How Gilroy is run
Who runs Gilroy, 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 Gilroy's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.
Who runs Gilroy
A City Administrator appointed by the council runs day-to-day operations and appoints most department directors. The mayor and six council members set policy and adopt the budget, and the council also appoints the city clerk and city attorney. Starting in 2026, council members are elected by district; the mayor is elected citywide.
What they are paid
- $500 a month vehicle allowance
- Severance of six months' base salary plus six months of health premiums if terminated without cause, rising to nine months on December 1, 2026 and twelve months on December 1, 2027
- City-paid deferred compensation: 50% of the IRS limit in 2026 ($12,250), 75% in 2027 and 100% in 2028
- Pay at least 10% above the highest-paid department head, plus 3% raises on July 1, 2026 and July 1, 2027
- Same health, disability and life insurance and retirement benefits as department heads
- Medical and dental insurance, or a cash payment if medical coverage is waived
- Life insurance
- Optional CalPERS pension membership
- A city cell phone and laptop if requested
Gilroy city staff
298 full-time-equivalent positions, including Police 108, Fire 47, Public works 32, Utilities 31, Community development 29. FY2026-27. Full-time positions in the adopted FY2026-27 budget, not counting the mayor and six council members. Police (108) and fire (47) have 155 of them. City of Gilroy · Jun 2, 2025
The city posts salary schedules for every employee group, the City Administrator's contract, and its State Controller employee compensation report. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Gilroy 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 against the city's own target
Unassigned general fund balance: $28M (2025-06-30). The city's own target: Keep an unrestricted general fund reserve of at least 20% of general fund expenditures, plus a separate Economic Stability Reserve of 10% for severe downturns. The audited report says the city maintained both reserves in line with the policy in FY2024-25. City of Gilroy · Mar 27, 2026
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, utility users, hotel and other taxes$37.7M · 49%
- Sales tax$20.6M · 27%
- Charges for services$10.2M · 13%
- Licenses and permits$3.5M · 5%
- Other revenues$1.5M · 2%
- Interfund transfers$1.5M · 2%
- Other (interest and property, grants, fines)$2.2M · 3%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Police$33.6M · 43%
- Fire$16.4M · 21%
- Public works$9.2M · 12%
- Community development$6.5M · 8%
- Administration$5M · 6%
- Other general government$4.8M · 6%
- Other (human resources, finance)$3.1M · 4%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
Every property pays the 1% base levy, which the county collects and shares; the city's share of it is about 9.7%. Voter-approved add-ons for Gilroy schools, the county, the community college, the city's library bond and Valley Water bring the total to about 1.22%.
1¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Gilroy
- 1% base levy (shared by the county, city, schools and others)1 · 82%
- Gilroy Unified School District bonds0.1179 · 10%
- Santa Clara County (retirement levy, library, hospital and housing bonds)0.051 · 4%
- Gavilan Joint Community College District bonds0.0375 · 3%
- City of Gilroy library bond0.013 · 1%
- Valley Water (State Water Project)0.0041 · <1%
- Total (percent of assessed value)1.2235
FY2024-25 rates for a home in the city of Gilroy (Santa Clara County). City of Gilroy · Mar 27, 2026
Who provides your services
Not everything in Gilroy is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityGilroy Police DepartmentCity of Gilroy · Mar 27, 2026
- FireThe cityGilroy Fire DepartmentCity of Gilroy · Jun 2, 2025
- Emergency medical servicesThe cityGilroy Fire DepartmentCity of Gilroy · Jun 2, 2025
- WaterThe cityCity of GilroyCity of Gilroy · Mar 27, 2026
- Sewer collectionThe cityCity of Gilroy Utilities DepartmentCity of Gilroy
- Wastewater treatmentAnother agencySouth County Regional Wastewater AuthorityA joint powers agreement between Gilroy and Morgan Hill for the sewer treatment plantCity of Gilroy · Mar 27, 2026
- Garbage and recyclingContractorRecology South ValleyExclusive franchise to collect residential and commercial wasteCity of Gilroy
- Parks and streetsThe cityCity of GilroyCity of Gilroy · Mar 27, 2026
- LibrarySeparate districtSanta Clara County Library DistrictThe city maintains the library buildingCity of Gilroy
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 | GilroyCA | EncinitasCA | San ClementeCA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 61,707 | 62,193 | 62,193 | 62,636 |
| Top administrator's base pay | $313,524 | $349,170 | $333,564 | $324,966 |
| Council member pay | $22,800 | $20,189 | $20,636 | Not current (1998) |
| General fund per resident | $1,315 | $1,265 | $2,122 | $1,402 |
| Debt per resident | $438 | $1,558 | $1,133 | $128 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $1,984 | $1,720 | $1,129 | $685 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 4.8 | 4.8 | 4.1 | 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 Gilroy publishes
What a resident can find online today. A "no" is something you can ask the council to publish.
- Yes: Adopted budget posted onlineThe FY2025-26 and FY2026-27 budget book and quarterly budget reports are posted on the city's Budget page. City of Gilroy
- Yes: Meeting videos and minutes online City of Gilroy
- Yes: Council pay stated in a public documentThe July 1, 2026 elected officials salary table lists the mayor at $2,523.58 and council members at $1,682.42 a month. City of Gilroy · Jul 1, 2026
- Yes: Employee pay published City of Gilroy
Questions to ask your council
- The unassigned general fund balance was $28.0 million on June 30, 2025. How much of it does the council plan to use for one-time projects, and how much will it keep above the reserve rule?
- Net pension liability was $107.0 million at the June 30, 2024 measurement date. How will the city's pension trust and yearly CalPERS payments bring it down?
- The county's charge for emergency medical dispatch is set to rise over the next two years. Will the city bring this service in-house, and at what cost?
Help decide what comes next
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