How Goodlettsville is run
Who runs Goodlettsville, 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 Goodlettsville's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.
Who runs Goodlettsville
Goodlettsville has a commission-manager government. The five-member Board of Commissioners is elected at large, adopts the budget and appoints the city manager, who is the chief administrative officer. The mayor is the ceremonial head and presides at board meetings.
What they are paid
Goodlettsville city staff
131 full-time-equivalent positions. FY2026-27. Full-time positions in the general fund budget notice for FY2026-27, the same as the two prior years. City of Goodlettsville · Jun 11, 2026
The budget book lists salary totals by department. We found no list of individual employee pay. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Goodlettsville 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: $21.2M (2025-06-30). The city's own target: Keep unassigned general fund balance at 15% to 20% of operating spending. Unassigned reserves were 109% of general fund spending in FY2024-25. The city meets this target. City of Goodlettsville · Dec 15, 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
- Local taxes$15.5M · 69%
- State and other intergovernmental revenue$3.2M · 14%
- Drawn from fund balance$1.9M · 8%
- Interest earnings$825,000 · 4%
- Charges for services$361,000 · 2%
- Transfers in from other funds$348,000 · 2%
- Other (fines, licenses and permits, grants and other)$373,000 · 2%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Police$7.7M · 34%
- Fire$4.2M · 19%
- Parks$2.8M · 13%
- Capital purchases$2.1M · 9%
- General government$2.1M · 9%
- Public works$1.6M · 7%
- Other (community development, debt payments, miscellaneous)$2M · 9%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
Rates are per $100 of assessed value. About 60% of residents live in the Davidson County part of the city. In the Sumner County part, the FY2024-25 total was $1.9272: $0.5062 city and $1.421 county.
20¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Goodlettsville
- City of Goodlettsville0.7086 · 20%
- Metropolitan Nashville-Davidson County2.922 · 80%
- Total ($ per $100 of assessed value)3.6306
FY2024-25 property tax rates for property in the Davidson County part of Goodlettsville. City of Goodlettsville · Dec 15, 2025
See what a Goodlettsville home costs each year, line by line →Who provides your services
Not everything in Goodlettsville is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityGoodlettsville Police DepartmentCity of Goodlettsville · Dec 15, 2025
- StreetsThe cityCity of GoodlettsvilleCity of Goodlettsville · Dec 15, 2025
- Trash and recyclingContractorPrivate contractor hired by the cityCity of Goodlettsville · Dec 15, 2025
- Parks and recreationThe cityCity of Goodlettsville Parks and RecreationCity of Goodlettsville · Dec 15, 2025
- Planning and zoningThe cityCity of GoodlettsvilleCity of Goodlettsville · Dec 15, 2025
- Sewer collectionThe cityCity of GoodlettsvilleThe system served 5,240 customers on June 30, 2025.City of Goodlettsville · Dec 15, 2025
- StormwaterThe cityCity of GoodlettsvilleCity of Goodlettsville
- WaterSeparate districtMadison Suburban Utility District, White House Utility District and Metro Water ServicesCity of Goodlettsville · Dec 15, 2025
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 | ElizabethtonTN | DyersburgTN | GoodlettsvilleTN | East RidgeTN |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 14,350 | 15,906 | 17,506 | 21,921 |
| Top administrator's base pay | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Not confirmed |
| Council member pay | $1,800 | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Not confirmed |
| General fund per resident | $2,186 | $2,086 | $1,289 | $1,333 |
| Debt per resident | $2,724 | $1,201 | $583 | $1,197 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $326 | $1,072 | $213 | $120 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 15.9 | — | 7.5 | 7.3 |
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 Goodlettsville 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 contract. The June 11, 2026 minutes set the new manager's pay as equal to the outgoing manager's, without an amount. City of Goodlettsville · Jul 9, 2026
- Yes: Meeting videos and minutes online City of Goodlettsville · Jul 9, 2026
- No: Council pay stated in a public documentWe found no budget, ordinance or web page that states commissioner or mayor pay. City of Goodlettsville
Questions to ask your council
- The FY2026-27 general fund budget of $22.6 million draws $1.9 million from fund balance. How many more years does the city plan to spend more than it takes in?
- Unassigned reserves were $21.2 million on June 30, 2025, or 109% of general fund spending, against a policy of 15% to 20%. What reserve level does the board want to keep?
- Police ($7.7 million) and fire ($4.2 million) are the largest general fund lines in FY2026-27. How will public safety staffing change as the RiverGate area is redeveloped?
Help decide what comes 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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