“Highest” and “lowest” are just order, not grades: a high rank for poverty or hazard losses means more of it. Each figure's source is in its section below.
3 school districts have their office in Van Buren County. School taxes are usually the largest part of a property tax bill.
Spent $19.2 million — $16.7 million to run schools, about $12,478 per student, plus $1.7 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $2.1 million local (mostly property tax), $12.2 million state, $5.5 million federal. Long-term debt: $18.2 million.
Spent $9.1 million — $8.4 million to run schools, about $15,448 per student, plus $511,000 on buildings and equipment. Money in: $2.2 million local (mostly property tax), $5.5 million state, $1.4 million federal. Long-term debt: $2.2 million.
Spent $5.6 million — $5.1 million to run schools, about $16,009 per student, plus $369,000 on buildings and equipment. Money in: $1.1 million local (mostly property tax), $3.5 million state, $1.4 million federal. Long-term debt: $2.7 million.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2023 Annual Survey of School System Finances. Districts are listed by the county of their main office; some serve neighboring counties too.
Source: County Health Rankings & Roadmaps 2025 (University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute), which gathers federal data (CDC, Census, and others); measures cover different recent years. Blank lines aren't reported for small counties.
Overall risk: Relatively Low compared with other U.S. counties. FEMA estimates natural hazards cost Van Buren County about $10 million a year on average in buildings, crops and lives. Ability to bounce back (community resilience): Very Low; social vulnerability: Very High.
Source: FEMA National Risk Index (December 2025), expected annual loss. Ratings compare counties nationwide; they're estimates, not predictions.
98 bridges in Van Buren County: 39 in good condition, 51 fair, and 8 poor (8.2%). “Poor” means a main part — the deck, the beams, or the supports — is rated 4 or lower on the federal 0–9 scale. It doesn't mean unsafe to drive; unsafe bridges are closed.
| SH 16 over PEE DEE CREEK · built 1940 | 1,500 vehicles a day |
| SH 16 over CREEK · built 1957 | 1,500 vehicles a day |
| SH 95 over BRADLEY CR · built 1956 | 480 vehicles a day |
| Baker Lake Rd over E. Fork Point Remove Crk · built 2005 | 276 vehicles a day |
| Dayton Rd over W Fork of Point Remove · built 2005 | 236 vehicles a day |
| Sequoyah Ranch - A over N Fork of Cadron Creek · built 1980 | 211 vehicles a day |
Source: Federal Highway Administration, National Bridge Inventory (2025 submission). Includes state, county and city bridges.
Federal grants paid for $717,325 of work in Van Buren County in fiscal 2025, about $45 per resident — to the county, cities, schools, hospitals, nonprofits and others.
Source: USAspending.gov, grants by place of performance, fiscal 2025 (Oct. 2024 to Sept. 2025). Search it by county to see each award.
From Grants.gov: posted grants listing county governments as eligible, soonest deadline first; research-only and overseas programs left out; list updated 2026-10-13, refreshed weekly. 62 are open in all. Cities, towns, school districts and nonprofits have their own lists there.
Related: The money trail · Your tax bill, explained · Water · Jails & prisons · Grants. Spot an error? Report it.