How Highland is run
Who runs Highland, 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 Highland's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.
Who runs Highland
A city manager appointed by the council runs the city day to day. The five council members are elected by district; they adopt ordinances and the budget, set fees, hire the city manager and give policy direction. Police and fire service are contracted out, to the San Bernardino County Sheriff and CAL FIRE.
What they are paid
- City adds $1 for every $2 he puts into a deferred compensation plan
- Same cost-of-living raises as other city employees
- CalPERS pension at 2% at 55
- $1,600 a month city contribution to a cafeteria plan
- $100 a year for cyber security insurance
Highland city staff
41 full-time-equivalent positions. FY2026-27. Full-time city staff, including 0.75 positions charged to the Housing Authority. Police and fire staff work for the county sheriff and CAL FIRE under contract and are not counted. City of Highland · Jun 10, 2025
The adopted budget lists the budgeted salary of every city position by department. We did not add totals from the State Controller's pay database. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Highland 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: $6.9M (2025-06-30). City of Highland · Nov 20, 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 in lieu of vehicle license fees$7.7M · 28%
- Sales and use tax$6.3M · 23%
- Secured property tax$6M · 22%
- Franchise fees (refuse, cable, electric, gas)$2.3M · 8%
- Property tax residual balance$1.1M · 4%
- Licenses and permits$754,925 · 3%
- Other (planning and engineering fees, police fees, interest, other taxes)$3.5M · 13%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Police (San Bernardino County Sheriff contract)$16M · 58%
- General government (incl. $2.5M transfer to the fire fund)$3.4M · 12%
- Parks$1.3M · 5%
- Planning$1.1M · 4%
- Engineering$1M · 4%
- Building and safety$966,890 · 3%
- Public services$816,685 · 3%
- Other (finance, animal control, code enforcement, clerk, council, other)$3.1M · 11%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
Rates from the city's audited rate table, per $100 of assessed value. The 1% base levy is split among local agencies; the city's share is 24.4 cents of each dollar of it. Voter-approved bond rates come on top. Homes in San Bernardino City Unified pay that district's bond rate instead of Redlands Unified's.
21¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Highland
- Redlands Unified School District: share of the 1% levy0.2867 · 24%
- City of Highland: share of the 1% levy0.244 · 21%
- Education Revenue Augmentation Fund (state-directed school shift)0.2101 · 18%
- San Bernardino County (general fund, library, superintendent of schools)0.15936 · 14%
- Water, flood control and conservation districts: share of the 1% levy0.05112 · 4%
- San Bernardino Community College District: share of the 1% levy0.0488 · 4%
- San Bernardino Valley Municipal Water District bonds0.11 · 9%
- San Bernardino Community College District bonds0.037 · 3%
- Redlands Unified School District bonds0.0277 · 2%
- Total (% of assessed value)1.1747
FY2024-25 rates for a home in Highland in Redlands Unified School District (San Bernardino County). City of Highland · Nov 20, 2025
See what a Highland house pays, line by line →Who provides your services
Not everything in Highland is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe countySan Bernardino County Sheriff's Department (city contract)Police services are 57.7% of FY2026-27 general fund spending.City of Highland · Jun 10, 2025
- FireThe stateCAL FIRE (city contract), three fire stationsCity of Highland · Jun 10, 2025
- EMS (paramedic response)The stateCAL FIRE (city contract)City of Highland · Jun 10, 2025
- Animal controlThe countySan Bernardino County (city contract)City of Highland · Jun 10, 2025
- Trash and recyclingContractorBurrtec Waste Industries (city contract)City of Highland · Jun 10, 2025
- City streetsThe cityCity of Highland Public WorksLarger street projects are done by contractors.City of Highland · Jun 10, 2025
- Recreation programsPrivate companyYMCA of the East ValleyCity of Highland · Nov 20, 2025
- Building inspections and plan checksContractorContracted engineering firmCity of Highland · Jun 10, 2025
- LegalContractorRichards, Watson & Gershon (contract city attorney)City of Highland · Jun 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 | LincolnCA | Fountain ValleyCA | HighlandCA | ArcadiaCA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 56,494 | 56,596 | 56,655 | 57,095 |
| Top administrator's base pay | $281,190 | $306,569 | $289,000 | $329,948 |
| Council member pay | $7,860 | $6,001 | $9,600 | Not current (2023) |
| General fund per resident | $579 | $1,508 | $489 | $1,853 |
| Debt per resident | $404 | $544 | $111 | $1,433 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $551 | $1,652 | $110 | $1,575 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 5.0 | 4.8 | 0.7 | 5.5 |
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). Highland pays another agency for police or fire, so its own staff count is lower.
What Highland 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 Highland
- Yes: Council pay stated in a public documentThe adopted budget's salary table lists $9,600 a year for each of the five council seats. City of Highland · Jun 10, 2025
- Yes: Employee pay publishedThe adopted budget lists the budgeted salary of each city position, split by department, for both budget years. City of Highland · Jun 10, 2025
Questions to ask your council
- Unassigned general fund balance was $6.9 million on June 30, 2025, and the documents we reviewed set no minimum. Should the council adopt a minimum reserve policy?
Help decide what comes next
What do you want to know about Highland next?
One tap, no sign-in. We count answers; we never show who chose what.
Every number here was checked by hand against the linked document. Cities publish on different schedules, so years differ between sections; each figure says which year it describes. Spotted something wrong or out of date?
See something wrong? Report an error
Something wrong or missing? Tell us what and where, with a link to a source if you have one. Reports feed the next verification run.