How Mesa is run
Who runs Mesa, 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 Mesa's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.
Who runs Mesa
A city manager hired by the council runs the city day to day. The mayor, elected citywide, and six council members, elected by district, set policy.
What they are paid
- City puts 9% of salary into a 401(a) retirement plan
- Monthly vehicle and communication allowance, the same as the mayor's
- Earns 20 hours of vacation a month, with no cap on the balance
- 40 extra hours of discretionary time off each year
- Retiree health coverage, earned through more than 20 years with the city
- If removed without cause, paid for up to 1,040 hours of unused sick time after signing a release
- $350 a month vehicle allowance
- $100 a month communication allowance
Mesa city staff
4,817 full-time-equivalent positions, including General Fund 2,887, Utility Fund 548, Quality of Life Sales Tax Fund 255. FY2026-27. City of Mesa · Jun 1, 2026
Arizona has no statewide city pay database. The budget lists positions and total salaries by fund, not pay by person. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Mesa 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.
The city's own outlook
The city's forecast for general governmental funds shows uses above sources each year from FY2025-26 through FY2029-30, drawing reserves from $264.3M to $128.3M. Budget staff call FY2026-27 a step toward structural balance and say $55.7M in ongoing spending was cut over three years. City of Mesa · May 18, 2026
Savings against the city's own target
Unassigned general fund balance: $210M (2025-06-30). The city's own target: Keep general governmental funds fund balance at 10% to 15% over the five-year forecast. City of Mesa · Dec 16, 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 (general fund share)$203M · 27%
- Contribution from the city utility fund$158M · 21%
- State shared income tax (urban revenue sharing)$111M · 15%
- State shared sales tax$80.8M · 11%
- City sales tax: Quality of Life$42.2M · 6%
- Charges for services$37.3M · 5%
- Drawn from reserves$35.9M · 5%
- Other (vehicle license tax, agreements with other governments, fees, fines, other)$71.6M · 10%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Police$265M · 36%
- Fire and Medical$123M · 17%
- Transfers to other funds (capital, transit, arts and others)$94M · 13%
- Infrastructure support$63.3M · 9%
- Parks and library$45.3M · 6%
- Mesa Public Safety Support$22M · 3%
- Community services$18.3M · 2%
- Other (municipal court and other departments)$108M · 15%
Who provides your services
Not everything in Mesa is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityCity of Mesa Police DepartmentCity of Mesa · Dec 16, 2025
- FireThe cityMesa Fire and Medical DepartmentCity of Mesa · Dec 16, 2025
- EMSThe cityMesa Fire and Medical DepartmentCity of Mesa · Mar 5, 2026
- WaterThe cityCity of Mesa (city-owned utility)City of Mesa · Dec 16, 2025
- SewerThe cityCity of Mesa (city-owned utility)City of Mesa · Dec 16, 2025
- ElectricityThe cityCity of Mesa (city-owned electric utility)City of Mesa · Dec 16, 2025
- Natural gasThe cityCity of Mesa (city-owned gas utility)City of Mesa · Dec 16, 2025
- LibraryThe cityCity of MesaCity of Mesa · Dec 16, 2025
- Parks and recreationThe cityCity of MesaCity of Mesa · Dec 16, 2025
- AirportThe cityCity of MesaCity of Mesa · Dec 16, 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 | MaricopaAZ | PeoriaAZ | ScottsdaleAZ | MesaAZ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 78,362 | 200,881 | 243,006 | 513,656 |
| Top administrator's base pay | $242,000 | $325,000 | $400,000 | $345,000 |
| Council member pay | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Not current (2023) |
| General fund per resident | $1,506 | $1,417 | $2,395 | $1,439 |
| Debt per resident | $939 | $1,859 | $3,476 | $4,269 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $357 | $686 | $1,382 | $2,018 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 5.9 | 7.5 | 11.5 | 9.4 |
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 Mesa publishes
What a resident can find online today. A "no" is something you can ask the council to publish.
- Yes: Adopted budget posted onlineThe FY2026-27 final budget of $2.87 billion is attached to Resolution No. 12542 on the council agenda. City of Mesa · Jun 1, 2026
- Yes: City manager's contract findable online City of Mesa · Apr 15, 2025
- Yes: Council votes recorded member by member onlineCouncil minutes list the ayes and nays by name for each vote. City of Mesa · Jun 1, 2026
- Yes: Council pay stated in a public document City of Mesa · Nov 15, 2021
Questions to ask your council
- The forecast shows general governmental fund reserves falling from $264.3M to $128.3M by FY2029-30. Which spending cuts or new revenue would change that path?
- The city utility fund contributes $157.6M to the FY2026-27 general governmental budget. How do electric, gas, water and sewer rates support that contribution?
- Net pension liability was $1,036.6M on June 30, 2025, and the police and fire plans were about 54% funded. What is the plan to pay it down?
- The city had $2.19 billion in bonds and other debt on June 30, 2025, most of it backed by its utilities. How will utility rates and the property tax levy repay it?
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