How Dublin is run
Who runs Dublin, 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 Dublin's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.
Who runs Dublin
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
- Annual performance pay of $10,000, not counted for CalPERS pension
- $450 a month car allowance and a $1,500 yearly technology allowance
- City puts $5,000 a year into her deferred compensation plan
- 12 days of management leave a year, paid out if unused
- Severance of 12 months' base salary if fired without cause
- Optional CalPERS pension membership; otherwise a PARS plan
- City matches 457 deferred compensation up to $50 a month
Dublin city staff
113 full-time-equivalent positions. FY2026-27. City of Dublin · Jun 2, 2026
The city posts a salary plan by job classification (2023-24) and benefit summaries. We found no city list of pay by employee. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Dublin 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 calls the general fund budget balanced in both years, with operating surpluses of $11.1 million in FY2026-27 and $9.3 million in FY2027-28. Its 10-year forecast shows an operating deficit starting in FY2030-31, one year earlier than forecast a year ago, as development slows and the city shifts to maintaining what it has built. City of Dublin · Jun 2, 2026
Savings against the city's own target
Unassigned general fund balance: $52.6M (2025-06-30). The city's own target: Keep a general fund cash-flow reserve of at least two months of budgeted operating spending, with a goal of up to four months. On June 30, 2025 the cash-flow reserve, part of the unassigned balance, was $50,484,768, about 5.2 months. The city also held $197.2 million of committed reserves, including $8 million for economic stability and $45 million for downtown public improvements. City of Dublin · Dec 10, 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$67.6M · 50%
- Sales tax$27.9M · 21%
- Development revenue$10.2M · 7%
- Charges for services$7.9M · 6%
- Interest earnings$7.6M · 6%
- Other taxes$7.5M · 6%
- Rentals and leases$2.5M · 2%
- Hotel tax$1.4M · 1%
- Other (permits, fines, grants, other revenue, transfers in, less sales tax reimbursements)$3.5M · 3%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Contracted services (police, fire, maintenance and other contracts)$77.5M · 59%
- Salaries and wages$17.6M · 13%
- Services and supplies$7.4M · 6%
- Benefits$7.3M · 6%
- Internal service fund charges$6.5M · 5%
- Transfers to capital projects$4.5M · 3%
- Utilities$4.1M · 3%
- Other (consultants, debt service, capital outlay, contingency, contribution to internal service funds)$6.5M · 5%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
Every property pays the 1% base levy, which the county splits among local agencies by state formula. The city levies no voter-approved rate of its own. Voter-approved rates, mostly for school bonds, bring the typical total to about 1.24%. Not every rate applies to every property.
0¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Dublin
- 1% base levy (shared by the county, the city, schools and special districts)1 · 80%
- Dublin Unified School District bonds0.1556 · 13%
- Chabot-Las Positas Community College bonds0.0393 · 3%
- Zone 7 state water bonds0.0243 · 2%
- BART0.0148 · 1%
- Alameda County general obligation bond0.0089 · <1%
- East Bay Regional Park District0.0013 · <1%
- Total (percent of assessed value)1.2442
FY2024-25 rates for a home in the city of Dublin (Alameda County). City of Dublin · Dec 10, 2025
See what a Dublin house pays, line by line →Who provides your services
Not everything in Dublin is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe countyAlameda County Sheriff's Office, under contract with the cityCity of Dublin · Jun 2, 2026
- FireThe countyAlameda County Fire Department, under contract with the cityCity of Dublin · Dec 10, 2025
- Emergency medical responseThe countyAlameda County Fire Department, under contract with the cityIncludes advanced life supportCity of Dublin · Jun 2, 2026
- LibraryThe countyAlameda County Library, under contract; the city owns the Dublin Public Library buildingCity of Dublin · Jun 2, 2026
- SchoolsSeparate districtDublin Unified School DistrictCity of Dublin · Jun 2, 2026
- Parks and recreationThe cityCity Parks and Community Services DepartmentCity of Dublin · Dec 10, 2025
- Streets and engineeringThe cityCity Public Works DepartmentCity of Dublin · Dec 10, 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 | Lake ElsinoreCA | DublinCA | RocklinCA | Apple ValleyCA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 74,483 | 74,769 | 74,842 | 75,236 |
| Top administrator's base pay | $327,540 | $377,481 | $293,459 | $290,004 |
| Council member pay | $19,200 | $19,200 | Not current (2022) | Not confirmed |
| General fund per resident | $1,108 | $1,756 | $943 | $652 |
| Debt per resident | $2,516 | $214 | $103 | $205 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $200 | $303 | $817 | $238 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 2.9 | 1.5 | 3.6 | — |
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). Lake Elsinore and Dublin and Apple Valley pays another agency for police or fire, so its own staff count is lower.
What Dublin publishes
What a resident can find online today. A "no" is something you can ask the council to publish.
- Yes: Adopted budget posted online City of Dublin
- Yes: City manager's contract findable onlineThe Salary and Benefits page links the city manager's contract and its 2026 first amendment. City of Dublin
- Yes: Council votes recorded member by member online City of Dublin · Jun 2, 2026
- Yes: Meeting videos and minutes online City of Dublin
- Yes: Council pay stated in a public documentThe 2027 Councilmember Benefits Summary states the mayor's pay of $2,400 a month and council pay of $1,600 a month. City of Dublin
- Partly: Employee pay published City of Dublin
Questions to ask your council
- The budget shows a general fund operating surplus of $11.1 million in FY2026-27, but the 10-year forecast shows a deficit starting in FY2030-31. What steps is the council weighing now?
- Contracted services, mostly police and fire, are $77,475,425 of general fund spending in FY2026-27. How does the council review these county contracts?
- The general fund held $52,626,377 unassigned and $197.2 million committed on June 30, 2025. How does the council decide how much to keep and what to spend on projects?
The fiscal year starts July 1. The city uses a two-year budget: a preliminary budget goes to the council in April, and the council adopts the budget before July 1. It held the budget hearing and adopted the FY2026-27 budget (Resolution No. 41-26) on June 2, 2026, 4-0 with one member absent. See who is running for council
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