How Hendersonville is run
Who runs Hendersonville, 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 Hendersonville's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.
Who runs Hendersonville
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
Hendersonville city staff
385 full-time-equivalent positions, including Police 155, Fire 122, Public works 39, Parks 24. FY2026-27. Budgeted full-time positions for FY2026-27. Counts exclude seasonal, temporary and elected positions. City of Hendersonville · Jun 9, 2026
The budget publishes salary tables by grade and a list of budgeted positions. We found no list of individual employee pay. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Hendersonville 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
Unassigned general fund balance: $21.5M (2025-06-30). City of Hendersonville · Dec 22, 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
- Property taxes$23.7M · 36%
- Local option sales tax$22.8M · 34%
- State share of sales tax$8.3M · 12%
- Licenses and permits$2.8M · 4%
- Business tax$2M · 3%
- Beer and liquor taxes$1.7M · 3%
- State shared revenue$1.3M · 2%
- Other (franchise fees, fines, interest, donations and other)$3.8M · 6%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Police$20.7M · 31%
- Fire$17M · 26%
- Trash collection and disposal$6.5M · 10%
- Central services (insurance, 911, legal, board pay)$5.3M · 8%
- Parks$4.2M · 6%
- Public works$3.7M · 6%
- Administrative services (HR and IT)$3M · 4%
- Other (executive, finance, planning, codes, debt, community grants)$5.9M · 9%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
Rates are per $100 of assessed value. The county rate is levied on county property within the city. Sumner County runs the schools that serve the city.
29¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Hendersonville
- Sumner County (includes county schools)1.421 · 71%
- City of Hendersonville0.5883 · 29%
- Total ($ per $100 of assessed value)2.0093
FY2024-25 property tax rates for property in the city of Hendersonville (Sumner County). City of Hendersonville · Dec 22, 2025
See what a Hendersonville home costs each year, line by line →Who provides your services
Not everything in Hendersonville is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityHendersonville Police DepartmentCity of Hendersonville · Dec 22, 2025
- Fire protectionThe cityHendersonville Fire DepartmentCity of Hendersonville · Dec 22, 2025
- StreetsThe cityCity of HendersonvilleCity of Hendersonville · Dec 22, 2025
- Parks and recreationThe cityCity of Hendersonville ParksCity of Hendersonville · Dec 22, 2025
- Planning and zoningThe cityCity of HendersonvilleCity of Hendersonville · Dec 22, 2025
- WaterSeparate districtHendersonville Utility District and White House Utility DistrictCity of Hendersonville
- SewerSeparate districtHendersonville Utility DistrictCity of Hendersonville
- ElectricityAnother agencyNashville Electric Service and Cumberland Electric Membership CorporationCity of Hendersonville
- Natural gasPrivate companyPiedmont Natural Gas CompanyCity of Hendersonville
- Solid waste transfer stationAnother agencySumner County Resource AuthorityA joint venture of Sumner County, Gallatin and Hendersonville.City of Hendersonville · Dec 22, 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 | BartlettTN | SmyrnaTN | HendersonvilleTN | Johnson CityTN |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 56,416 | 63,321 | 64,266 | 74,943 |
| Top administrator's base pay | Not confirmed | $237,205 | Not confirmed | Not confirmed |
| Council member pay | $12,000 | Not confirmed | $8,064 | Not confirmed |
| General fund per resident | $1,304 | $1,062 | $1,031 | $1,734 |
| Debt per resident | $1,391 | $968 | $110 | $2,754 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $617 | $-2 | $179 | $49 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 27.2 | 8.7 | 6.0 | 29.1 |
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 Hendersonville 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 Hendersonville
- Yes: Council pay stated in a public documentThe FY2026-27 budget ordinance sets board pay at $672 a month and the mayor's hourly rate. City of Hendersonville · Jun 9, 2026
- Partly: Employee pay publishedThe budget publishes salary tables by grade and a list of budgeted positions, not pay by name. City of Hendersonville · Jun 9, 2026
Questions to ask your council
- The local option sales tax is budgeted at $22.8 million for FY2026-27, close to property taxes at $23.7 million. How would the budget respond if sales tax receipts fell?
- City notes payable were $7,042,401 on June 30, 2025, down from $8,863,334 a year earlier. Will the capital projects in the FY2026-27 budget need new borrowing?
- Police ($20.7 million) and fire ($17.0 million) are the two largest lines in the $66.3 million operating budget. How will public safety staffing change as the city grows?
The fiscal year starts July 1. The Board of Mayor and Aldermen passes the budget ordinance on two readings with a public hearing. For FY2026-27, first reading was May 26, 2026, and the board held the hearing and adopted the budget on June 9, 2026. See who is running for council
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