How Compton is run
Who runs Compton, 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 Compton's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.
Who runs Compton
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
- Paid $125.00 an hour, for no more than 960 hours a fiscal year
- No benefits: as a CalPERS retiree he waives retirement, health, leave and similar benefits
- No severance; the council can end the agreement at any time with three votes
- Term ends April 28, 2027, or sooner if a permanent city manager is appointed
- Travel and other expenses repaid when on official city business out of town by council order
Compton city staff
The budget lists every position and its budgeted pay by department, but the budget documents we could read give no citywide position total. We did not pull pay bands from the State Controller's database. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Compton 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
Unassigned general fund balance: $28M (2024-06-30). City of Compton · Feb 5, 2026
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 in lieu of vehicle license fees$16.5M · 19%
- Utility users taxes (electricity, gas, water, phone)$16.4M · 19%
- Charges to other city funds (cost allocation, internal service)$14.7M · 17%
- Sales tax$11M · 13%
- Property tax$7.4M · 9%
- Development fees and permits$6.8M · 8%
- Fines and penalties (mostly parking tickets)$3.1M · 4%
- Other (business licenses incl. casino license fee, interest, franchise fees, rents, other)$9.3M · 11%
- From savings (fund balance)$658,148 · 1%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Los Angeles County Sheriff (police contract)$19.7M · 23%
- Fire$17M · 20%
- Public Safety (Community Improvement) department$10.1M · 12%
- Non-departmental$8.2M · 10%
- Public works: street maintenance$6.9M · 8%
- City Controller$4M · 5%
- Human resources$3.7M · 4%
- City Manager's office$3.7M · 4%
- Other (recreation, community development, building and safety, engineering, city attorney, clerk, treasurer, council, grants)$12.6M · 15%
Who provides your services
Not everything in Compton 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 DepartmentCity of Compton · Oct 1, 2025
- Fire and emergency medical servicesThe cityCompton Fire DepartmentCity of Compton · Oct 1, 2025
- WaterThe cityCity of Compton municipal water systemCity of Compton · Oct 1, 2025
- SewerThe cityCity of ComptonCity of Compton · Oct 1, 2025
- Recreation and parksThe cityCity Recreation DepartmentCity of Compton · Jun 23, 2026
- StreetsThe cityCity Public Works, Street MaintenanceCity of Compton · Jun 23, 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 | South GateCA | ComptonCA | Santa MonicaCA | ReddingCA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 93,467 | 93,937 | 94,237 | 94,294 |
| Top administrator's base pay | $301,600 | Not confirmed | $410,604 | Not confirmed |
| Council member pay | $22,800 | $7,200 | $18,384 | Not confirmed |
| General fund per resident | $802 | $914 | $5,573 | $1,218 |
| Debt per resident | $311 | $1,205 | $3,282 | $2,053 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $1,099 | $1,726 | $4,467 | $3,777 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 3.3 | — | 24.3 | 10.1 |
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). Compton pays another agency for police or fire, so its own staff count is lower.
What Compton publishes
What a resident can find online today. A "no" is something you can ask the council to publish.
- No: Audited financial report filed on timeThe audit for the year ended June 30, 2024 is dated Feb. 5, 2026. The council received it April 28, 2026. City of Compton
- Yes: Adopted budget posted onlineThe city's budget page lists the FY 27 adopted budget book. City of Compton
- Yes: City manager's contract findable online City of Compton · Jul 7, 2026
- Yes: Council votes recorded member by member online City of Compton · Oct 6, 2026
- Yes: Council pay stated in a public documentThe City Charter sets council and mayor pay at $600 a month, and the FY2026-27 budget lists $7,200 a year for each. City of Compton · Jun 23, 2026
- Yes: Employee pay published City of Compton · Jun 23, 2026
Questions to ask your council
- The FY2023-24 audit was dated Feb. 5, 2026, for a year that ended June 30, 2024. When will the FY2024-25 and FY2025-26 audits be finished?
- The FY2026-27 budget uses $658,148 of general fund savings. Which one-time costs does that cover?
- The net pension liability was $162.1 million, and the Retirement Fund held $107.6 million on June 30, 2024. How does the council plan to use that fund balance?
Help decide what comes next
What do you want to know about Compton next?
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Every number here was checked by hand against the linked document. Cities publish on different schedules, so years differ between sections; each figure says which year it describes. Spotted something wrong or out of date?
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