How Berkeley is run
Who runs Berkeley, 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 Berkeley's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 9, 2026.
Who runs Berkeley
A city manager hired by the council runs the city day to day and appoints department directors. The council of nine (a mayor elected citywide and eight members elected by district) passes laws and adopts the budget. Berkeley is a charter city; residents also elect the City Auditor and the Rent Stabilization Board.
What they are paid
- Severance of 12 months' base pay plus up to 12 months of health coverage if terminated after 11 months and a day on the job
- Five weeks of vacation a year
- CalPERS retirement in the classic member tier
- Health, dental and vision coverage on the same terms as department heads
- City-paid term life insurance with a $25,000 death benefit
- Mileage paid at the IRS rate for city business in his own car
Berkeley city staff
1,607 full-time-equivalent positions. FY2026-27. Budgeted positions, all funds. The General Fund pays for 663 of them. City of Berkeley · Jun 23, 2026
The city posts a pay schedule with the pay range for every job class, including the mayor, council and city manager. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Berkeley 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 says it has faced a persistent General Fund structural deficit for many years. Its budget plan addresses a General Fund deficit of $29.3 million in FY 2027 and $29.5 million in FY 2028 with staffing and other cuts and one-time money. It allocates 33 positions, including nine that prevent the closure of a fire station, to a 0.5% sales tax increase on the November 2026 ballot. City of Berkeley · May 19, 2026
Savings against the city's own target
Unassigned general fund balance: $31.7M (2025-06-30). The city's own target: Keep a Stability Reserve for unexpected revenue shortfalls and a Catastrophic Reserve for emergencies such as natural disasters, with a target range of 20 to 30 percent of revenue. On June 30, 2025 the Stability Reserve held $32.8 million and the Catastrophic Reserve $25.5 million. City of Berkeley · Dec 31, 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$104M · 33%
- Property transfer taxes (including Measures P and W)$34.6M · 11%
- Business license tax$25M · 8%
- Vehicle license fees (in lieu)$21.1M · 7%
- Sales and soda taxes$20.5M · 7%
- Utility users tax$18.8M · 6%
- Transfers in$16M · 5%
- Ambulance and franchise fees$11.3M · 4%
- Other (hotel and short-term rental tax, parking fines, Measure U1, misc.)$63.8M · 20%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Police$101M · 32%
- Fire$52M · 17%
- Non-departmental (insurance, workers' compensation, debt service, transfers)$49.6M · 16%
- Health, Housing and Community Services$34.1M · 11%
- Administration (manager, attorney, auditor, clerk, finance, HR, IT, mayor and council, police accountability)$53M · 17%
- Parks, Recreation and Waterfront$12.2M · 4%
- Public Works$8.4M · 3%
- Other (planning and development, Rent Board)$3.6M · 1%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
California caps the base property tax at 1% of assessed value, shared by all the agencies that serve a property. Voter-approved bond rates are added on top. Parcel taxes and assessments on the bill are not included.
4¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Berkeley
- 1% base levy (shared by the county, the city, schools and other agencies)10 · 81%
- Berkeley Unified School District (voter-approved bonds)1.15 · 9%
- City of Berkeley (voter-approved general obligation bonds)0.49 · 4%
- Peralta Community College District0.43 · 3%
- Bay Area Rapid Transit0.15 · 1%
- East Bay Municipal Utility District0.08 · <1%
- East Bay Regional Park District0.01 · <1%
- Total (dollars per $1,000 of assessed value)12.31
FY2024-25 rates for property in the city of Berkeley (Alameda County). City of Berkeley · Dec 31, 2025
See what a Berkeley house pays, line by line →Who provides your services
Not everything in Berkeley is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityBerkeley Police DepartmentCity of Berkeley · Dec 31, 2025
- FireThe cityBerkeley Fire DepartmentCity of Berkeley · Dec 31, 2025
- EMS / ambulanceThe cityBerkeley Fire DepartmentEmergency transport provider under an agreement with Alameda County since 1977; paramedic level since 1986City of Berkeley · Jul 7, 2026
- 911 dispatchThe cityBerkeley Police Department Communications CenterDispatches police and fireCity of Berkeley · May 19, 2026
- WaterSeparate districtEast Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD)EBMUD
- SewerThe cityCity of Berkeley (sewer collection system); EBMUD (wastewater treatment)EBMUD
- Electricity supplyAnother agencyAva Community EnergyAll Berkeley residential and commercial accounts moved to Ava's 100% renewable service in 2022; customers may switch back to PG&ECity of Berkeley · Dec 31, 2025
- LibraryThe cityBerkeley Public Library (city)City of Berkeley · Dec 31, 2025
- Parks, recreation and marinaThe cityCity of Berkeley Parks, Recreation and WaterfrontCity of Berkeley · Dec 31, 2025
- City streetsThe cityCity of Berkeley Public Works213 centerline miles of improved streetsCity of Berkeley · Dec 31, 2025
- Rent regulationAnother agencyBerkeley Rent Stabilization Board (separately elected)City of Berkeley · Dec 31, 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 | ConcordCA | Simi ValleyCA | BerkeleyCA | ClovisCA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 122,494 | 123,842 | 127,654 | 129,889 |
| Top administrator's base pay | $346,931 | $328,140 | $401,722 | $303,828 |
| Council member pay | $22,800 | $14,433 | $90,594 | $18,156 |
| General fund per resident | $1,173 | $812 | $2,459 | $996 |
| Debt per resident | $821 | $451 | $2,192 | $793 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $2,056 | $1,170 | $5,377 | $1,375 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 3.6 | 4.4 | 12.6 | 5.8 |
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). Concord and Clovis pays another agency for police or fire, so its own staff count is lower.
What Berkeley 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 2024 employment agreement is attached to the June 4, 2024 council item appointing the city manager. City of Berkeley
- Yes: Council votes recorded member by member onlineOrdinances list each member's vote, e.g. the 9-0 vote on the FY2027 appropriations ordinance on July 7, 2026. City of Berkeley
- Yes: Council pay stated in a public documentThe city pay schedule lists yearly pay for the mayor and councilmembers, set under Charter Section 19 (Measure JJ). City of Berkeley
- Yes: Employee pay published City of Berkeley
Questions to ask your council
- The budget plan ties 33 positions, including nine that keep a fire station open, to a 0.5% sales tax increase on the November 2026 ballot. What will be cut if the measure fails?
- The budget plan addresses General Fund deficits of $29.3 million in FY2026-27 and $29.5 million in FY2027-28. Which of the changes are ongoing, and which are one-time?
- Net pension liability was $686.4 million on June 30, 2025. How much of the city's yearly budget now goes to pension costs, and how will that change?
- The Stability and Catastrophic reserves held $32.8 million and $25.5 million on June 30, 2025. How do they compare with the target of 20 to 30 percent of revenue?
Help decide what comes next
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