How Benton is run
Who runs Benton, what it costs, and where your money goes
The city manager, council pay, the budget, your property tax bill and who provides each service, from Benton's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.
Who runs Benton
The elected mayor heads the city government and appoints its top administrator and department heads. The council passes laws, adopts the budget and sets the tax rate.
What they are paid
Benton city staff
Arkansas has no statewide pay database. Benton's budget and monthly reports show personnel costs by department, but no staff count or pay list. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Benton in the red?
Cities must pass a balanced budget, so "profit" and "deficit" mean something different here. The useful questions: does the city's everyday money (the general fund) cover its everyday costs, how much does it keep in savings compared with its own target, and how big are its pension and debt bills.
Savings against the city's own target
Unassigned general fund balance: $6.3M (2025-12-31). The city's own target: No formal reserve policy. The council may assign fund balance to specific purposes, although a formal policy has not been established. Arkansas Legislative Audit · Aug 10, 2026
Why we skip the "budgeted deficit": many cities plan to dip into savings, then spend less than planned. The audited result tells you what really happened.
Where the money comes from and goes
The general fund only: the city's everyday money for FY2026.
Comes from
- Sales and use tax (1%)$11.1M · 45%
- Transfer from Public Safety Fund (personnel)$5.2M · 21%
- Benton Utilities franchise taxes$2.4M · 10%
- County taxes$2M · 8%
- Other police income$702,039 · 3%
- Permits and licenses$559,350 · 2%
- State taxes$525,000 · 2%
- Other$2M · 8%
Goes to (FY2026)
- Police$10.2M · 42%
- Fire$8.3M · 34%
- Administrative services$1.7M · 7%
- Community development$1.3M · 5%
- Mayor and elected officials$742,126 · 3%
- Transfer to animal control$685,000 · 3%
- Legal$646,576 · 3%
- Other (clerk, 911 operations, marketing)$695,624 · 3%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
Of each property-tax dollar a Benton homeowner in the Benton School District paid on the 2025 levy, about 76 cents went to the school district, 18 cents to Saline County and 7 cents to the city. Homes in the Bryant and Bauxite school district parts of Benton pay 54.1 and 52.1 mills.
7¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Benton
- Benton School District41.9 · 76%
- Saline County9.7 · 18%
- City of Benton3.8 · 7%
- Total (mills ($ per $1,000 of assessed value))55.4
2025 property tax rates for a home in Benton in the Benton School District. Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration: 2025 Millage Report (2026 Collections), Saline County · Mar 1, 2026
See what a Benton house pays, line by line →Who provides your services
Not everything in Benton is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityBenton Police DepartmentCity of Benton · Aug 10, 2026
- FireThe cityBenton Fire DepartmentBudgeted at $8.3 million in the 2026 general fund.City of Benton · Aug 10, 2026
- 911 dispatchThe countySaline County Emergency Communications CenterArkansas Legislative Audit · Aug 10, 2026
- ElectricityThe cityBenton Utilities (Benton Municipal Light and Water Works)City-owned. A Public Utility Commission has run it since 2006.Benton Municipal Light and Water Works · Jan 1, 2025
- WaterThe cityBenton Utilities (Benton Municipal Light and Water Works)Benton Municipal Light and Water Works · Jan 1, 2025
- SewerThe cityBenton Utilities (Benton Municipal Light and Water Works)Benton Municipal Light and Water Works · Jan 1, 2025
- StreetsThe cityCity of Benton Street DepartmentCity of Benton · Aug 10, 2026
Compared with similar cities
The cities in this state closest in population that we cover. Read it for scale, not as a ranking: cities provide different services.
| Per city | ParagouldAR | SherwoodAR | Bella VistaAR | BentonAR |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 31,135 | 33,620 | 34,518 | 38,898 |
| Top administrator's base pay | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Not confirmed |
| Council member pay | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | $9,970 | Not confirmed |
| General fund per resident | $875 | $1,017 | $733 | $624 |
| Debt per resident | $195 | $531 | $327 | $884 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $482 | $235 | $441 | $438 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | — | — | 6.3 | — |
Figures as shown in each city's section, divided by its population. Years differ by state, and pension figures are measured differently in each state (each city page says how).
What Benton publishes
What a resident can find online today. A "no" is something you can ask the council to publish.
- Yes: Adopted budget posted online City of Benton
- No: City manager's contract findable onlineBenton has no city manager; the elected mayor runs the city under the mayor-council form. Arkansas Legislative Audit · Aug 10, 2026
- No: Council votes recorded member by member onlineWe did not find posted council minutes with roll-call votes on the city website. City of Benton
- Partly: Council pay stated in a public document City of Benton · Nov 1, 2025
- No: Employee pay publishedBudgets and monthly reports show personnel costs by department only. We found no pay list by employee. City of Benton · Aug 10, 2026
Questions to ask your council
- Benton has no formal reserve policy. Should the council set a target for its $6.32 million unassigned general fund balance?
- The city's share of the LOPFI police and fire pension liability is $15.69 million. How will future contribution increases be paid?
The fiscal year runs January 1 to December 31. By December 1 the mayor gives the council a proposed budget, the council discusses it at a meeting, and it must be enacted before February 1. The council adopted the 2026 budget by Resolution No. 99 of 2025 in November 2025. See who is running for council
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