162,703 people (2024 Census estimate, +2.8% since 2020)
414 square miles of land · 393 people per square mile
“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.
8 active community water systems list Sullivan County in the area they serve, reporting 195,460 people served in all (a system that crosses county lines counts its whole population).
| KINGSPORT WATER DEPT surface water · local government · TN0000349 | 107,739 served |
| BRISTOL DEPT OF UTILITIES surface water · local government · TN0000073 | 37,648 served |
| BLOUNTVILLE UTILITY DISTRICT buys surface water · local government · TN0000058 | 15,647 served |
| BLOOMINGDALE UTILITY DISTRICT surface water · local government · TN0000056 | 13,318 served |
| SOUTH FORK UTILITY DISTRICT buys surface water · local government · TN0000644 | 10,229 served |
| BRISTOL-BLUFF CITY U.D. surface water · local government · TN0000079 | 6,268 served |
| BLUFF CITY WATER DEPARTMENT buys surface water · local government · TN0000061 | 2,763 served |
| INTERMONT UTILITY DISTRICT buys surface water · local government · TN0000319 | 1,848 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.
About 926 people were held in Sullivan County's jail, in Vera's latest figure (2024), or 917 per 100,000 residents ages 15–64. In 2019 it was about 980.
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.
3 school districts have their office in Sullivan County. School taxes are usually the largest part of a property tax bill.
Spent $117.1 million — $96.1 million to run schools, about $11,468 per student, plus $20.5 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $46.5 million local (mostly property tax), $44.2 million state, $18.9 million federal. Long-term debt: $7.7 million.
Spent $103.8 million — $93.6 million to run schools, about $12,027 per student, plus $8.8 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $56.3 million local (mostly property tax), $37.7 million state, $18.6 million federal.
Spent $55.9 million — $50.1 million to run schools, about $12,440 per student, plus $5 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $29.2 million local (mostly property tax), $20 million state, $11.2 million federal. Long-term debt: $6.8 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 Sullivan County about $28.5 million a year on average in buildings, crops and lives. Ability to bounce back (community resilience): Relatively Moderate; social vulnerability: Relatively Moderate.
Source: FEMA National Risk Index (December 2025), expected annual loss. Ratings compare counties nationwide; they're estimates, not predictions.
367 bridges in Sullivan County: 164 in good condition, 193 fair, and 10 poor (2.7%). “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.
| PIEDMONT AVE over BEAVER CREEK · built 1975 | 8,273 vehicles a day |
| FAU 3890 243983D over CSX RAILROAD & FAU 3892 · built 1959 | 7,621 vehicles a day |
| FAU 355 over REEDY CREEK · built 1955 | 6,249 vehicles a day |
| FAU 3899 over BR OF REEDY CREEK · built 1938 | 3,100 vehicles a day |
| FAS 44 over BRANCH · built 1977 | 1,302 vehicles a day |
| NFA 1392 over INDIAN CREEK · built 1928 | 800 vehicles a day |
Source: Federal Highway Administration, National Bridge Inventory (2025 submission). Includes state, county and city bridges.
Federal grants paid for $47.9 million of work in Sullivan County in fiscal 2025, about $303 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.
General election: Tuesday, November 3, 2026. Last day to register to vote: 2026-10-05. Early voting: 2026-10-14 to 2026-10-29. Mail ballot request deadline: 2026-10-24. Election Day: 2026-11-03.
Source: Tennessee Secretary of State: elections calendar · Tennessee Secretary of State: registration deadline FAQ · Tennessee Secretary of State: GoVoteTN
The budget, property tax rates, audits, local officials and offices for Sullivan 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 Sullivan County built: brayden.ozark@gmail.com.
More of Tennessee: the state government and every county in Tennessee.
Nearby counties: Bristol city, VA (11 mi) · Washington County (18 mi) · Carter County (18 mi) · Scott County, VA (22 mi) · Johnson County (25 mi) · Washington County, VA (25 mi).