How Emeryville is run
Who runs Emeryville, 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 Emeryville's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.
Who runs Emeryville
A city manager appointed by the council runs day-to-day operations and carries out council policy. The five council members are elected at large to staggered four-year terms, and each year the council picks one of its members as mayor.
What they are paid
- Three-year contract from January 6, 2025 through January 5, 2028
- Severance of up to six months' salary if fired before the term ends
- $500 a month expense allowance
- Up to $100 a month for health and wellness costs
- CalPERS pension under the 2% at 60 formula
- Two weeks of administrative leave each July 1
Emeryville city staff
175 full-time-equivalent positions, including Police 58, Community services 55, Administration 24, Public works 22, Community development 16, Elected officials 5. FY2026-27. Budgeted full-time equivalent positions, including part-time staff. City of Emeryville · Jun 3, 2025
The city posts a pay table with the range for each job. We found no city list of pay by employee. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Emeryville 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's five-year forecast shows a general fund structural deficit of $9.7 million to $14.6 million a year. The budget relies on transfers into the general fund, starting with $4 million from the economic uncertainty reserve in FY2026-27, to keep the unassigned balance at its 20% goal. City of Emeryville · Jun 3, 2025
Savings against the city's own target
Unassigned general fund balance: $35.7M (2025-06-30). The city's own target: Keep an unassigned general fund balance of 20% of the general fund expenditure budget, plus a separate economic uncertainty reserve of 50%. On June 30, 2025 the unassigned balance was 60.3% of budgeted spending, above its target, while the $23.5 million economic uncertainty reserve was 39.7%, below its 50% target. City of Emeryville · Dec 26, 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
- Business license and card room taxes$8.6M · 15%
- Residual property tax from the former redevelopment agency$7.7M · 14%
- Sales tax (1%)$7.4M · 13%
- Hotel tax (transient occupancy)$5.6M · 10%
- Property tax$5.4M · 10%
- Utility users tax$5.4M · 9%
- Other taxes, fees and charges$7.4M · 13%
- Transfers in (mostly from the economic uncertainty reserve)$4.1M · 7%
- From savings (fund balance)$5.4M · 9%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Police$20.3M · 36%
- Fire (Alameda County Fire Department contract)$13.2M · 23%
- Public works$5.4M · 9%
- Community services (youth, adult and senior programs)$4.7M · 8%
- Non-departmental (incl. transfers out)$4.1M · 7%
- Community development$3.2M · 6%
- Other (council, manager, clerk, attorney, finance, HR, IT, less vacancy savings)$6.2M · 11%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
Every property pays the 1% base levy, which the county collects and shares; the city's share is 21.82% of it. Voter-approved add-ons for schools, the city's housing bonds, the community college, BART, county bonds and regional parks bring the total to about 1.15%.
4¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Emeryville
- 1% base levy (shared by the county, city, schools and others)The city receives 21.82% of it1 · 87%
- Emery Unified School District0.0421 · 4%
- City of Emeryville (Measure C housing bonds)0.0437 · 4%
- Peralta Community College District0.0394 · 3%
- BART0.0148 · 1%
- Alameda County general obligation bonds0.0089 · <1%
- East Bay Regional Park District0.0013 · <1%
- Total (percent of assessed value)1.1502
FY2024-25 rates for a home in the city of Emeryville (Alameda County). City of Emeryville · Dec 26, 2025
Who provides your services
Not everything in Emeryville is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityEmeryville Police DepartmentCity of Emeryville · Dec 26, 2025
- Fire and emergency medical servicesThe countyAlameda County Fire DepartmentCity of Emeryville · Jun 3, 2025
- Streets, parks and city buildingsThe cityCity of Emeryville Public WorksCity of Emeryville · Jun 3, 2025
- LibraryAnother agencyOakland Public LibraryCity of Emeryville · Jun 3, 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 | Solana BeachCA | Grass ValleyCA | KingsburgCA | EmeryvilleCA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 12,941 | 13,238 | 13,347 | 13,612 |
| Top administrator's base pay | $286,000 | $279,500 | $236,073 | $347,016 |
| Council member pay | $12,384 | $6,600 | $8,400 | Not confirmed |
| General fund per resident | $2,139 | $1,507 | $591 | $4,120 |
| Debt per resident | $1,536 | $1,823 | $454 | $3,680 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $1,580 | $767 | $604 | $4,451 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 6.0 | 9.3 | 5.9 | 12.8 |
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). Solana Beach and Kingsburg and Emeryville pays another agency for police or fire, so its own staff count is lower.
What Emeryville 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 online City of Emeryville · Nov 19, 2024
- Yes: Council votes recorded member by member onlineAction minutes list each member's vote by name, such as the 5-0 vote adopting the budget on June 3, 2025. City of Emeryville · Jun 3, 2025
- No: Council pay stated in a public documentThe city's classification and compensation table lists staff pay but not council pay, and we found no council pay in the budget. City of Emeryville · Mar 19, 2026
- Partly: Employee pay published City of Emeryville · Mar 19, 2026
Questions to ask your council
- The five-year forecast shows a general fund structural deficit of $9.7 million to $14.6 million a year. Which mix of cuts, reserve transfers and new revenue will close it?
- The economic uncertainty reserve held $23.5 million on June 30, 2025, below its 50% target, and the FY2026-27 budget moves $4 million from it into the general fund. How long can those transfers continue?
- Police is the largest general fund line at $20.3 million in FY2026-27, followed by fire at $13.2 million. How are these costs reviewed each year?
- The city manager's pay is $347,016 a year, and her contract runs through January 5, 2028. How does the council measure her results?
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