How Shively is run
Who runs Shively, 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 Shively's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.
Who runs Shively
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
Shively city staff
The city posts no total staff count. The police department has 34 sworn and 6 civilian employees; the fire department has 21 full-time firefighter/EMTs and a fire chief. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Shively 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: $9.9M (2024-06-30). City of Shively · Jul 7, 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.
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Police$6.5M · 35%
- Fire$4.4M · 24%
- General government (City Hall)$4.2M · 23%
- Public works$2.2M · 12%
- Parks$1M · 6%
- Golf course$10,000 · 0%
Who provides your services
Not everything in Shively is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityShively Police DepartmentShively Police Department home page
- 911 and police dispatchThe cityShively Police Department dispatch centerShively Police Department home page
- Fire protectionThe cityShively Fire DepartmentShively Fire Department home page
- Trash, recycling and yard waste collectionThe cityShively Public WorksCity of Shively
- Large item pickupThe cityShively Public WorksCity of Shively
- ParksThe cityShively Parks DepartmentCity of Shively
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 | ShepherdsvilleKY | ShivelyKY | BereaKY | Fort ThomasKY |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 14,931 | 15,895 | 16,662 | 17,142 |
| Top administrator's base pay | Not confirmed | Not current (2023) | Not confirmed | Not current (2022) |
| Council member pay | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Not confirmed |
| General fund per resident | $2,985 | $1,152 | $1,571 | $1,338 |
| Debt per resident | $3,076 | $8 | $690 | $492 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $1,554 | $1,155 | $1,272 | $1,120 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | — | — | — | — |
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 Shively publishes
What a resident can find online today. A "no" is something you can ask the council to publish.
- No: Audited financial report filed on timeThe latest posted audit, for FY2024, is dated July 7, 2025, a year after the June 30 year-end. We found no FY2025 audit. City of Shively · Jul 7, 2025
- Partly: Adopted budget posted online City of Shively · Jun 15, 2026
- Yes: Council votes recorded member by member online City of Shively
- No: Council pay stated in a public documentWe found no posted ordinance or budget line stating council or mayor pay. City of Shively
- Partly: Employee pay published City of Shively
Questions to ask your council
- The city's share of the CERS pension shortfall was $18.4 million on June 30, 2024, almost twice its $9.86 million unassigned general fund balance. How does the budget plan for pension costs?
- The FY2024 audit was dated July 7, 2025, and repeats a financial reporting finding from earlier years. When will the FY2025 audit be posted?
- Police is the largest line in the FY2026-27 budget at $6.46 million of $18.31 million. How is that money split between patrol, dispatch and investigations?
Help decide what comes next
What do you want to know about Shively next?
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Every number here was checked by hand against the linked document. Cities publish on different schedules, so years differ between sections; each figure says which year it describes. Spotted something wrong or out of date?
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