How Flagstaff is run
Who runs Flagstaff, 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 Flagstaff's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.
Who runs Flagstaff
A city manager appointed by the council runs the city day to day and appoints staff and division heads. The mayor and six council members, all elected citywide, set policy and adopt the budget.
What they are paid
Flagstaff city staff
1,011 full-time-equivalent positions, including General fund 657, Enterprise funds (water, trash, airport, housing) 206, Special revenue funds (library, streets, tourism) 147. FY2026-27. Budgeted full-time equivalents, all funds (Schedule G). City of Flagstaff · Jun 16, 2026
The budget states total pay and benefits by fund ($111.4 million in FY2026-27), not pay by position. Arizona has no statewide city pay database. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Flagstaff 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.
Savings against the city's own target
Unassigned general fund balance: $82.7M (2025-06-30). The city's own target: City policy requires a general fund balance of 15% of ongoing revenues; the city has committed to keep it at 20%. City of Flagstaff · Dec 19, 2025
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
- City sales tax$32.5M · 27%
- State shared income tax$16.2M · 13%
- State shared sales tax$12.3M · 10%
- Primary property tax$7.8M · 6%
- State and local grants$5.7M · 5%
- State shared vehicle license tax$4.9M · 4%
- Franchise tax$2.7M · 2%
- Other revenue (permits, fees, fines, interest, leases, federal grants)$14.6M · 12%
- Transfers in and fund balance (gap between spending and revenue)$25.1M · 21%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Police$34.5M · 28%
- Fire$25.1M · 21%
- General administration$24.5M · 20%
- Parks, recreation, open space and events$11M · 9%
- Public works$9.7M · 8%
- Management services$7.2M · 6%
- Other (planning, engineering, housing, contingency, net of non-departmental credits)$9.8M · 8%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
Schools take the largest share of the property tax bill. The city's part is about 17%; its secondary rate pays general obligation bond debt.
17¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Flagstaff
- Flagstaff Unified School District4.6932 · 55%
- Coconino County (incl. library, flood control, health and fire districts)1.64 · 19%
- City of Flagstaff (primary and secondary)1.4363 · 17%
- Coconino Community College0.687 · 8%
- Total (per $100 of assessed value)8.4565
FY2024-25 rates for a property in the city of Flagstaff (Coconino County). City of Flagstaff · Dec 19, 2025
See what a Flagstaff house pays, line by line →Who provides your services
Not everything in Flagstaff is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityCity of FlagstaffCity of Flagstaff · Dec 19, 2025
- FireThe cityCity of FlagstaffCity of Flagstaff · Dec 19, 2025
- Trash and recyclingThe cityCity of FlagstaffCity of Flagstaff · Dec 19, 2025
- LibraryThe cityCity of Flagstaff library (county funds part through an agreement)The library fund gets city transfers and county money through an intergovernmental agreement.City of Flagstaff · Dec 19, 2025
- Parks and recreationThe cityCity of FlagstaffCity of Flagstaff · Dec 19, 2025
- AirportThe cityCity of FlagstaffCity of Flagstaff · Dec 19, 2025
- WaterThe cityCity of FlagstaffCity of Flagstaff · Dec 19, 2025
- SewerThe cityCity of FlagstaffCity of Flagstaff · Dec 19, 2025
- StormwaterThe cityCity of FlagstaffCity of Flagstaff · Dec 19, 2025
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 | Sierra VistaAZ | Lake Havasu CityAZ | FlagstaffAZ | MaricopaAZ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 44,907 | 59,358 | 77,260 | 78,362 |
| Top administrator's base pay | Not confirmed | Not current (2023) | Not confirmed | $242,000 |
| Council member pay | Not confirmed | Not current (2022) | $63,800 | Not confirmed |
| General fund per resident | $1,259 | $1,803 | $1,577 | $1,506 |
| Debt per resident | $635 | $2,862 | $2,800 | $939 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $1,291 | $1,661 | $616 | $357 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 9.5 | 8.6 | 13.1 | 5.9 |
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).
What Flagstaff publishes
What a resident can find online today. A "no" is something you can ask the council to publish.
- No: City manager's contract findable onlineThe Nov. 4, 2025 agenda lists the City Manager Employment Agreement as an attachment, but the posted packet does not include it. City of Flagstaff · Nov 4, 2025
- Yes: Meeting videos and minutes onlineThe city posts agendas and minutes and streams council meetings live and on video on YouTube. City of Flagstaff
- Yes: Council pay stated in a public documentOrdinance 2022-29 sets the mayor's pay at $70,180 and council members' at $63,800 a year from Dec. 1, 2024. City of Flagstaff · Nov 15, 2022
- Partly: Employee pay published City of Flagstaff · Jun 16, 2026
Questions to ask your council
- The council approved City Manager Joanne Keene's employment agreement on Nov. 4, 2025. Will the city post the agreement and her salary online?
- City sales tax is $32.5 million of the $121.8 million general fund budget. How would the budget adjust if sales tax revenue falls?
The fiscal year starts July 1. The council holds budget retreats in December, February and April. It tentatively adopted the FY2026-27 budget June 2, 2026, and held the public hearing and final adoption June 16, 2026. See who is running for council
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