How Bentonville is run
Who runs Bentonville, 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 Bentonville's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 11, 2026.
Who runs Bentonville
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
Bentonville city staff
753 full-time-equivalent positions, including General fund 553, Utility fund 163, Street fund 37. FY2026 adopted budget. Full-time equivalent positions across all funds, down from 757 in 2025. The general fund pays for 552.5 of them. City of Bentonville · Jan 1, 2026
Arkansas has no statewide pay database, and the budget gives staff counts only. We found no pay list by employee. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Bentonville 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
Unassigned general fund balance: $120M (2025-12-31). City of Bentonville · Jun 18, 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
- Taxes (mostly sales tax)$70.2M · 79%
- Charges for services$9.8M · 11%
- Interest and rent$3.5M · 4%
- Impact fees used$2M · 2%
- Licenses and permits$1.6M · 2%
- Intergovernmental$1.2M · 1%
- Other$903,154 · 1%
Goes to (FY2026)
- Fire$22.4M · 25%
- Police$22.1M · 25%
- Parks and recreation$20.4M · 23%
- Engineering$5.4M · 6%
- Library$3.2M · 4%
- Public works maintenance$3M · 3%
- Information technology$3M · 3%
- Other$8.8M · 10%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
Of each property-tax dollar a Bentonville homeowner in the Bentonville School District paid on the 2025 levy, about 75 cents went to the school district, 16 cents to Benton County and 9 cents to the city. Parts of Bentonville in the Rogers School District pay 56.62 mills.
9¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Bentonville
- Bentonville School District46.8 · 75%
- Benton County9.7 · 16%
- City of Bentonville5 mills for general operations plus 0.5 mills for the firemen's pension fund.5.5 · 9%
- Total (mills ($ per $1,000 of assessed value))62
2025 property tax rates for a home in Bentonville in the Bentonville School District (Benton County). Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration: 2025 Millage Report (2026 Collections), Benton County · Jan 1, 2026
See what a Bentonville home costs each year, line by line →Who provides your services
Not everything in Bentonville is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityCity of BentonvilleCity of Bentonville · Jun 18, 2026
- FireThe cityCity of BentonvilleCity of Bentonville · Jun 18, 2026
- Ambulance (EMS)The cityCity of BentonvilleCity of Bentonville · Jun 18, 2026
- ElectricityThe cityCity of BentonvilleThe city buys power from AEP/SWEPCO and runs its own distribution system.City of Bentonville · Jan 1, 2026
- WaterThe cityCity of BentonvilleThe city buys its water from Beaver Water District.City of Bentonville · Jan 1, 2026
- SewerThe cityCity of BentonvilleWastewater is treated at the city's own plant or the regional NACA plant.City of Bentonville · Jan 1, 2026
- Trash and recyclingContractorContractor hired by the cityThe city bills for trash service through its utility billing department.City of Bentonville · Jan 1, 2026
- StreetsThe cityCity of BentonvilleCity of Bentonville · Jun 18, 2026
- Parks and recreationThe cityCity of BentonvilleCity of Bentonville · Jun 18, 2026
- LibraryThe cityCity of Bentonville (Bentonville Public Library)City of Bentonville · Jun 18, 2026
- AirportThe cityCity of Bentonville (Louise M. Thaden Field)City of Bentonville · Jan 1, 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 | BentonAR | BentonvilleAR | JonesboroAR | Fort SmithAR |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 38,898 | 63,057 | 83,296 | 90,855 |
| Top administrator's base pay | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | $215,000 |
| Council member pay | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Not current (2023) |
| General fund per resident | $624 | $1,401 | $780 | $611 |
| Debt per resident | $884 | $2,380 | $211 | $2,802 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $438 | $877 | $343 | $717 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | — | 11.9 | — | 12.4 |
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 Bentonville 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 Bentonville · Nov 25, 2025
- No: City manager's contract findable onlineBentonville has no city manager; the elected mayor runs the city. No administrator contract applies. City of Bentonville · Jan 1, 2026
- Yes: Meeting videos and minutes onlineThe city's meeting portal posts agendas, packets, minutes and video of council meetings. City of Bentonville · Dec 9, 2025
- No: Council pay stated in a public documentWe found no posted document stating the mayor's or council members' pay. The budget gives only department totals. City of Bentonville · Jan 1, 2026
- No: Employee pay publishedThe budget gives staff counts by fund and department. We found no pay list by employee. City of Bentonville · Jan 1, 2026
Questions to ask your council
- Fire ($22.4 million), police ($22.1 million) and parks ($20.4 million) make up most of the $88.4 million 2026 general fund budget. How will those costs change as the city grows?
- The city's share of statewide police, fire and employee pension liabilities was $55.3 million at the end of 2025. How is that expected to change?
The fiscal year starts January 1. Departments prepare requests in the summer, and the mayor, finance director and department heads review them in September. The budget goes to the City Council in early November, and state law requires the mayor to submit it by December 1. The council held an all-day budget workshop on November 7, 2025, and adopted the 2026 budget on November 25, 2025. See who is running for council
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