How Apple Valley is run
Who runs Apple Valley, 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 Apple Valley's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.
Who runs Apple Valley
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
- Council members are covered by the Public Employees Defined Contribution Plan
- Medical insurance for the council is budgeted at $90,900 for 2026
Apple Valley city staff
279 full-time-equivalent positions, including Police 70, Fire 21. FY2025. Full-time equivalents based on hours worked in 2025, all funds, including part-time staff converted at 2,080 hours a year. City of Apple Valley · Jun 5, 2026
The city posts the base pay of its three highest-paid employees. We found no city-published pay list for all employees. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Apple Valley 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 against the city's own target
Unassigned general fund balance: $26.2M (2025-12-31). The city's own target: Keep a minimum general fund balance of 50 percent of the next year's budgeted spending for cash flow. At the end of 2025 the unassigned balance equaled 57.2 percent of 2026 budgeted spending. The city meets this target. City of Apple Valley · Jun 5, 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
- Property tax$37.9M · 75%
- Charges for services$3.2M · 6%
- Permits$2.1M · 4%
- Transfers in from liquor and water and sewer funds$1.7M · 3%
- State and federal aid and grants$1.4M · 3%
- Administrative charges to other funds$1.2M · 2%
- Rentals$880,500 · 2%
- Other (investment earnings, use of reserves, franchise taxes, licenses, fines and more)$2.2M · 4%
Goes to (FY2026)
- Police$16.3M · 32%
- Public works$9M · 18%
- Parks and recreation$7.7M · 15%
- Contingency and transfers$5.3M · 10%
- General government$4.8M · 9%
- Fire$3.9M · 8%
- Other (community development, finance, legal, insurance)$3.8M · 8%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
Minnesota property taxes are mostly set as a rate on a property's tax capacity. This split leaves out voter-approved school levies charged on market value and the state general levy on business property.
47¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Apple Valley
- City of Apple Valley41.81 · 47%
- Independent School District No. 19622.968 · 26%
- Dakota County19.948 · 23%
- Other (Metropolitan Council, mosquito control, transit, Dakota County CDA, watershed)Not all of these apply to every property.3.325 · 4%
- Total (percent of tax capacity)88.051
Taxes payable 2025 tax capacity rates for property in Apple Valley (Dakota County). City of Apple Valley · Jun 5, 2026
See what a Apple Valley home costs each year, line by line →Who provides your services
Not everything in Apple Valley is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityApple Valley Police DepartmentCity of Apple Valley · Jun 5, 2026
- FireThe cityApple Valley Fire DepartmentCity of Apple Valley · Jun 5, 2026
- Emergency medical responseThe cityApple Valley Fire DepartmentCity of Apple Valley · Nov 25, 2025
- 911 dispatchAnother agencyDakota Communications CenterCounty-wide public safety answering point run jointly by Dakota County and its cities.City of Apple Valley · Jun 5, 2026
- WaterThe cityCity water utilityThe city runs its own water treatment plant, wells and reservoirs.City of Apple Valley · Nov 25, 2025
- Sewage treatmentAnother agencyMetropolitan Council Environmental ServicesCity of Apple Valley · Jun 5, 2026
- StreetlightsPrivate companyDakota Electric (most lights)The city owns streetlights downtown and along some main roads.City of Apple Valley · Nov 25, 2025
- Parks and recreationThe cityApple Valley Parks and RecreationCity of Apple Valley · Jun 5, 2026
- StreetsThe cityApple Valley Public WorksCity of Apple Valley · Jun 5, 2026
- Liquor storesThe cityCity of Apple ValleyThe city runs three off-sale liquor stores.City of Apple Valley · Jun 5, 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 | ShakopeeMN | EdinaMN | Apple ValleyMN | Eden PrairieMN |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 49,366 | 54,356 | 55,248 | 63,075 |
| Top administrator's base pay | $240,525 | $220,084 | $220,509 | $253,864 |
| Council member pay | $7,500 | $14,860 | Not confirmed | $14,137 |
| General fund per resident | $871 | $1,302 | $919 | $1,014 |
| Debt per resident | $788 | $3,473 | $1,528 | $746 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $204 | $369 | $205 | $256 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 3.7 | 6.7 | 5.1 | 4.7 |
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 Apple Valley publishes
What a resident can find online today. A "no" is something you can ask the council to publish.
- Yes: Adopted budget posted online City of Apple Valley · Oct 10, 2026
- No: City manager's contract findable onlineWe found no city administrator employment agreement on the city site or in 2026 council agendas. The salary notice lists only base pay. City of Apple Valley · Jan 3, 2025
- Yes: Meeting videos and minutes online City of Apple Valley · Oct 10, 2026
- Partly: Council pay stated in a public documentThe budget states $64,250 in combined 2026 salaries for the mayor and council. We found no document stating each member's pay. City of Apple Valley · Nov 25, 2025
- Partly: Employee pay publishedAs state law requires, the city posts base pay for its three highest-paid jobs. We found no full pay list. City of Apple Valley · Jan 3, 2025
Questions to ask your council
- Police is the largest general fund cost, at $16.3 million in the 2026 budget. What service levels does that amount pay for?
- Unassigned general fund reserves were $26.2 million at the end of 2025, 57.2% of 2026 budgeted spending against a 50% minimum. How does the council decide what to do with the amount above the minimum?
- Bonded debt rose $29.4 million in 2025, to $84.4 million. How much more borrowing does the five-year capital plan expect?
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