How Chino Hills is run
Who runs Chino Hills, 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 Chino Hills's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 9, 2026.
Who runs Chino Hills
A city manager appointed by the council runs the city day to day and appoints department directors. The five council members, elected by district, choose one of themselves as mayor for a one-year term, pass ordinances, adopt the budget and appoint the city manager and city attorney.
What they are paid
Chino Hills city staff
163 full-time-equivalent positions, including Full-time 157, Permanent part-time 6. FY2026-27. City of Chino Hills · Jun 9, 2026
The city posts salary schedules with monthly pay ranges for every job class and links to the State Controller's pay report. We did not pull pay bands. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Chino Hills 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 FY2026-27 budget spends $4.3M more than the general fund takes in, covered from reserves. It is the second year in a row, after a $2.2M gap in FY2025-26. The city's five-year outlook projects the yearly gap growing to about $8.4M by FY2030-31, when unrestricted reserves would run out. The council placed Measure J, a 1% local sales tax expected to raise about $11.5M a year, on the Nov. 3, 2026 ballot. City of Chino Hills · Jun 9, 2026
Savings against the city's own target
Unassigned general fund balance: $47.4M (2025-06-30). The city's own target: The city's fund balance policy (Resolution No. 2018R-002) sets how general fund reserves are classified and lets the council commit them by resolution. The council has committed $1.1M for swings in liability insurance costs. City of Chino Hills · Nov 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
- Property tax (including property tax in lieu of vehicle license fees)$21.3M · 34%
- Sales and use tax$10.8M · 17%
- Overhead charged to other city funds$9.8M · 15%
- Charges for services$6.7M · 11%
- Interest and property income$4M · 6%
- Franchise fees$2.7M · 4%
- Hotel tax (transient occupancy)$2.4M · 4%
- Other (state and federal aid, fines, transfers in, misc.)$1.4M · 2%
- From reserves$4.3M · 7%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Public safety (Sheriff's contract)$21.4M · 34%
- Public works (streets, parks, facilities)$11.9M · 19%
- Community services (recreation)$6.2M · 10%
- City manager's office (administration, IT, HR, code enforcement)$5.8M · 9%
- Transfers to landscape, lighting and street sweeping funds$5.2M · 8%
- Community development$3.8M · 6%
- Other (city clerk, finance, risk management, library carpet project)$9.1M · 14%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
Most of the bill is the 1% base levy, which the county splits among local agencies. The city says it receives about 4 cents of each property tax dollar; Chino Valley Unified School District receives about 31 cents and the Chino Valley Fire District about 15 cents.
0¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Chino Hills
- 1% countywide base levy (shared by schools, the county, the fire district, the city and others)1 · 91%
- School district debt0.0942 · 9%
- Metropolitan Water District0.007 · <1%
- Total (% of assessed value)1.1012
FY2024-25 rates for a home in the city of Chino Hills (San Bernardino County). City of Chino Hills · Nov 19, 2025
See what a Chino Hills home costs each year, line by line →Who provides your services
Not everything in Chino Hills is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe countySan Bernardino County Sheriff's Department (city contract)City of Chino Hills · Nov 19, 2025
- FireSeparate districtChino Valley Independent Fire DistrictCity of Chino Hills · Nov 19, 2025
- EMS / ambulanceSeparate districtChino Valley Independent Fire DistrictCity of Chino Hills · Nov 19, 2025
- WaterThe cityCity of Chino Hills Public WorksCity of Chino Hills · Jun 9, 2026
- SewerThe cityCity of Chino Hills Public WorksWastewater treatment by contract with the Inland Empire Utilities AgencyCity of Chino Hills · Jun 9, 2026
- TrashContractorWM (USA Waste of California, Inc.)City of Chino Hills · Jun 9, 2026
- City streetsThe cityCity of Chino Hills Public WorksCity of Chino Hills · Jun 9, 2026
- Parks and open spaceThe cityCity of Chino Hills Public Works and Community Services44 parks and 3,350 acres of publicly owned open spaceCity of Chino Hills · Jun 9, 2026
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 | BellflowerCA | PittsburgCA | Chino HillsCA | NapaCA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 76,203 | 76,484 | 77,191 | 77,803 |
| Top administrator's base pay | $271,000 | $312,236 | Not confirmed | $303,779 |
| Council member pay | $20,755 | $6,000 | $13,297 | $17,220 |
| General fund per resident | $729 | $912 | $823 | $2,173 |
| Debt per resident | $252 | $1,330 | $122 | $477 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $61 | $1,081 | $228 | $2,803 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 1.4 | 4.1 | 2.1 | 6.8 |
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). Bellflower and Pittsburg and Chino Hills pays another agency for police or fire, so its own staff count is lower.
What Chino Hills 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 adopted budget and a Budget in Brief are posted on the city's Budget page. City of Chino Hills
- No: City manager's contract findable onlineWe found no posted contract for City Manager Rod Hill. The city's salary schedule shows only the job's pay range. City of Chino Hills
- Partly: Council votes recorded member by member onlineThe FY2026-27 budget resolution lists each member's vote, with Rogers absent. City of Chino Hills · Jun 9, 2026
- Yes: Meeting videos and minutes onlineAgendas and minutes are posted in the city's document portal; council meetings are streamed live and archived on City TV. City of Chino Hills
- Yes: Council pay stated in a public document$1,108.09 a month since Jan. 1, 2023, stated on the city's council compensation page and in its salary schedule. City of Chino Hills
- Yes: Employee pay published City of Chino Hills
Questions to ask your council
- The FY2026-27 budget uses $4.3 million of reserves, and the city projects the yearly gap reaching about $8.4 million by FY2030-31. Which services would change first if Measure J does not pass?
- Public safety, mainly the Sheriff's contract, is budgeted at $21.4 million in the general fund for FY2026-27. What options does the council have to slow its growth?
- Unassigned general fund reserves were $47.4 million on June 30, 2025. What reserve level does the council aim to keep as the five-year outlook draws them down?
- The general fund sends $5,156,944 to landscape, lighting and street sweeping funds in FY2026-27. Will those assessment districts be asked to raise their own rates?
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