Mississippi · county 28033

DeSoto County, Mississippi: public records at a glance

What national public records say about DeSoto County — people, schools, health, drinking water, bridges, disaster risk, the jail, federal grants and how to vote — each with its source. A full County Commons site (the budget line by line, your tax bill, audits, local offices) isn't built for DeSoto County yet — not gathered, never hidden.

195,871 people (2024 Census estimate, +5.2% since 2020)
476 square miles of land · 411 people per square mile

How DeSoto County compares — against the other counties in Mississippi

195,871 — people: 3rd highest of 82 Mississippi counties.
$9,525 — spending per student in its school districts: the lowest of 81 Mississippi counties.
73.9 years — life expectancy: 9th highest of 81 Mississippi counties.
10.6% — share of adults under 65 without health insurance: 81st highest of 82 Mississippi counties.
12.3% — child poverty: 81st highest of 82 Mississippi counties.
91.6% — households with broadband internet: 2nd highest of 82 Mississippi counties.
$81,956 — median household income: 2nd highest of 82 Mississippi counties.
2.3% — share of bridges rated poor: 65th highest of 82 Mississippi counties.
$306 — federal grant dollars per resident: 50th highest of 82 Mississippi counties.
$85.9 million — expected yearly losses from natural hazards: 4th highest of 82 Mississippi counties.

“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.

Drinking water — public water systems serving DeSoto County

19 active community water systems list DeSoto County in the area they serve, reporting 202,446 people served in all (a system that crosses county lines counts its whole population).

CITY OF SOUTHAVEN groundwater · local government · MS0170018	56,000 served
CITY OF OLIVE BRANCH groundwater · local government · MS0170015	54,025 served
CITY OF HERNANDO groundwater · local government · MS0170009	14,457 served
CITY OF HORN LAKE groundwater · local government · MS0170022	13,649 served
HORN LAKE WATER ASSOCIATION groundwater · public/private · MS0170010	12,735 served
LEWISBURG WATER ASSOCIATION groundwater · public/private · MS0170011	9,390 served
WALLS WATER ASSN- LAKE FOREST groundwater · public/private · MS0170043	9,298 served
CITY OF HERNANDO-JAYBIRD groundwater · private · MS0170002	6,750 served

Source: U.S. EPA Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS), active community systems, . Look up any system's violations and test results with EPA's search using its ID.

The jail — people held in the county jail

About 450 people were held in DeSoto County's jail, in Vera's latest figure (2023), or 350 per 100,000 residents ages 15–64. In 2018 it was about 329.

Source: Vera Institute of Justice, Incarceration Trends (built from federal Bureau of Justice Statistics jail surveys). Counties without their own jail, or that share one, may show no figure.

Public schools — district budgets, fiscal 2023

1 school district has its office in DeSoto County. School taxes are usually the largest part of a property tax bill.

DESOTO CO SCH SYSTEM35,003 students

Spent $399.1 million — $333.4 million to run schools, about $9,525 per student, plus $62.5 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $140.7 million local (mostly property tax), $211.8 million state, $56.8 million federal. Long-term debt: $94.1 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.

Health, money and internet at home — DeSoto County beside Mississippi

Life expectancy73.9 years · Mississippi 71.9 years

Adults under 65 without health insurance10.6% · Mississippi 13.1%

Children in poverty12.3% · Mississippi 24.3%

Households without enough food (food insecurity)13.4% · Mississippi 18.8%

Households with broadband internet91.6% · Mississippi 81.9%

Households with severe housing problems12.5% · Mississippi 14.3%

Drug overdose deaths per 100,00033.2 · Mississippi 24.1

Residents per primary care doctor3,850 · Mississippi 1,875

Residents per mental health provider698 · Mississippi 436

Unemployment2.8% · Mississippi 3.2%

Median household income$81,956 · Mississippi $54,386

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.

Disaster risk — FEMA's National Risk Index

Overall risk: Relatively Moderate compared with other U.S. counties. FEMA estimates natural hazards cost DeSoto County about $85.9 million a year on average in buildings, crops and lives. Ability to bounce back (community resilience): Relatively Moderate; social vulnerability: Relatively Low.

The costliest hazards here

Earthquake$23.7 million a year · Relatively Moderate

River and inland flooding$21.8 million a year · Relatively Moderate

Tornado$19.5 million a year · Relatively High

Cold wave$9 million a year · Relatively High

Heat wave$8.2 million a year · Relatively Moderate

Source: FEMA National Risk Index (December 2025), expected annual loss. Ratings compare counties nationwide; they're estimates, not predictions.

Bridges — condition of every public bridge, 2025

266 bridges in DeSoto County: 152 in good condition, 108 fair, and 6 poor (2.3%). “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.

Busiest bridges rated poor

US 78 over COLDWATER RIVER · built 1966	14,500 vehicles a day
US 78 over SR 302 · built 1967	12,500 vehicles a day
US 51 over STREAM · built 1935	11,000 vehicles a day
PLEASANT HILL RD over NOLEHOE CREEK · built 1976	10,000 vehicles a day
US 51 over HURRICANE CREEK · built 1935	9,400 vehicles a day
MALONE ROAD over UNNAMED CREEK · built 1976	2,000 vehicles a day

Source: Federal Highway Administration, National Bridge Inventory (2025 submission). Includes state, county and city bridges.

Federal grants — the money that came in, and what's open now

Federal grants paid for $56.6 million of work in DeSoto County in fiscal 2025, about $306 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.

Open now: federal grants county governments can apply for

F26AS00062: Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Restoration Act FY 2026 Fish and Wildlife Service · F26AS00062	closes 2026-10-13
OVC FY 2026 Enhanced Collaborative Model (ECM) Task Force to Combat Human Trafficking Office for Victims of Crime · O-OVC-2026-172699	closes 2026-10-14
BJA FY 2026 Daniel Anderl Judicial Security and Privacy Program Bureau of Justice Assistance · O-BJA-2026-172661	closes 2026-10-15
FY26 Bureau of Land Management Youth Conservation Corps - Bureau wide Bureau of Land Management · L26AS00064	closes 2026-10-16
FY 2027 Notice of Funding Opportunity: Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) FAA Contract Tower (FCT) Competitive Grant Program Airport Improvement Program Discretionary Grants · DOT-FAA-26-0117-002	closes 2026-10-19
Fiscal Year (FY) 2027 Service Area Competition (SAC) Health Resources and Services Administration · HRSA-27-005	closes 2026-10-19
Fiscal Year (FY) 2027 AmeriCorps Seniors RSVP Competition AmeriCorps · AC-08-20-2026	closes 2026-10-20
DOJ FY 2026 Assisting Neighborhoods and Governments with Enforcement of Laws (ANGEL) Grant Program Bureau of Justice Assistance · O-BJA-2026-172778	closes 2026-10-20
Long-term health outcomes of people living with spina bifida Centers for Disease Control - NCBDDD · CDC-RFA-DD-26-0222	closes 2026-10-26
OJJDP FY 2026 Juvenile Drug Treatment Court Program Office of Juvenile Justice Delinquency Prevention · O-OJJDP-2026-172741	closes 2026-10-29
BJA FY 2026 Veterans Treatment Court Program Bureau of Justice Assistance · O-BJA-2026-172714	closes 2026-10-29
BJA FY 2026 Prosecuting Cold Cases Using DNA Bureau of Justice Assistance · O-BJA-2026-172708	closes 2026-10-29

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.

Voting

Registration deadlines, early voting and polling places for Mississippi are on the federal site vote.gov, which links to the state's official election office.

Not here yet

The budget, property tax rates, audits, local officials and offices for DeSoto County come from the county's own records, which we haven't gathered — not gathered, never hidden. See what a full county site looks like, or ask to have DeSoto County built: brayden.ozark@gmail.com.

More of Mississippi: the state government and every county in Mississippi.

Nearby counties: Tate County (16 mi) · Shelby County, TN (22 mi) · Tunica County (26 mi) · Crittenden County, AR (28 mi) · Marshall County (29 mi) · Panola County (35 mi).