How Hammond is run
Who runs Hammond, 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 Hammond's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.
Who runs Hammond
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
Hammond city staff
325 full-time-equivalent positions, including Police 116, Fire 77, Water & Sewer 39. FY2027. Full-time employees approved for FY2026-27. City of Hammond · Jul 1, 2026
The budget gives full-time headcount and payroll totals by department, but not individual salaries. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Hammond 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 mayor calls the FY2026-27 budget balanced. It projects the general fund balance falling from $1,039,104 at the start of the year to $141,456 at the end. The budget does not include a multi-year forecast. City of Hammond · Jul 1, 2026
Savings
Unassigned general fund balance: $1.5M (2025-06-30). City of Hammond · Dec 19, 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
- Transfer in from the Sales Tax Fund$28.4M · 64%
- Property and franchise taxes$7.4M · 17%
- Licenses and permits$2.1M · 5%
- Charges and fees (mostly garbage fees)$2.1M · 5%
- Intergovernmental$1.7M · 4%
- Miscellaneous (incl. video bingo)$1.2M · 3%
- From savings (fund balance)$897,648 · 2%
- Other (fines and interest)$540,000 · 1%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Police$13.7M · 31%
- Fire$9.3M · 21%
- Transfers out to other funds$4.9M · 11%
- General administration$2.7M · 6%
- Building$2.5M · 6%
- Streets$1.9M · 4%
- Garbage collection contract$1.9M · 4%
- Grounds$1.6M · 4%
- Other (recreation, data processing, mayor, council, finance, legal, capital and others)$5.9M · 13%
Who provides your services
Not everything in Hammond is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityHammond Police Department116 employees, about 30,000 calls a year, including the jail.City of Hammond · Jul 1, 2026
- FireThe cityHammond Fire Department77 employees and 5 fire stations, serving a 60 square-mile area inside and outside city limits.City of Hammond · Jul 1, 2026
- WaterThe cityCity of Hammond (Water and Sewer Fund)City of Hammond · Dec 19, 2025
- SewerThe cityCity of Hammond (Water and Sewer Fund)City of Hammond · Dec 19, 2025
- TrashContractorContractor paid by the cityCity of Hammond · Jul 1, 2026
- Streets and drainageThe cityCity of Hammond Public Works - StreetCity of Hammond · Jul 1, 2026
- Parks and recreationThe cityCity of Hammond Recreation and Grounds7 parks, a rec center, a swimming pool and splash parks.City of Hammond · Jul 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 | YoungsvilleLA | ZacharyLA | RustonLA | HammondLA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 19,980 | 20,621 | 22,397 | 24,032 |
| Top administrator's base pay | $102,285 | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | $80,000 |
| Council member pay | $15,476 | $10,414 | $13,765 | $12,000 |
| General fund per resident | $445 | $1,031 | $1,643 | $1,845 |
| Debt per resident | $3,308 | $908 | $3,264 | $279 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $251 | $788 | $896 | $1,427 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | — | — | — | 13.5 |
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 Hammond publishes
What a resident can find online today. A "no" is something you can ask the council to publish.
- Yes: Adopted budget posted onlineThe FY2026-27 adopted budget, with all funds and a 5-year capital plan, is linked from the city homepage. City of Hammond
- Yes: Council votes recorded member by member onlineCouncil minutes list each member's yes or no vote by name. Hammond City Council
- Yes: Meeting videos and minutes onlineThe homepage posts council meeting videos; yearly minute and ordinance books are posted as searchable PDFs. City of Hammond
- Yes: Council pay stated in a public documentThe audit lists pay to each council member and cites the charter rate of $1,000 per month. City of Hammond · Dec 19, 2025
- Partly: Employee pay published City of Hammond · Jul 1, 2026
Questions to ask your council
- The FY2026-27 budget projects the general fund balance falling to $141,456 by June 30, 2027. What reserve level does the council consider safe?
- Unassigned general fund reserves were $1,488,935 on June 30, 2025, and the city has no written reserve policy. Should it adopt one?
- The general fund relies on a $28.4 million transfer from the Sales Tax Fund in FY2026-27. How would the city respond if sales tax fell?
- The city's share of net pension liability was $34.3 million at June 30, 2025, compared with $6.7 million in bonds. How is the city planning for pension costs?
The fiscal year starts July 1. The mayor submits the proposed budget to the council by May 15, public hearings follow at council meetings, and the budget must be adopted by ordinance by June 30. For FY2026-27 the mayor presented the budget on May 12, 2026, and final adoption was set for June 23, 2026. See who is running for council
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