How Owensboro is run
Who runs Owensboro, 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 Owensboro's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.
Who runs Owensboro
A City Manager appointed by the Board of Commissioners runs day-to-day operations and oversees all city staff. The five-member Board of Commissioners, the mayor and four commissioners, sets city policy and passes the laws.
What they are paid
Owensboro city staff
439 full-time-equivalent positions, including Police and Central Dispatch 152, Fire 101, Transit 25. FY2026-27. City of Owensboro · Jun 2, 2026
The budget lists positions and salary totals by department. We found no city list of pay ranges or individual employee pay. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Owensboro 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 adopted FY2026-27 general fund budget plans $80.15M of revenue against $80.12M of spending. The city projects the general fund balance to start falling in FY2029 because salary and benefit costs are expected to grow faster than revenue. City of Owensboro · Jun 2, 2026
Savings against the city's own target
Unassigned general fund balance: $43.5M (2025-06-30). The city's own target: City policy sets a desired minimum general fund balance of 17% of the general fund operating budget. On June 30, 2025 the unassigned balance equaled 56.7% of general fund spending including transfers out. City of Owensboro · Dec 16, 2025
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
- Licenses, fees and permits (mostly occupational and insurance premium license fees)$40.7M · 51%
- Taxes (mostly property tax)$15M · 19%
- Dividends from Owensboro Municipal Utilities$9.2M · 11%
- Payments in lieu of taxes$3.7M · 5%
- Intergovernmental$3M · 4%
- Charges for services$2.8M · 3%
- Investment earnings$2.4M · 3%
- Other (regulatory fees, transfers in and other)$3.2M · 4%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Police$21M · 26%
- Fire$18.1M · 23%
- Transfers to other funds (dispatch, transit, recreation and others)$8.5M · 11%
- Parks and recreation$5.5M · 7%
- General government (non-departmental)$5.2M · 6%
- Engineering$4.8M · 6%
- Administration (City Manager, Board and staff)$3.5M · 4%
- Other (IT, streets, finance, agencies, HR and other)$13.6M · 17%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
Kentucky values property at full market value. City homes in the county school tax district pay the county school rate (0.7100) instead, for a total of 1.3150.
18¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Owensboro
- City school district0.851 · 58%
- City of Owensboro0.261 · 18%
- Daviess County0.129 · 9%
- State of Kentucky0.109 · 7%
- Library0.057 · 4%
- Health department0.04 · 3%
- Extension service0.009 · <1%
- Total ($ per $100 of assessed value)1.456
FY2025 real estate rates for a home in the city of Owensboro, inside the city school tax district (Daviess County). City of Owensboro · Dec 16, 2025
Who provides your services
Not everything in Owensboro is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityOwensboro Police DepartmentCity of Owensboro · Dec 16, 2025
- FireThe cityOwensboro Fire DepartmentCity of Owensboro · Dec 16, 2025
- StreetsThe cityCity of Owensboro Public WorksCity of Owensboro · Dec 16, 2025
- Parks and recreationThe cityOwensboro Parks and RecreationCity of Owensboro · Dec 16, 2025
- Public transitThe cityCity of Owensboro TransitCity of Owensboro · Dec 16, 2025
- ElectricityThe cityOwensboro Municipal Utilities (OMU) Electric Light and Power SystemCity-owned utility run by the City Utility Commission.City of Owensboro · Dec 16, 2025
- WaterThe cityOwensboro Municipal Utilities (OMU) Water Works SystemCity-owned utility run by the City Utility Commission.City of Owensboro · Dec 16, 2025
- SewerAnother agencyRegional Water Resource Agency (RWRA)A separate regional agency. The city appoints four of its seven board members and Daviess County three.City of Owensboro · Dec 16, 2025
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 | GeorgetownKY | CovingtonKY | OwensboroKY | Bowling GreenKY |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 40,883 | 41,847 | 60,892 | 78,505 |
| Top administrator's base pay | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Not confirmed |
| Council member pay | $14,837 | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Not current (2023) |
| General fund per resident | $1,396 | $1,755 | $1,316 | $1,403 |
| Debt per resident | $2,220 | $2,484 | $2,125 | $883 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $1,112 | $2,315 | $1,349 | $1,289 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 5.7 | 8.8 | 7.2 | 7.1 |
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 Owensboro 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 onlineWe found no City Manager contract or pay figure on the City Manager page, the Finance page or in the FY2026-27 budget. City of Owensboro
- No: Council pay stated in a public documentWe found no ordinance or budget line stating the mayor's or commissioners' pay on the city website or in the FY2026-27 budget. City of Owensboro · Jun 2, 2026
- No: Employee pay publishedThe budget gives salary totals by department and a 3% cost-of-living raise. We found no pay ranges or list of individual pay. City of Owensboro · Jun 2, 2026
Questions to ask your council
- Unassigned general fund reserves were $43.5 million on June 30, 2025, against a policy minimum of 17% of the operating budget. What is the plan for the amount above that minimum?
- The budget projects the general fund balance to start falling in FY2029 because salaries and benefits grow faster than revenue. What changes would keep the FY2029-30 budget balanced?
- Occupational and other license fees bring in $40.7 million of the $80.2 million in budgeted general fund revenue. How would the city respond if those fees fell?
The fiscal year starts July 1. The City Manager submits the proposed budget by June 1 and the Board adopts it by June 30. For FY2026-27, first reading was May 19, 2026, and the public hearing and final vote were June 2, 2026. See who is running for council
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