How Buda is run
Who runs Buda, 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 Buda's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.
Who runs Buda
A city manager hired by the council runs the city day to day. The council of seven, a mayor and six members, makes legislative and policy decisions.
What they are paid
Buda city staff
151 full-time-equivalent positions, including Police 30, Streets and drainage 19, Parks and recreation 18, Other general fund 62, Water and wastewater 16, Hotel tax fund and IT 7. FY2025-26. City of Buda
The budget publishes the city pay plan with pay ranges, not individual pay. Texas has no statewide city pay database. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Buda 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.
The city's own outlook
The FY2026-27 proposed budget spends $22.0M from the general fund and draws $2.3M of fund balance, mostly for one-time items. The city manager wrote that stagnant revenue from falling property values and slower development forced increases in charges and taxes. The proposed tax rate is 38.95 cents. City of Buda · Aug 7, 2026
Savings
Unassigned general fund balance: $9.7M (2025-09-30). City of Buda · Mar 27, 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 FY2025-26.
Comes from
- Sales tax$9M · 40%
- Property tax$3.2M · 14%
- Permits and licenses$2.1M · 9%
- Franchise fees$1.5M · 7%
- Miscellaneous revenue$1.5M · 7%
- Transfers in from other funds$1.1M · 5%
- Other (fees, sanitation franchise, mixed beverage and other taxes)$814,145 · 4%
- Use of fund balance for one-time spending$3.4M · 15%
Goes to (FY2025-26)
- Police$5.5M · 24%
- Parks and recreation$3.4M · 15%
- Streets and drainage$3.3M · 15%
- Development services$2M · 9%
- Non-departmental (citywide costs and transfers)$2M · 9%
- Finance$1.3M · 6%
- City manager's office$1.1M · 5%
- Library$1.1M · 5%
- Other (city clerk, HR, court, community relations, facilities, fleet, animal control, capital projects)$2.9M · 13%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
Of the city, county and school tax rate a Buda homeowner pays, about 19 cents per dollar goes to the city, and most of the city share pays debt. Emergency services district taxes are not shown. For FY2026-27 the city proposed a rate of 38.95 cents.
19¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Buda
- Hays CISD (schools)Operations 0.6669 plus debt 0.4877.1.1546 · 60%
- Hays CountyIncludes a 0.0426 road district rate.0.3999 · 21%
- City of Buda (operations)0.0982 · 5%
- City of Buda (debt)0.2594 · 14%
- Total ($ per $100 of taxable value)1.9121
2025 tax year (FY2025-26) rates for a home in the city of Buda (Hays County, Hays CISD): city, county and school district. Texas Comptroller · Jan 28, 2026
Who provides your services
Not everything in Buda is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityBuda Police DepartmentCity of Buda
- Fire and emergency servicesSeparate districtHays County Emergency Services District No. 8City of Buda
- WaterThe cityCity of Buda water utilityWater supply costs include the Alliance Regional Water Authority and the Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority.City of Buda
- ElectricityPrivate companyPedernales Electric Cooperative (city franchise)City of Buda
- LibraryThe cityBuda Public Library (city department)City of Buda
- StreetsThe cityCity of Buda Streets and DrainageCity of Buda
- Parks and recreationThe cityCity of Buda Parks and RecreationCity of Buda
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 | RobinsonTX | BudaTX | GatesvilleTX | Live OakTX |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 13,028 | 16,166 | 16,422 | 16,426 |
| Top administrator's base pay | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | $137,000 | Not confirmed |
| Council member pay | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Not confirmed |
| General fund per resident | $883 | $1,398 | $592 | $1,288 |
| Debt per resident | $5,889 | $13,626 | $1,201 | $1,241 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $216 | $160 | $119 | $399 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 5.9 | 9.4 | 5.8 | 7.4 |
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). Robinson and Buda pays another agency for police or fire, so its own staff count is lower.
What Buda publishes
What a resident can find online today. A "no" is something you can ask the council to publish.
- Yes: Audited financial report filed on timeThe FY2025 audited report, dated March 27, 2026, is posted on the Annual Financial Reports page. City of Buda · Mar 27, 2026
- Partly: Adopted budget posted onlineThe FY2025-26 adopted budget is posted. For FY2026-27 the budget page posts only the proposed budget so far. City of Buda
- No: City manager's contract findable onlineNo contract for the city manager, in the job since 2022, is posted on the City Manager or Budget pages. City of Buda
- Yes: Council votes recorded member by member onlineThe adopted FY2025-26 budget lists each member voting for it, with none against. City of Buda
- Yes: Meeting videos and minutes onlineCouncil agendas, packets, minutes and meeting videos are posted on the city's Granicus portal. City of Buda
- Partly: Council pay stated in a public document Community Impact
- Partly: Employee pay published City of Buda
Questions to ask your council
- The general fund spent $21.0 million in FY2025 against $18.7 million of revenue before transfers. Which one-time costs explain the gap, and when will spending match recurring revenue?
- The proposed tax rate for FY2026-27 is 38.95 cents. How much of that rate goes to debt payments, and how much to operations?
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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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