How Alameda is run
Who runs Alameda, 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 Alameda's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 9, 2026.
Who runs Alameda
A city manager hired by the council runs the city day to day. The council of five, the mayor and four members all elected citywide, sets policy, adopts a two-year budget and hires the city manager, city attorney and city clerk. Voters also elect a city auditor and a city treasurer.
What they are paid
- 12 months' salary, deferred compensation and medical and dental coverage as severance if fired without cause
- CalPERS retirement, executive management plan
- City deferred compensation contribution of 1% of salary (the council cut it from 3%)
- Car allowance of $400 a month (the council cut it from $550)
- 25 days of paid vacation a year; may cash out up to 80 hours a year
- Gets the same raises as executive managers, and pay stays at least 5% above any of them
Alameda city staff
516 full-time-equivalent positions, including Police 125, Fire 121. FY2026-27. Full-time positions in the city budget; Alameda Municipal Power staff are not included. City of Alameda · Jun 2, 2026
The city posts council-adopted salary schedules with the pay range for each job, including the city manager's range. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Alameda 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: $50.5M (2025-06-30). The city's own target: Keep available general fund reserves of at least 25% of yearly spending, counting transfers out but not extra payments toward pension and retiree health debts. Half of any year's surplus above that level goes to paying down those debts. The city meets this target. City of Alameda · Dec 31, 2025
Bar: unassigned savings of $50.5M. Line: the amount the city's target calls for.
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
- Property tax$68.9M · 43%
- Sales tax$21M · 13%
- Transfers in from other funds (incl. $4.4M from the retiree health trust)$14M · 9%
- Property transfer tax$11.5M · 7%
- Fees and charges for services$11.2M · 7%
- Utility users tax$10.2M · 6%
- Investment and property income$4.8M · 3%
- Other (franchise fees, business license, hotel and other taxes, grants, fines)$12.6M · 8%
- From savings (fund balance)$5.4M · 3%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Fire staff pay and benefits$48.1M · 30%
- Police staff pay and benefits$43M · 27%
- Operating costs (supplies and services)$22.5M · 14%
- Cost allocation (charges for shared city services)$17.3M · 11%
- Other departments' staff pay and benefits, less expected vacancy savings$12.6M · 8%
- Recreation and parks staff pay and benefits$7.8M · 5%
- Transfers out to other funds$6.2M · 4%
- Other (capital outlay)$2M · 1%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
California caps the base property tax at 1% of assessed value; voter-approved bond rates are added on top. Of the 1% base levy, the city's share is about 33 cents per dollar, more than the county's.
29¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Alameda
- City of Alameda (share of the 1% base levy)0.3331 · 28%
- Alameda County (share of the 1% base levy)0.3293 · 27%
- Alameda Unified School District (share of the 1% base levy)0.1956 · 16%
- Other agencies (share of the 1% base levy)0.142 · 12%
- Alameda Unified School District bonds0.1236 · 10%
- Peralta Community College District bonds0.0394 · 3%
- City of Alameda (voter-approved bonds)0.0205 · 2%
- BART0.0148 · 1%
- Alameda County bond0.0089 · <1%
- East Bay Regional Park District0.0013 · <1%
- Total (% of assessed value)1.2085
FY2024-25 rates for a home in the city of Alameda (Alameda County). City of Alameda · Dec 31, 2025
See what a Alameda house pays, line by line →Who provides your services
Not everything in Alameda is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityAlameda Police DepartmentCity of Alameda
- FireThe cityAlameda Fire DepartmentCity of Alameda
- EMS / ambulanceThe cityAlameda Fire Department, Ambulance Transport divisionCity of Alameda
- ElectricityThe cityAlameda Municipal Power (city-owned utility)Not-for-profit; supplies 100% clean electricityCity of Alameda
- SewerThe cityCity of Alameda (sewer services fund)City of Alameda
- Trash and recyclingContractorAlameda County IndustriesCity franchise agreement; ACI bills customers directlyCity of Alameda
- City streets and storm drainsThe cityCity of Alameda Public WorksCity of Alameda
- LibraryThe cityCity of Alameda Library DepartmentCity of Alameda
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 | TustinCA | AlamedaCA | PerrisCA | Redwood CityCA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 79,175 | 80,023 | 81,027 | 81,809 |
| Top administrator's base pay | $354,286 | $383,111 | $332,497 | $390,000 |
| Council member pay | $22,800 | Not current (2023) | $19,478 | $9,000 |
| General fund per resident | $1,553 | $1,990 | $1,109 | $2,519 |
| Debt per resident | $480 | $716 | $1,896 | $1,110 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $930 | $3,891 | $61 | $3,368 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 4.3 | 6.4 | 2.7 | 7.8 |
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). Tustin and Perris pays another agency for police or fire, so its own staff count is lower.
What Alameda publishes
What a resident can find online today. A "no" is something you can ask the council to publish.
- Yes: City manager's contract findable onlineThe 2026 employment agreement with Gerry Beaudin is attached to the council item in Legistar. City of Alameda
- Yes: Council votes recorded member by member online City of Alameda
- Yes: Council pay stated in a public documentA 2023 council resolution sets the mayor's pay at $28,311 and each council member's at $18,968 a year. City of Alameda
- Yes: Employee pay publishedCouncil-adopted salary schedules list the pay range for each job, e.g. the management schedule adopted June 2, 2026. City of Alameda
Questions to ask your council
- The police and fire pension plan was 63.9% funded as of June 30, 2025, with $225.4M unfunded. Will the city keep making extra payments like the $2.2M paid in FY2024-25?
- Unassigned general fund reserves were $50.5M on June 30, 2025, above the $37.2M the 25% policy called for. How does the council plan to use the amount above the target?
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