How Bellflower is run
Who runs Bellflower, 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 Bellflower's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.
Who runs Bellflower
A city manager hired by the council runs the city day to day. The council sets policy, adopts the budget and sets the tax rate.
What they are paid
- $600 a month car allowance
- City pays the IRS maximum into his 457(b) deferred compensation plan
- City health insurance payment up to $1,925 (from January 2025), plus full dental and vision premiums
- 80 hours of paid administrative leave a year
- He pays the full employee share of CalPERS pension contributions
- Reimbursement of actual and necessary expenses on city business, including conferences
- A medical and dental opt-out payment, paid into a deferred compensation plan
Bellflower city staff
104 full-time-equivalent positions, including City Manager's Office 6, City Clerk's Office 4, Finance 7, Public safety (incl. code enforcement) 16, Economic development 6, Planning 10, Public works 42, Parks and recreation 13. FY2026-27. Authorized full-time positions. The budget also counts part-time staff equal to about 61 full-time positions. The audited report counted 89 full-time and 158 part-time employees on June 30, 2025. City of Bellflower · Jun 17, 2025
The city posts a salary schedule with monthly pay ranges for every job class (effective June 27, 2026). We did not pull pay bands from the State Controller's database. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Bellflower 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 two-year budget projects general fund surpluses of $1.2 million in FY2025-26 and $744 thousand in FY2026-27. It says revenue will grow modestly but spending will grow faster, so surpluses shrink. The city calls FY2020-21 through FY2023-24 the best financial period in its history. City of Bellflower · Jun 17, 2025
Savings against the city's own target
Unassigned general fund balance: $44.6M (2025-06-30). The city's own target: The city keeps a $10.0 million contingency reserve for cash flow and emergencies as assigned fund balance, separate from the unassigned balance. Its General Fund Surplus Policy sends half of each year's actual surplus above $2 million to a property acquisition reserve and half to capital projects. City of Bellflower · 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
- Property taxes (including property tax in lieu of vehicle fees)$17M · 30%
- Sales tax$9.8M · 17%
- Measure M local sales tax (0.75%)$7.2M · 13%
- Utility users tax$4.1M · 7%
- Cannabis business tax$3.8M · 7%
- Franchise fees$2.8M · 5%
- Gas tax transfer in$1.5M · 3%
- Other (interest, fines, permits, service charges and other)$10.1M · 18%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Sheriff's Department contract (police)$14.3M · 26%
- Public works$14.1M · 25%
- Council, administration, clerk, attorney, finance and shelter$10.1M · 18%
- Other public safety (code enforcement, security, crossing guards)$6.2M · 11%
- Parks and recreation$5.9M · 11%
- Planning$2.9M · 5%
- Economic development$1.3M · 2%
- Other (transfers out to other city funds)$805,343 · 1%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
Our sum from the city's audited rate table: the 1% base levy plus the voter-approved bond rates of Bellflower Unified, Cerritos College and the Central Basin water district. The city's share of the 1% levy is for its largest tax rate area. Not every home pays every bond rate. About 6 cents of each property-tax dollar goes to the city.
6¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Bellflower
- Los Angeles County, schools, state school shift and other agencies (rest of the 1% levy)0.93338 · 83%
- City of Bellflower (share of the 1% levy)0.06662 · 6%
- Cerritos Community College District bonds0.064888 · 6%
- Bellflower Unified School District bonds0.048827 · 4%
- Central Basin Municipal Water District0.007 · <1%
- Total (% of assessed value)1.120715
FY2024-25 rates for a home in Bellflower (Los Angeles County). City of Bellflower · Dec 16, 2025
See what a Bellflower house pays, line by line →Who provides your services
Not everything in Bellflower is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceContractorLos Angeles County Sheriff's Department (city contract)City of Bellflower · Jun 17, 2025
- LibraryThe countyLos Angeles CountyCity of Bellflower · Dec 16, 2025
- Public healthThe countyLos Angeles CountyCity of Bellflower · Dec 16, 2025
- Parks and recreationThe cityCity of Bellflower Parks and RecreationCity of Bellflower · Dec 16, 2025
- Local transitThe cityCity of Bellflower (The Bus fixed route and Dial-A-Ride)City of Bellflower · Jun 17, 2025
- Animal controlAnother agencySoutheast Area Animal Control Authority (SEAACA)City of Bellflower · Jun 17, 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 | Apple ValleyCA | PleasantonCA | BellflowerCA | PittsburgCA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 75,236 | 76,149 | 76,203 | 76,484 |
| Top administrator's base pay | $290,004 | Not confirmed | $271,000 | $312,236 |
| Council member pay | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | $20,755 | $6,000 |
| General fund per resident | $652 | $2,251 | $729 | $912 |
| Debt per resident | $205 | $564 | $252 | $1,330 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $238 | $2,924 | $61 | $1,081 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | — | 5.7 | 1.4 | 4.1 |
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). Apple Valley and Bellflower and Pittsburg pays another agency for police or fire, so its own staff count is lower.
What Bellflower 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 city manager's 2023 agreement (AFN 1020) and its 2025 amendment are posted on the Employment Contracts & Compensation page. City of Bellflower
- Yes: Council votes recorded member by member onlinePosted resolutions and ordinances list each member's vote, e.g. Resolution No. 25-45, adopted November 10, 2025. City of Bellflower
- Yes: Council pay stated in a public document City of Bellflower
- Yes: Employee pay published City of Bellflower
Questions to ask your council
- The general fund held $44.6 million in unassigned reserves on June 30, 2025, plus a $10.0 million contingency reserve, against a FY2026-27 general fund budget of $55.6 million. Should the council set a written reserve target, and what should the rest be used for?
- The budget projects the general fund surplus shrinking to $744 thousand in FY2026-27 because spending grows faster than revenue. What will the next two-year budget assume?
- The Sheriff's contract is budgeted at $14.3 million in FY2026-27, the largest single general fund cost. How does the city measure the service it gets for that contract?
- The cannabis business tax is budgeted at $3.8 million in FY2026-27. How would the budget change if that revenue fell?
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