How Fremont is run
Who runs Fremont, 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 Fremont's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 9, 2026.
Who runs Fremont
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
- 12 months' severance pay if removed for any reason other than willful misconduct, within state limits
- City-paid life insurance of two times base salary and a yearly physical exam
- Five-year contract that renews automatically for five more years unless the council gives nine months' notice
- Health benefit allowance raised from $450 to $1,450 a month on Oct. 1, 2026 (Resolution 2026-64), rising to $1,750 by 2029
- City-paid $50,000 basic life insurance
Fremont city staff
994 full-time-equivalent positions, including Police 320, Fire 174. FY2026-27. Regular authorized positions, down 1.8 from FY2025-26. City of Fremont · Jun 9, 2026
The city posts a citywide salary schedule with the pay range for every job title, including the city manager, mayor and council. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Fremont 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 three-year forecast shows estimated resources covering adopted costs in FY2026-27 and the following two years. The FY2026-27 general fund budget of $289.1 million fits within projected ongoing resources of $291.0 million without using the $4.3 million Budget Uncertainty Reserve. It does not restore $3.2 million of maintenance and $3.1 million of other ongoing cuts made in FY2025-26. City of Fremont · Jun 9, 2026
Savings against the city's own target
Unassigned general fund balance: $52.8M (2025-06-30). The city's own target: Keep a Contingency Reserve of 16.7% of the original budget's operating spending and transfers out, held within unassigned fund balance. Uses need council approval and are to be repaid, ideally within three years. A separate Budget Uncertainty Reserve ($5.6 million at June 30, 2025) covers revenue shortfalls and cost increases. The city meets this target. City of Fremont · Dec 19, 2025
Bar: unassigned savings of $52.8M. Line: the amount the city's target calls for.
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$158M · 54%
- Sales tax$71.2M · 24%
- Business tax$15.1M · 5%
- Franchise fees$14M · 5%
- Charges for services$7.7M · 3%
- Hotel/motel tax$7.3M · 2%
- Transfers in from other funds$6.4M · 2%
- Other (interest and rents, fines, property transfer tax, paramedic tax, grants)$11.2M · 4%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Police$129M · 45%
- Fire$78.5M · 27%
- Maintenance operations (buildings, parks, streets, vehicles)$38.9M · 13%
- Administrative departments (manager, attorney, clerk, finance, HR, IT)$23.6M · 8%
- Transfers out to other funds$12.1M · 4%
- Debt service$6.2M · 2%
- Other (human services, community services, development, public works, council, non-departmental)$20.4M · 7%
- Less: assumed savings, mostly from vacant positions$-19.7M · -7%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
California caps the base property tax at 1% of assessed value; voter-approved bond rates are added on top. About 14 cents of each dollar of the 1% base levy in Fremont's main tax rate area goes to the city.
13¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Fremont
- Alameda County, schools and other agencies (rest of the 1% base levy and county rates)0.8655 · 76%
- City of Fremont (share of the 1% base levy)0.1434 · 13%
- School districts (voter-approved bonds)0.0716 · 6%
- Special districts0.0488 · 4%
- City of Fremont (voter-approved fire safety bonds)0.0034 · <1%
- Total (% of assessed value)1.1327
FY2024-25 rates for a home in the city of Fremont (Alameda County, tax rate area 12-001). City of Fremont · Dec 19, 2025
See what a Fremont house pays, line by line →Who provides your services
Not everything in Fremont is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityFremont Police DepartmentCity of Fremont · Dec 19, 2025
- EMS / paramedicsThe cityFremont Fire DepartmentCity of Fremont · Dec 19, 2025
- WaterSeparate districtAlameda County Water DistrictCity of Fremont · Jun 9, 2026
- Trash and recyclingContractorRepublic Services (city franchise)City of Fremont
- Parks and recreationThe cityCity of FremontCity of Fremont · Dec 19, 2025
- City streetsThe cityCity of FremontCity of Fremont · 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 | FontanaCA | ModestoCA | Santa ClaritaCA | FremontCA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 219,774 | 220,048 | 232,883 | 233,974 |
| Top administrator's base pay | $383,321 | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | $423,242 |
| Council member pay | $25,272 | $31,860 | $29,336 | $31,231 |
| General fund per resident | $1,012 | $980 | $676 | $1,236 |
| Debt per resident | $263 | $1,237 | $384 | $364 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $849 | $1,842 | $142 | $1,846 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 3.2 | 6.6 | 2.2 | 4.2 |
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). Santa Clarita pays another agency for police or fire, so its own staff count is lower.
What Fremont publishes
What a resident can find online today. A "no" is something you can ask the council to publish.
- Yes: Adopted budget posted onlineThe FY2026-27 adopted operating budget and earlier budgets are posted on the city's financial reports page. City of Fremont
- Yes: City manager's contract findable onlineThe 2021 employment agreement and later amendment reports are attached to council items in the city's iQM2 agenda archive. City of Fremont
- Yes: Council votes recorded member by member onlineMinutes list each member's aye or no vote, e.g. the 7-0 vote adopting the FY2026-27 budget on June 9, 2026. City of Fremont
- Yes: Meeting videos and minutes online City of Fremont
- Yes: Council pay stated in a public documentThe citywide salary schedule lists council and mayor pay, and Sept. 2026 staff reports state the monthly amounts. City of Fremont
- Yes: Employee pay published City of Fremont
Questions to ask your council
- The safety pension plan was 71.0% funded in June 2025, with $279.8 million unfunded. How much will the extra $1.2 million payment shorten the payoff?
- Unassigned general fund reserves were $52.8 million in June 2025, above the $46.1 million contingency reserve target. Should the $5.6 million Budget Uncertainty Reserve grow, as the budget says is a top priority?
- The budget does not restore $3.2 million of maintenance cuts made in FY2025-26. Which parks, streets and buildings work is waiting as a result?
Help decide what comes next
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