How The Colony is run
Who runs The Colony, 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 The Colony's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.
Who runs The Colony
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.
What they are paid
The Colony city staff
445 full-time-equivalent positions, including Police 103, Fire and EMS 99, Streets 27, 911 dispatch 17. FY2026-27. City of The Colony · Sep 1, 2026
The budget gives position counts and personnel costs by department. We found no city-published pay list by position or employee. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is The Colony 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 FY2027 budget spends $5.5M of general fund reserves as planned, leaving 70 days of operating costs against the city's 60-day minimum, down from 190 days at the end of FY2024. The city manager says the budget starts to slow the city's internal growth to prepare for an uncertain future. City of The Colony · Sep 1, 2026
Savings against the city's own target
Unassigned general fund balance: $26.3M (2025-09-30). The city's own target: Keep at least 60 operating days of spending in general fund unassigned fund balance. City of The Colony · Mar 9, 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$35.7M · 47%
- Sales and mixed beverage taxes$20.1M · 27%
- Charges for services (incl. trash fees and ambulance)$3.8M · 5%
- Franchise fees$3M · 4%
- Interest earnings$2.8M · 4%
- Grants and intergovernmental (incl. Denton County TIRZ 1)$1.7M · 2%
- Other (permits, court fines, miscellaneous, transfers in)$2.9M · 4%
- From savings (fund balance)$5.5M · 7%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Non-departmental (incl. $13.4M of TIRZ 1 incentive payments)$21.5M · 29%
- Police$18.3M · 24%
- Fire and EMS$17.9M · 24%
- Engineering$2.8M · 4%
- General administration$2.6M · 3%
- Public safety dispatch$2.4M · 3%
- Transfers to other funds (mostly Parks)$2M · 3%
- Other departments (net of overhead charged to other funds)$7.9M · 11%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
Of each property-tax dollar a The Colony homeowner in Lewisville ISD pays, about 33 cents goes to the city. For FY2027 the city cut its rate to $0.6275. Homes in Little Elm ISD pay that district's rate instead.
33¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of The Colony
- Lewisville ISD (schools)1.1178 · 58%
- City of The Colony0.63 · 33%
- Denton County0.185938 · 10%
- Total ($ per $100 of taxable value)1.933738
2025 tax year (FY2025-26) rates for a home in The Colony in Lewisville ISD (Denton County). Texas Comptroller · Jan 28, 2026
See what a The Colony home costs each year, line by line →Who provides your services
Not everything in The Colony is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityThe Colony Police DepartmentCity of The Colony
- FireThe cityThe Colony Fire DepartmentCity of The Colony
- EMS / ambulanceThe cityThe Colony Fire DepartmentCity of The Colony
- 911 dispatchThe cityCity of The Colony Public Safety DispatchCity of The Colony
- WaterThe cityCity of The Colony Water Production and Distribution divisionsCity of The Colony
- WastewaterThe cityCity of The Colony Wastewater DivisionCity of The Colony
- Trash and recyclingContractorRepublic Services, under contract with the cityCity of The Colony
- Streets and drainageThe cityCity of The Colony Streets DivisionCity of The Colony
- LibraryThe cityThe Colony Public Library (city)City of The Colony
- Parks and recreationThe cityCity of The Colony Parks and Recreation DepartmentCity of The Colony
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 | SeguinTX | PrincetonTX | SchertzTX | The ColonyTX |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 41,048 | 43,524 | 45,978 | 46,196 |
| Top administrator's base pay | $298,081 | Not confirmed | $281,520 | Not confirmed |
| Council member pay | Not current (2022) | No salary | $6,000 | $3,000 |
| General fund per resident | $1,474 | $853 | $1,801 | $1,632 |
| Debt per resident | $16,383 | $4,346 | $3,429 | $3,784 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $853 | $34 | $468 | $293 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 11.9 | 5.3 | 9.4 | 9.6 |
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). Princeton pays another agency for police or fire, so its own staff count is lower.
What The Colony 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 The Colony · Sep 1, 2026
- No: City manager's contract findable onlineThe City Manager page and 2025-2026 council agendas we checked do not include Troy Powell's employment agreement or salary. City of The Colony
- Yes: Meeting videos and minutes onlineCouncil meeting videos, agendas and minutes are posted in the city's Granicus archive. City of The Colony
- Yes: Council pay stated in a public documentThe city's Election 2025 page states the charter pay change voters approved: $350 a month for the mayor and $250 for council members. City of The Colony
Questions to ask your council
- The general fund balance fell $10.1M in FY2025 and the FY2027 budget plans another $5.5M draw, to 70 days of operating costs against a 60-day minimum. What happens to services if sales tax falls short?
- The FY2027 general fund puts $21.5M in non-departmental spending, mostly TIRZ 1 incentive payments for the Grandscape area. How much more does the city owe under those agreements, and when do they end?
The fiscal year starts Oct. 1. The city manager files the proposed budget on or before July 30, and the council holds a public hearing. On Sept. 1, 2026 the council adopted the FY2027 budget 6-1 and cut the tax rate to $0.6275. See who is running for council
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