ConverseNot a ballot

How Converse is run

Who runs Converse, 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 Converse's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.

Who runs Converse

A city manager hired by the council runs the city day to day and appoints department heads. The council of seven, including the mayor, sets policy, passes ordinances and adopts the budget.

City of Converse

What they are paid

City manager Stan Farmer: base payNot confirmedFY2026-27. City of Converse
A council memberNot confirmedFY2026-27. City of Converse
The mayorNot confirmedFY2026-27. The mayor's share of the $78,600 council compensation line is not stated in a document we could read. City of Converse
Council benefits
  • Necessary expenses in official duties, upon council approval
  • Council compensation and stipends line: $78,600 (FY2027), up from $70,000 budgeted in FY2026

Converse city staff

196 full-time-equivalent positions, including Police 59, Fire and EMS 47, General government 36, Public works 33, Utility 20, Stormwater 1. FY2026-27. Full- and part-time positions in the adopted budget, up from 192 in FY2026. City of Converse

The budget shows position counts and department salary totals, not individual pay. Texas has no statewide city pay database. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.

Is Converse 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$24.7MOut of $58.9M across all city funds, which includes utilities and other money that can only be spent on one thing. City of Converse
Savings grew, FY2025 (audited)+$65,029General fund revenue $20.7M, spending $20.6M. Took in $65,029 more than it spent. There were no transfers, so the fund balance rose by the same amount. City of Converse · Feb 13, 2026

Savings against the city's own target

Unassigned general fund balance: $8.8M (2025-09-30). The city's own target: Keep an operating reserve of at least 25% of the general fund's budgeted spending for the year (2017 Fund Balance Policy). City of Converse · Feb 13, 2026

Pension promises not yet funded$4.7MNet pension liability for the city's Texas Municipal Retirement System plan, measured Dec. 31, 2024: $4,714,716, of which $4,606,139 is the city's and the rest the economic development corporation's. Plan assets covered 90.05% of the pension liability. (2024-12-31). City of Converse · Feb 13, 2026
Debt owed$40.3M2025-09-30. City of Converse · Feb 13, 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

  • Property taxes$11.4M · 46%
  • Franchise and local taxes (including sales tax)$6.1M · 25%
  • Charges for services$2.8M · 11%
  • Other financing sources$1.7M · 7%
  • Miscellaneous income$1M · 4%
  • Licenses and permits$950,000 · 4%
  • Fines and penalties$696,500 · 3%
  • Other (cultural and recreation, grants and donations)$38,000 · 0%

City of Converse

Goes to (FY2026-27)

  • Fire and EMS$7.2M · 29%
  • Police$7.1M · 29%
  • Public works (including parks)$3.2M · 13%
  • Non-departmental$1.4M · 6%
  • City manager's office$932,388 · 4%
  • Building permits and inspections$757,062 · 3%
  • Animal care$755,057 · 3%
  • Other (finance, library, court, IT, HR, code enforcement, city secretary, council)$3.3M · 13%

City of Converse

Your property tax bill: who gets it

Of the city, county and school tax rate a Converse homeowner in Judson ISD pays, about 27 cents per dollar goes to the city. Other districts not in these files may also tax the property. For FY2026-27 the city adopted a rate of 51.57 cents, up from 46.5 cents.

27¢

of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Converse

  • Judson ISD (schools)Operations 0.6669 plus debt 0.31270.9796 · 57%
  • City of Converse (operations)0.379731 · 22%
  • Bexar County0.276331 · 16%
  • City of Converse (debt)0.085269 · 5%
  • Total ($ per $100 of taxable value)1.720931

2025 tax year (FY2025-26) rates for a home in the city of Converse (Bexar County): city, county and school district. Texas Comptroller · Jan 28, 2026

Who provides your services

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

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.

BenbrookTXFateTXConverseTXSeguinTX
Residents24,27929,00732,48141,048
Top administrator's base pay$255,003Not confirmedNot confirmed$298,081
Council member pay$1,200Not confirmedNot confirmedNot current (2022)
General fund per resident$1,097$657$760$1,474
Debt per resident$815$1,694$1,241$16,383
Unfunded pension per resident$213$-11$145$853
City staff per 1,000 residents5.43.66.011.9

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 Converse 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 timeFY2025 audit dated Feb. 13, 2026, posted on the city finance page. City of Converse · Feb 13, 2026
  • Yes: Adopted budget posted online City of Converse
  • No: City manager's contract findable onlineNo contract found on the city manager page or in agendas we checked. The city's document archive blocked automated access. City of Converse
  • Yes: Meeting videos and minutes onlineCouncil meetings and budget workshops are posted as videos with agendas on Granicus. City of Converse
  • Partly: Council pay stated in a public documentThe charter lets council set pay by ordinance. The budget shows a combined $78,600 compensation line, not a per-member rate. City of Converse
  • No: Employee pay publishedThe budget shows position counts and department totals. We found no list of pay by position. City of Converse

Questions to ask your council

  1. Property taxes are budgeted at $11.4 million in FY2027, the largest general fund source. Which new costs drive this year's higher tax rate?
  2. Fire and EMS spending is budgeted at $7.2 million in FY2027, the largest general fund department. The department also serves Emergency Services District #1. How is the district's payment set, and does it cover the cost?

The fiscal year starts Oct. 1. The charter has the budget and budget message delivered at least 60 days before, and the council adopts the budget by Sept. 20 after a public hearing. The council held budget workshops in July to September and took up the FY2027 budget on Sept. 15, 2026. See who is running for council

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