How Sherwood is run
Who runs Sherwood, 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 Sherwood's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.
Who runs Sherwood
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
Sherwood city staff
Arkansas has no statewide pay database. Sherwood's budget and monthly reports show salary lines by department, but no staff count or pay list. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Sherwood 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.
The city's own outlook
The 2026 budget plans $31.97 million of general fund revenue and $34.21 million of spending, using $2.24 million of reserves to balance. City of Sherwood · Jun 22, 2026
Savings against the city's own target
Unassigned general fund balance: $18.5M (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 27, 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 taxes$20.2M · 59%
- Sanitation fees$3.5M · 10%
- Reserves used$2.2M · 7%
- Transfers in (franchise fees)$1.8M · 5%
- Property tax millage and interest$1.3M · 4%
- State aid$1M · 3%
- Fines and fees$915,000 · 3%
- Other$3.2M · 9%
Goes to (FY2026)
- Police$11.5M · 34%
- Administration (includes $2.63 million for two fire districts)$8.9M · 26%
- Parks and recreation$3.9M · 11%
- Sanitation$3.4M · 10%
- Engineering, permits and planning$1.1M · 3%
- Facilities maintenance$1.1M · 3%
- Other$4.4M · 13%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
Of each property-tax dollar a Sherwood homeowner in the Pulaski County Special School District paid on the 2025 levy, about 78 cents went to the school district, 19 cents to Pulaski County and 2 cents to the city. Homes in the North Little Rock School District part of Sherwood pay 63.7 mills.
2¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Sherwood
- Pulaski County Special School District40.7 · 78%
- Pulaski County10.1 · 19%
- City of Sherwood1.3 · 2%
- Total (mills ($ per $1,000 of assessed value))52.1
2025 property tax rates for a home in Sherwood in the Pulaski County Special School District. Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration: 2025 Millage Report (2026 Collections), Pulaski County · Mar 1, 2026
See what a Sherwood home costs each year, line by line →Who provides your services
Not everything in Sherwood is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe citySherwood Police DepartmentBudgeted at $11.5 million in 2026.City of Sherwood · Jun 22, 2026
- ParksThe citySherwood Parks and RecreationCity of Sherwood · Jun 22, 2026
- Public transitAnother agencyRock Region MetroThe city paid $58,618 for transit service in 2025.Arkansas Legislative Audit · Aug 27, 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 | RussellvilleAR | ParagouldAR | SherwoodAR | Bella VistaAR |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 29,521 | 31,135 | 33,620 | 34,518 |
| Top administrator's base pay | $92,521 | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Not confirmed |
| Council member pay | $10,268 | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | $9,970 |
| General fund per resident | $696 | $875 | $1,017 | $733 |
| Debt per resident | $2,441 | $195 | $531 | $327 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $555 | $482 | $235 | $441 |
| 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 Sherwood publishes
What a resident can find online today. A "no" is something you can ask the council to publish.
- No: City manager's contract findable onlineSherwood has no city manager; the elected mayor runs the city under the mayor-council form. Arkansas Legislative Audit · Aug 27, 2026
- Yes: Meeting videos and minutes onlineAgendas and approved minutes are posted, and the council page links to meeting videos. City of Sherwood
- No: Employee pay publishedBudgets and monthly reports show salary lines by department only. We found no pay list by employee. City of Sherwood · Jun 22, 2026
Questions to ask your council
- General fund spending was $35.2 million against $29.4 million of revenue in 2025, and the fund balance fell $4.36 million to $18.75 million. How much of that spending was one-time capital?
- The 2026 budget uses $2.24 million of reserves to balance $34.21 million of spending. How long can the city keep drawing on its $18.46 million unassigned balance?
- The city's share of the police and fire pension plan (LOPFI) net liability is $7.85 million. How will future contribution increases be paid?
- Sherwood has no written reserve policy. Should the council set a target for its $18.46 million unassigned balance?
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 general fund budget of $34,206,486 by a 6 to 2 vote on December 15, 2025. See who is running for council
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