Town and school payroll
lunenburgbudgetproject.org — written by the Lunenburg Budget Project, an independent tool for residents. Not affiliated with the Town of Lunenburg, the School Committee or the school district. The data this page is computed from: /data/topics/town-payroll.json
The Town paid $25,805,916 in 2025, 58% more than in 2011. The levy limit’s pace would be 41%.
| Payroll, as the wage lists print it | The 2011 payroll at 2.5% a year (ours) | |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | $16,315,014 | $16,315,014 |
| 2012 | $16,474,385 | $16,722,889 |
| 2013 | $16,278,422 | $17,140,961 |
| 2014 | $17,143,639 | $17,569,485 |
| 2015 | $17,363,979 | $18,008,722 |
| 2016 | $18,147,819 | $18,458,940 |
| 2017 | $19,410,557 | $18,920,414 |
| 2018 | $20,075,464 | $19,393,424 |
| 2019 | $20,520,240 | $19,878,260 |
| 2020 | $20,990,814 | $20,375,216 |
| 2021 | $22,485,310 | $20,884,597 |
| 2022 | $24,080,766 | $21,406,712 |
| 2023 | $25,175,147 | $21,941,879 |
| 2024 | $25,935,391 | $22,490,426 |
| 2025 | $25,805,916 | $23,052,687 |
Gross pay, every fund, each year’s dollars. The levy limit applies to the tax levy, not to payroll; it is drawn as a pace.
1 · The facts
$25,805,916
paid to everyone on the 2025 wage list
$16,315,013
paid to everyone on the 2011 wage list
58%
payroll growth, 2011 to 2025
41%
the same years at the levy limit’s 2.5% a year (ours)
our estimate
74
people paid $100,000 or more, 2025
4
people paid $100,000 or more, 2011
612
people paid anything, 2025
$27,499
the middle person’s pay, 2025
—
payroll by department after 2017
not published
2 · What it shows
- 1
Payroll rose 58% from 2011 to 2025; at the levy limit’s 2.5% a year it would have risen 41%.
What it means: That is 3.3% a year. Wages are every fund, so grants and fees pay part, not taxes alone.
- 2
74 people were paid $100,000 or more in 2025; in 2011, 4 were.
What it means: Each year in its own dollars, so a fixed line counts more people as pay rises.
- 3
The number of people paid rose from 565 to 612; the middle person’s pay, from $16,723 to $27,499.
What it means: Most of the growth is in pay per person, not people; a name is not a job or an FTE.
- 4
Schools were 73% to 74% of payroll in every year a department is printed, 2011 to 2017.
What it means: After 2017 the list prints no department, so the split cannot be followed.
Source [1]
| Paid under $50,000 | Paid $50,000 to $99,999 | Paid $100,000 or more | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | $5,515,398 | $10,314,235 | $485,380 |
| 2012 | $5,198,146 | $10,695,418 | $580,821 |
| 2013 | $4,621,437 | $11,033,367 | $623,617 |
| 2014 | $4,596,967 | $11,477,804 | $1,068,868 |
| 2015 | $4,960,655 | $11,234,529 | $1,168,794 |
| 2016 | $4,923,310 | $11,949,536 | $1,274,973 |
| 2017 | $5,282,238 | $12,289,503 | $1,838,816 |
| 2018 | $5,186,332 | $13,409,481 | $1,479,651 |
| 2019 | $4,854,424 | $12,941,366 | $2,724,450 |
| 2020 | $4,501,399 | $13,742,287 | $2,747,128 |
| 2021 | $5,139,933 | $14,056,337 | $3,289,040 |
| 2022 | $5,418,434 | $14,089,347 | $4,572,985 |
| 2023 | $5,394,077 | $13,879,490 | $5,901,580 |
| 2024 | $5,823,884 | $13,024,762 | $7,086,745 |
| 2025 | $4,949,463 | $12,254,992 | $8,601,461 |
Each person’s gross pay for the year, in that year’s dollars.
What it means: Pay of $100,000 or more was 3% of payroll in 2011 and 33% in 2025.
Source [1]
| School | Every other department | |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | $12,009,522 | $4,305,491 |
| 2012 | $12,193,551 | $4,280,835 |
| 2013 | $11,965,374 | $4,313,048 |
| 2014 | $12,749,835 | $4,393,805 |
| 2015 | $12,734,135 | $4,629,844 |
| 2016 | $13,294,010 | $4,853,809 |
| 2017 | $14,134,910 | $5,275,647 |
Only 2011 to 2017 print a department beside each name.
What it means: The schools are most of payroll: 73% to 74% in each of these years.
Source [1]
| People paid | Payroll | Middle pay | Paid $100,000 or more | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 612 | $25,805,915.95 | $27,499 | 74 |
| 2024 | 675 | $25,935,391.41 | $25,616 | 61 |
| 2023 | 654 | $25,175,147.21 | $23,259 | 51 |
| 2022 | 661 | $24,080,766.08 | $21,495 | 39 |
| 2021 | 610 | $22,485,309.78 | $23,660 | 28 |
| 2020 | 569 | $20,990,814.12 | $23,026 | 23 |
| 2019 | 599 | $20,520,240.11 | $20,251 | 24 |
| 2018 | 584 | $20,075,463.72 | $21,504 | 13 |
| 2017 | 589 | $19,410,557.10 | $18,666 | 16 |
| 2016 | 574 | $18,147,819.07 | $16,925 | 11 |
| 2015 | 564 | $17,363,978.82 | $16,219 | 10 |
| 2014 | 540 | $17,143,639.46 | $16,857 | 9 |
| 2013 | 543 | $16,278,421.93 | $15,358 | 5 |
| 2012 | 541 | $16,474,385.37 | $18,863 | 5 |
| 2011 | 565 | $16,315,013.50 | $16,723 | 4 |
8,313 of 8,880 names sit on a page where every printed amount was captured.