How Encinitas is run
Who runs Encinitas, 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 Encinitas's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.
Who runs Encinitas
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
- $7,000 a year paid into the city's 457 deferred compensation plan
- Car allowance of $6,500 a year
- CalPERS retirement; she pays the full member contribution
- Same medical, dental, vision, disability and life insurance as other unrepresented city employees
- Reimbursement of actual and necessary expenses for official duties, on an itemized account
Encinitas city staff
255 full-time-equivalent positions. FY2026-27. City of Encinitas · Jun 17, 2026
The city adopts a salary schedule each year with the pay range for every job title. We did not find a city list of actual pay by employee. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Encinitas 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: $13.3M (2025-06-30). City of Encinitas · Dec 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$76.1M · 58%
- Sales tax$17.2M · 13%
- Charges for services$13.1M · 10%
- From fund balance (savings)$6.2M · 5%
- Transient occupancy (hotel) tax$6.1M · 5%
- Transfers in from other city funds$4M · 3%
- Franchise fees$2.6M · 2%
- Interest and rents$2.2M · 2%
- Other (cannabis tax, transfer tax, permits, fines, state aid, misc.)$4.3M · 3%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Fire and marine safety (lifeguards)$27.9M · 21%
- General government (council, manager, clerk, attorney, finance, HR, IT, shared costs)$22.4M · 17%
- Law enforcement (San Diego County Sheriff contract)$20.7M · 16%
- Transfers out (capital projects, debt service, insurance and other funds)$18.9M · 14%
- Development services (planning, building, code enforcement)$14.8M · 11%
- Parks, recreation and cultural arts$12.4M · 9%
- Public works$10.3M · 8%
- Engineering$4.7M · 4%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
Every property pays the 1% base levy. In the city's largest tax rate area, about 24 cents of each base-levy dollar goes to the city. Voter-approved Cardiff school bonds and Metropolitan Water District debt add about 0.04%. Rates differ in other parts of the city.
23¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Encinitas
- Elementary school district (Cardiff or Encinitas)0.2487 · 24%
- City of Encinitas0.2402 · 23%
- San Dieguito Union High School District0.1361 · 13%
- Educational Revenue Augmentation Fund (state shift to schools)0.0862 · 8%
- MiraCosta Community College0.0815 · 8%
- San Diego County (general)0.0802 · 8%
- San Dieguito Water District0.0359 · 3%
- Cardiff school bonds (voter-approved)0.03325 · 3%
- San Diego County Water Authority0.0251 · 2%
- Other county school and special education levies0.02305 · 2%
- Encinitas Landscape & Lighting District0.021 · 2%
- San Diego County Library0.01969 · 2%
- Metropolitan Water District debt (voter-approved)0.007 · <1%
- County Service Area No. 170.00251 · <1%
- Total (percent of assessed value)1.04025
FY2024-25 rates for a property in the city's largest tax rate area (San Diego County). City of Encinitas · Dec 19, 2025
See what a Encinitas house pays, line by line →Who provides your services
Not everything in Encinitas is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe countySan Diego County Sheriff's Department (city contract)City of Encinitas · Jun 17, 2026
- LifeguardsThe cityCity of Encinitas Marine SafetyCity of Encinitas · Dec 19, 2025
- WaterSeparate districtSan Dieguito Water District (the City Council is its board)City of Encinitas · Dec 19, 2025
- SewerThe cityCity of Encinitas (Cardiff and Encinitas Sanitary Divisions)City of Encinitas · Dec 19, 2025
- Trash and recyclingContractorEDCO (city franchise)City of Encinitas · Jun 17, 2026
- Streets and sidewalksThe cityCity of Encinitas Public WorksCity of Encinitas · Dec 19, 2025
- StormwaterThe cityCity of EncinitasCity of Encinitas · Dec 19, 2025
- Parks, beaches and trailsThe cityCity of EncinitasCity of Encinitas · Dec 19, 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 | La MesaCA | EncinitasCA | GilroyCA | San ClementeCA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 61,707 | 62,193 | 62,193 | 62,636 |
| Top administrator's base pay | $313,524 | $333,564 | $349,170 | $324,966 |
| Council member pay | $22,800 | $20,636 | $20,189 | Not current (1998) |
| General fund per resident | $1,315 | $2,122 | $1,265 | $1,402 |
| Debt per resident | $438 | $1,133 | $1,558 | $128 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $1,984 | $1,129 | $1,720 | $685 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 4.8 | 4.1 | 4.8 | 3.2 |
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). Encinitas and San Clemente pays another agency for police or fire, so its own staff count is lower.
What Encinitas publishes
What a resident can find online today. A "no" is something you can ask the council to publish.
- Yes: Adopted budget posted onlineThe city's budget page posts the FY2026-27 Budget in Brief, the adoption staff report and Resolution 2026-48. City of Encinitas
- Yes: City manager's contract findable onlineThe 2025 contract and the March 2026 amendment are attached to council agenda item 10D of March 25, 2026. City of Encinitas · Mar 25, 2026
- Yes: Council votes recorded member by member onlineMinutes list each member's vote, such as the 5-0 vote adopting the FY2026-27 budget on June 17, 2026. City of Encinitas · Aug 12, 2026
- Yes: Meeting videos and minutes online City of Encinitas
- Yes: Council pay stated in a public documentThe municipal code sets council pay at $1,719.70 a month, plus $100.00 a month for the mayor. Encinitas Municipal Code Chapter 2.20 (City Council), Sec. 2.20.020 and 2.20.035
- Yes: Employee pay publishedThe council adopts a salary schedule each year with the pay range for every job title. City of Encinitas · Jun 17, 2026
Questions to ask your council
- Net pension liability was $70.2 million at the June 30, 2024 measurement date, and the safety plan was 72.13% funded. Will the council adopt a formal policy on extra pension payments?
- The San Diego County Sheriff contract costs $20.7 million in FY2026-27. How does the city measure the service it gets for that cost?
The fiscal year starts July 1. The council sets goals at a strategic planning workshop (Feb. 2 and 3, 2026), holds public budget workshops (March 18 and April 8), and hears the budget introduction on May 20. The council adopted the FY2026-27 budget 5-0 on June 17, 2026. See who is running for council
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