 16%Fees & charges 15%From the state 9%Other taxes & licenses 2%From other local governments 1%Interest, fines & other <1%
Who works for Keene

One full-time town employee for every 150 residents

On the payroll in March 2022.

By department full-time, plus part-time

Police13
Fire12 + 1 pt
Administration & buildings7 + 7 pt
Water & other utilities6
Courts, inspections & corrections2
Sewer & trash2
Roads & transportation1
Other1
44
full-time
8
part-time
$60,400
average full-time pay, before benefits
12
sworn police officers
11
full-time firefighters

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

Who runs it

Who’s in charge in Keene

Local officials aren’t in the public records we use for Keene yet. Neighbors can add them.

The school district

Keene Independent School District

Keene’s K–12 school district. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.

Schools in Keene →
$13,567
per pupil · TX $12,815
1,097
students
$9.8 million
long-term debt

Of the $13,567 per pupil, $8,358 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 20%State 70%Federal 10%

Texas districts overall: 51% local, 36% state, 13% federal.

Also serving Keene

Cleburne Independent School District · $12,880 per pupil

Joshua Independent School District · $12,172 per pupil

Alvarado Independent School District · $11,699 per pupil

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

Next door

How Keene’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.

Spends the leastSpends the mostNo figures
TownSpent per residentDebt per residentTax bill
Keene$1,145$1,283$2,769
Cleburne$1,967$3,871$3,162

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

Who represents Keene

From town hall to Washington

Every level of government that speaks for Keene.

Politics & elections →
  1. 1
    Your cityMayor & council
    Local officials aren’t on record yet.
  2. 2
    Texas HouseState representatives
  3. 3
    Texas SenateState senator
  4. 4
    GovernorStatewide
  5. 5
    U.S. HouseSplit between districts
  6. 6
    U.S. SenateBoth represent all of Texas

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

Reach Keene’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 websitekeenetx.com ↗

Questions about how Keene is run?

Neighbors who’ve been to the meetings can help.

Town Square →
Weigh in
Does Keene 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. Representatives: Open States, the Census and congress-legislators.

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