How South St. Paul is run
Who runs South St. Paul, 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 South St. Paul's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.
Who runs South St. Paul
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
South St. Paul city staff
111 full-time-equivalent positions. FY2025. Full-time equivalent city employees at December 31, 2025, excluding seasonal staff. Firefighters work for the South Metro Fire Department, not the city. City of South St. Paul · Jun 24, 2026
The city posts the base pay of its three highest-paid positions each year. We found no full employee pay list. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is South St. Paul 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: $12.1M (2025-12-31). The city's own target: The city aims to keep unassigned general fund balance at 35% to 50% of the next year's budgeted spending. The audit report says the city exceeded this, with unassigned balance equal to 52.3% of 2026 budgeted spending. The city meets this target. City of South St. Paul · Jun 24, 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 taxes$14.7M · 63%
- Local Government Aid$2.5M · 11%
- Charges for services$2.3M · 10%
- Fees and fines$2.2M · 10%
- Intergovernmental$1.1M · 5%
- Other (miscellaneous and transfers in)$349,700 · 2%
Goes to (FY2026)
- Police$9.1M · 39%
- Public works$5.4M · 23%
- General government$3.5M · 15%
- Fire (South Metro Fire Department)$2.8M · 12%
- Community development$854,084 · 4%
- Parks and recreation$849,217 · 4%
- Other (contingency)$675,000 · 3%
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.
51¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of South St. Paul
- City of South St. Paul57.724 · 51%
- Special School District No. 6Parts of the city are in School District 199 instead.25.065 · 22%
- Dakota County19.948 · 18%
- Other districts10.314 · 9%
- Total (percent of tax capacity)113.051
Taxes payable 2025 tax capacity rates for property in South St. Paul in School District 6 (Dakota County). City of South St. Paul · Jun 24, 2026
Who provides your services
Not everything in South St. Paul is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe citySouth St. Paul Police DepartmentCity of South St. Paul · Jun 24, 2026
- FireAnother agencySouth Metro Fire DepartmentJoint fire department of South St. Paul and West St. Paul, formed by a 2005 joint powers agreement.City of South St. Paul · Jun 24, 2026
- WaterThe cityCity of South St. Paul public worksA new water treatment plant at Well #3 was substantially completed in 2025.City of South St. Paul · Jun 24, 2026
- Sewer and storm waterThe cityCity of South St. Paul public worksCity of South St. Paul · Jun 24, 2026
- Streets and street lightsThe cityCity of South St. Paul public worksCity of South St. Paul · Jun 24, 2026
- Parks and recreationThe cityCity of South St. Paul15 parks over 245 acres, two aquatic facilities and Doug Woog Arena.City of South St. Paul · Jun 24, 2026
- LibraryThe countyDakota County LibraryCity of South St. Paul · Jun 24, 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 | StillwaterMN | South St PaulMN | New HopeMN | Forest LakeMN |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 19,354 | 20,532 | 20,807 | 20,952 |
| Top administrator's base pay | Not confirmed | $210,762 | Not current (2023) | Not confirmed |
| Council member pay | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Not confirmed |
| General fund per resident | $977 | $1,130 | $980 | $725 |
| Debt per resident | $1,673 | $1,446 | $1,566 | $1,684 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $325 | $261 | $244 | $174 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | — | 5.4 | 6.0 | 3.2 |
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). South St Paul and New Hope pays another agency for police or fire, so its own staff count is lower.
What South St. Paul 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 posted employment contract for the city administrator. The city posts only his base salary in a yearly notice. City of South St. Paul · Jan 21, 2026
- Yes: Meeting videos and minutes onlineCouncil meetings stream live with past videos online. Minutes are posted after approval. City of South St. Paul · Oct 10, 2026
- Partly: Employee pay publishedThe city posts the base pay of its three highest-paid positions each year. We found no full employee pay list. City of South St. Paul · Jan 21, 2026
Questions to ask your council
- Unassigned general fund reserves were $12.1 million at the end of 2025, above the city's 35% to 50% target range. How does the council decide what to do with the balance above the range?
- Fire service comes from the South Metro Fire Department, shared with West St. Paul under a 2005 joint powers agreement. How does the council review what the city pays for it?
- The city's share of statewide pension plans' unfunded liability was $5.4 million at the end of 2025. How does the budget plan for rising pension costs?
The fiscal year starts January 1. The council reviewed the 2027 budget at work sessions on August 24 and September 14, 2026, and adopted the preliminary levy and budget on September 21, 2026. The Truth in Taxation hearing is December 7, 2026, and the final levy must be certified by December 30, 2026. See who is running for council
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