How Duarte is run
Who runs Duarte, 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 Duarte's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.
Who runs Duarte
A city manager appointed by the council carries out council policy, directs city departments and serves as the appointed city treasurer. The seven council members are each elected by district to four-year terms, and the council picks one of them as mayor. The council sets policy, adopts the budget and appoints the city manager and city attorney. Duarte is a contract city: the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department provides law enforcement and the Los Angeles County Fire Department provides fire protection.
What they are paid
- Car allowance of $750 a month
- City matches up to $600 a month in deferred compensation, rising to $1,000 a month in July 2027 after a satisfactory evaluation
- Severance if fired without cause, in the amount set by the city's municipal code
- 120 hours of vacation and 60 hours of administrative leave a year; administrative leave can be sold back
- Contract runs through June 30, 2028
- Health, dental and vision insurance; the FY2026-27 council budget includes $86,200 for health insurance
- A council expense account of $5,000 to $5,500 per member in the FY2026-27 budget
Duarte city staff
75 full-time-equivalent positions, including Full-time positions 46, Part-time staff (full-time equivalents) 29. FY2026-27. City of Duarte · Jun 9, 2026
The city posts a citywide salary schedule with pay rates for every job, plus its labor agreements and pay resolutions, on its Employee Salaries & Benefits page. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Duarte 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 expects $26.3 million in general fund revenue and $30.8 million in spending, a $4.5 million deficit. It includes $5.2 million for the one-time Duarte Park Phase II project; without it the budget would have a $715,000 surplus. Revenue is $2.4 million lower than in FY2025-26 because plan check and building permit fees are expected to fall from more than $5.7 million to about $2.5 million. City of Duarte · Jun 9, 2026
Savings
Unassigned general fund balance: $27M (2025-06-30). City of Duarte · Nov 20, 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
- Sales and use tax (two accounts)$9.9M · 32%
- Drawn from general fund reserves$4.5M · 15%
- Property tax$3.5M · 11%
- Vehicle license fees (state)$3.3M · 11%
- Licenses and permits$1.9M · 6%
- Franchise tax$1.6M · 5%
- Interest and rents$1.5M · 5%
- Other (hotel tax, business license tax, service charges, reimbursements, fines and others)$4.6M · 15%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Public safety (includes the Los Angeles County Sheriff's contract)$8.4M · 27%
- Facilities maintenance (includes $5.8 million in capital improvements)$6.9M · 22%
- Administrative services$5.8M · 19%
- Community development$2.5M · 8%
- Parks and recreation$2.5M · 8%
- Field services and sports park$1.2M · 4%
- Transfers out to other funds$1.1M · 4%
- Other (city manager and clerk, legal services, community promotion, city council)$2.4M · 8%
Who provides your services
Not everything in Duarte is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe countyLos Angeles County Sheriff's Department, Temple Station (by contract)City of Duarte
- Fire protectionThe countyLos Angeles County Fire DepartmentCity of Duarte
- Code enforcementThe cityDuarte Public Safety DepartmentCity of Duarte · Jun 9, 2026
- Trash and recyclingContractorBurrtec WasteCity of Duarte
- Sewer and storm drain maintenanceThe cityDuarte Field Services DivisionCity of Duarte · Jun 9, 2026
- Streets and public worksThe cityDuarte Engineering/Public Works DivisionCity of Duarte · Jun 9, 2026
- Parks and recreationThe cityDuarte Parks and Recreation DepartmentCity of Duarte · Nov 20, 2025
- Local transitThe cityCity of DuarteCity of Duarte · Nov 20, 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 | SelmaCA | Seal BeachCA | DuarteCA | WindsorCA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 24,484 | 24,496 | 24,841 | 25,498 |
| Top administrator's base pay | $214,791 | $288,390 | $280,295 | Not current (2022) |
| Council member pay | Not confirmed | $7,200 | $11,946 | Not confirmed |
| General fund per resident | $905 | $2,041 | $1,241 | $1,077 |
| Debt per resident | $1,108 | $127 | $79 | $577 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $158 | $2,051 | $739 | $610 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 6.6 | 6.4 | 3.0 | — |
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). Seal Beach and Duarte and Windsor pays another agency for police or fire, so its own staff count is lower.
What Duarte publishes
What a resident can find online today. A "no" is something you can ask the council to publish.
- Yes: Adopted budget posted onlineAdopted budgets from FY2021-22 through FY2026-27 are on the city's City Budget page. City of Duarte
- Yes: City manager's contract findable online City of Duarte · Jun 23, 2026
- Yes: Council votes recorded member by member online City of Duarte · Jun 9, 2026
- Yes: Council pay stated in a public document City of Duarte · Jul 5, 2026
- Yes: Employee pay published City of Duarte
Questions to ask your council
- The FY2026-27 budget plans $30.8 million in general fund spending against $26.3 million in revenue, a $4.5 million draw that pays for the $5.2 million Duarte Park Phase II project. Which other one-time projects does the council plan to fund from reserves?
- The city had $27.0 million in unassigned general fund balance on June 30, 2025 and no formal reserve policy. What reserve level will the planned policy set, and what is the rest for?
- Duarte's share of the CalPERS net pension liability was $18.4 million, 431% of covered payroll. What is the plan to pay it down?
- General fund revenue is budgeted to fall $2.4 million in FY2026-27 as plan check and permit fees drop from more than $5.7 million to about $2.5 million. How much of each year's budget depends on one-time development fees?
The fiscal year starts July 1. The budget is developed from March through May and adopted in June. For FY2026-27 the council held a five-year capital plan workshop on April 14, 2026 and a budget workshop on May 5, 2026, and approved the budget on June 9, 2026. See who is running for council
Help decide what comes next
What do you want to know about Duarte next?
One tap, no sign-in. We count answers; we never show who chose what.
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?
See something wrong? Report an error
Something wrong or missing? Tell us what and where, with a link to a source if you have one. Reports feed the next verification run.