How St. Helens is run

Who runs St. Helens, 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 St. Helens's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 11, 2026.

Who runs St. Helens

A city manager hired by the council runs the city day to day. The council sets policy, adopts the budget and sets the tax rate.

You vote forThe city council: 5 membersMayor Jennifer Massey.

The council hires and can fireCity AdministratorInterim City Administrator: Mindi Nunes

The interim city administrator hiresEveryone else: department heads, police and fire chiefs where the city has them, and all staff

City of St. Helens

What they are paid

Interim City Administrator Mindi Nunes: base payNot confirmed2026. City of St. Helens

A council memberNot confirmedFY2026-27. Councilors are paid a stipend, but we found no document stating the amount per member. The adopted budget lists $45,800 of council wages for FY2026-27 and says council cut its stipend by 10%. City of St. Helens · Jun 17, 2026

The mayorNot confirmedFY2026-27. The adopted FY2026-27 budget says the Mayor's stipend was eliminated from City Council. City of St. Helens · Jun 17, 2026

St. Helens city staff

70 full-time-equivalent positions. FY2026-27. City of St. Helens · Jun 17, 2026

The city posts a salary schedule by job class and its union contracts. We found no list of pay by employee. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.

Is St. Helens 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.

General fund, FY2026-27$11.6MOut of $101M across all city funds, which includes utilities and other money that can only be spent on one thing. City of St. Helens · Jun 17, 2026

Savings shrank, FY2024-25 (audited)−$624,086General fund revenue $10.2M, spending $11.9M. Spent $1.70 million more than it took in before transfers. A $1 million transfer in and $71,183 of lease proceeds covered part of the gap, and the general fund balance fell $624,086 to $91,301. City of St. Helens · Mar 31, 2026

Savings against the city's own target

Unassigned general fund balance: $91,301 (2025-06-30). The city's own target: The city's policy is that the general fund's ending fund balance should not fall below 20% of operating expenditures. The budget puts that 20% target at $2,363,156 for FY2024-25. The city is below this target. City of St. Helens · Mar 31, 2026

Target $2.4M

Bar: unassigned savings of $91,301. Line: the amount the city's target calls for.

Pension promises not yet funded$12MThe city's proportionate share of the Oregon PERS net pension liability, measured June 30, 2024 and reported in the FY2024-25 audit. The 79.3% is the funded ratio of the statewide plan. (2025-06-30). City of St. Helens · Mar 31, 2026

Debt owed$33.8M2025-06-30. City of St. Helens · Mar 31, 2026

Credit ratingA-stable (S&P Global Ratings)FY2026-27. City of St. Helens · Jun 17, 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 FY2026-27.

Comes from

Charges to other city funds for support services$3.9M · 34%
Property taxes$2.4M · 20%
In lieu of franchise fees (city utilities)$1.2M · 10%
Franchise fees$1M · 9%
Transfer from Community Development Fund$993,600 · 9%
Licenses, permits and fees$797,500 · 7%
State shared revenue$448,900 · 4%
Beginning balance carried in$366,266 · 3%
Other (fines, interest, miscellaneous, dockside, lien searches)$466,200 · 4%

City of St. Helens · Jun 17, 2026

Goes to (FY2026-27)

Police$5.5M · 47%
General services and contingency$1.1M · 10%
Finance$929,100 · 8%
Library$779,200 · 7%
Information technology$579,300 · 5%
Administration$486,100 · 4%
Municipal court$469,400 · 4%
Other (recreation, recorder/HR, parks, building, planning, council)$1.8M · 15%

City of St. Helens · Jun 17, 2026

Your property tax bill: who gets it

Oregon property taxes are charged per $1,000 of assessed value, which is usually below market value. Rates differ slightly by tax code area; this is one area inside the city.

11¢

of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of St. Helens

St. Helens School District (operating and bonds)6.9893 · 44%
Columbia River Fire & Rescue2.8187 · 18%
Columbia County (incl. jail and patrol levies, 4-H)2.2471 · 14%
City of St. Helens1.8088 · 11%
St. Helens Urban Renewal AgencyTaxes on growth in value inside the urban renewal area.0.6539 · 4%
Portland Community College (operating and bonds)0.6174 · 4%
Columbia 9-1-1 Communications District0.2422 · 2%
Other districts (aquatic, vector, port, conservation, ESD)0.6687 · 4%
Total ($ per $1,000 of assessed value)16.0461

FY2026-27 rates for a home in St. Helens (Columbia County tax code area 0201). Columbia County Assessor

Who provides your services

Not everything in St. Helens is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.

PoliceThe citySt. Helens Police DepartmentCity of St. Helens · Jun 17, 2026
FireSeparate districtColumbia River Fire & RescueColumbia River Fire & Rescue
WaterThe cityCity of St. Helens Water FundCity of St. Helens · Jun 17, 2026
SewerThe cityCity of St. Helens Sewer FundCity of St. Helens · Jun 17, 2026
StormwaterThe cityCity of St. Helens Storm FundCity of St. Helens · Jun 17, 2026
StreetsThe cityCity of St. Helens Street FundCity of St. Helens · Jun 17, 2026
ParksThe cityCity of St. Helens Parks DivisionCity of St. Helens · Jun 17, 2026
LibraryThe citySt. Helens Public LibraryCity of St. Helens · Jun 17, 2026
Municipal courtThe citySt. Helens Municipal CourtCity of St. Helens · Jun 17, 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	GladstoneOR	OntarioOR	La GrandeOR	St HelensOR
Residents	11,865	11,957	12,985	14,450
Top administrator's base pay	Not confirmed	Not confirmed	$150,972	Not confirmed
Council member pay	Not confirmed	Not confirmed	Not confirmed	Not confirmed
General fund per resident	$2,319	$1,534	$1,701	$801
Debt per resident	$624	$280	$148	$2,341
Unfunded pension per resident	$583	$875	$397	$834
City staff per 1,000 residents	4.7	4.7	13.3	4.8

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). Gladstone and St Helens pays another agency for police or fire, so its own staff count is lower.

What St. Helens 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 St. Helens
No: City manager's contract findable onlineAn interim City Administrator serves after John Walsh's death in June 2026. We found no posted contract stating the interim's pay. City of St. Helens
Partly: Council pay stated in a public documentThe budget says councilors are paid a stipend and lists $45,800 of council wages, but no per-member amount. City of St. Helens · Jun 17, 2026
Partly: Employee pay published City of St. Helens

Questions to ask your council

The general fund ended FY2024-25 with $91,301 in unassigned balance, against a 20% reserve target of $2.36 million. What is the plan and timeline to rebuild that reserve?
The FY2024-25 audit found seven instances where spending exceeded appropriations. What has changed in how the city tracks spending against its budget?

See who is running for council

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