How Kissimmee is run
Who runs Kissimmee, 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 Kissimmee's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.
Who runs Kissimmee
A city manager appointed by the commission runs the city day to day. The five-member commission, including the mayor, sets policy, adopts the budget, and appoints the city manager and city attorney.
What they are paid
- Contract runs through Sept. 30, 2031 under the July 2026 Seventh Amendment
- Paid for up to three years of accrued vacation when he leaves, including at retirement
Kissimmee city staff
811 full-time-equivalent positions, including Police 264, Fire 188. FY2026-27. City of Kissimmee · Sep 22, 2026
Florida has no statewide pay database. The budget shows salary totals by division, not pay by position. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Kissimmee 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: $40.1M (2025-09-30). City of Kissimmee · Mar 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 FY2026-27.
Comes from
- Property taxes and gas franchise fee$33.5M · 28%
- Kissimmee Utility Authority payment$21.6M · 18%
- State shared revenue, fire assessment and other intergovernmental$19.9M · 16%
- Charges for services (incl. ambulance fees)$11.4M · 9%
- Toho Water Authority payment$11.3M · 9%
- Utility taxes$8.3M · 7%
- Drawn from reserves$5.1M · 4%
- Other (fines, interest, rents, other transfers, licenses)$10.4M · 9%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Police$39.6M · 33%
- Fire and EMS$31.2M · 26%
- Transfers to other funds and bad debt$15.9M · 13%
- Parks and recreation$10.7M · 9%
- Public works and streets$8.4M · 7%
- City manager's office (clerk, communications, economic development, general government)$7M · 6%
- Other (commission, attorney, finance, planning, HR)$8.8M · 7%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
Of each property-tax dollar a Kissimmee homeowner pays, about 27 cents goes to the city. The county's 1.0682-mill EMS tax is not charged inside the city. The city rate of 4.6253 mills has not changed in 18 years.
27¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Kissimmee
- Osceola CountyGeneral fund 6.7000, library district 0.3000, Save Osceola 0.25007.25 · 42%
- Osceola County School Board5.277 · 30%
- City of Kissimmee4.6253 · 27%
- South Florida Water Management District0.2301 · 1%
- Total (mills)17.3824
2026 tax year (FY2026-27) rates for a home in the city of Kissimmee (Osceola County). Osceola County Property Appraiser · Oct 1, 2026
Who provides your services
Not everything in Kissimmee is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityKissimmee Police DepartmentCity of Kissimmee · Mar 27, 2026
- Fire protectionThe cityKissimmee Fire DepartmentCity of Kissimmee · Mar 27, 2026
- Water and sewerSeparate districtTohopekaliga Water Authority (Toho)Created by a state act in 2003; it pays the city's general fund each year.City of Kissimmee · Mar 27, 2026
- StormwaterThe cityCity of Kissimmee stormwater utilityCity of Kissimmee · Mar 27, 2026
- StreetsThe cityCity of Kissimmee Public WorksCity of Kissimmee · Mar 27, 2026
- Parks and recreationThe cityCity of Kissimmee Parks & RecreationCity of Kissimmee · Mar 27, 2026
- AirportThe cityKissimmee Gateway Airport (city-owned)City of Kissimmee · Mar 27, 2026
- Planning and zoningThe cityCity of Kissimmee Development ServicesCity of Kissimmee · Mar 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 | LargoFL | KissimmeeFL | Daytona BeachFL | MelbourneFL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 84,075 | 87,664 | 88,144 | 88,499 |
| Top administrator's base pay | $248,887 | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | $230,000 |
| Council member pay | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Not confirmed |
| General fund per resident | $1,610 | $1,387 | $1,847 | $1,340 |
| Debt per resident | $2,309 | $1,721 | $2,523 | $2,100 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $373 | $530 | $1,282 | $223 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 11.8 | 9.3 | 11.5 | 10.3 |
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). Largo pays another agency for police or fire, so its own staff count is lower.
What Kissimmee publishes
What a resident can find online today. A "no" is something you can ask the council to publish.
- Yes: Council votes recorded member by member onlineMinutes on the city's CivicClerk portal list each member's AYE or NAY on roll-call votes. City of Kissimmee · Aug 18, 2026
- No: Employee pay publishedThe budget shows salary totals by division, not pay by position. Florida has no statewide pay database. City of Kissimmee · Sep 22, 2026
Questions to ask your council
- Payments from the Kissimmee Utility Authority and Toho Water Authority make up about 30% of FY2027 general fund revenue, close to what property taxes bring in. How would the budget cope if either payment fell?
- The firefighters' pension plan was 79.21% funded on Sept. 30, 2025, and the city's three plans were $46.5 million short. What is the plan to close that gap?
- City debt reached $150.9 million on Sept. 30, 2025, after the Series 2024 bonds for police, fire, road and civic center projects. How much will yearly debt payments take from the budget?
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