How Los Altos is run
Who runs Los Altos, 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 Los Altos's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.
Who runs Los Altos
Five council members elected at large set policy, pass ordinances and adopt the budget. They hire the City Manager, who runs daily operations, and the City Attorney. One seat has been empty since Neysa Fligor resigned on January 13, 2026; voters fill it on November 3, 2026. Fire protection comes by contract with the county fire district.
What they are paid
- Cannot be fired without cause until the second Tuesday of March after an election that seats a new council member
- Car allowance of $350 a month
- 144 hours of vacation, 96 hours of sick leave and 120 hours of management leave a year
Los Altos city staff
159 full-time-equivalent positions. FY2026-27. City of Los Altos · Jun 9, 2026
The city posts salary schedules with the pay range of every job class, including the City Manager. We did not pull pay bands from the State Controller's database. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Los Altos 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 calls the FY2026-27 budget balanced, with $72.0M of revenue against $63.2M of operating spending. Its three-year forecast shows recurring revenue above recurring spending in every year, but the surplus before transfers narrows from $8.8M to $6.4M by FY2029-30 as spending grows faster than revenue. The city says that means less money for capital projects, not operating deficits. City of Los Altos · Jun 9, 2026
Savings against the city's own target
Unassigned general fund balance: $24.9M (2025-06-30). The city's own target: Council policy sets an Emergency and Operating Reserve at 20% of general fund operating spending. At June 30, 2025 that reserve was held separately as assigned fund balance of $10.2M, on top of the unassigned balance. City of Los Altos · 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
- Property tax$40.8M · 57%
- Community development fees$10.5M · 15%
- Other taxes (hotel tax, business license, other)$5.1M · 7%
- Utility users tax$3.7M · 5%
- Sales tax$3.6M · 5%
- Franchise fees$2.8M · 4%
- Interest income$2.1M · 3%
- Other (recreation fees, other sources)$3.5M · 5%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Public safety (police and county fire contract)$29.5M · 41%
- Community services$12.8M · 18%
- Development services$6.3M · 9%
- City Manager's Office$5.3M · 7%
- Public works$3.3M · 5%
- Finance$2.5M · 4%
- Human resources$2.2M · 3%
- Legislative$1.2M · 2%
- Transfers to capital projects and debt service$8.1M · 11%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
The city has no voter-approved tax rate of its own. Its share of property tax comes out of the basic 1% levy, which the county splits among local governments. Not every overlapping rate applies to every Los Altos property.
0¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Los Altos
- Basic 1% countywide levy (shared by the county, city, schools and districts)1 · 88%
- Santa Clara County retirement levies (county and county library)0.0412 · 4%
- School and college bonds (Los Altos Elementary, Mountain View-Los Altos High, Foothill-De Anza)0.0769 · 7%
- County housing and hospital bonds0.0098 · <1%
- Santa Clara Valley Water District0.0041 · <1%
- El Camino Hospital0.002 · <1%
- Midpeninsula open space0.0013 · <1%
- Total (per $100 of taxable value)1.1353
FY2024-25 rates for a home in Los Altos (Santa Clara County, tax rate area 11-001). City of Los Altos · Dec 26, 2025
Who provides your services
Not everything in Los Altos is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityLos Altos Police DepartmentCity of Los Altos · Dec 26, 2025
- 911 dispatchThe cityLos Altos Police DepartmentCity of Los Altos · Jun 9, 2026
- Fire protection and EMSContractorSanta Clara County Central Fire Protection DistrictCity of Los Altos · Dec 26, 2025
- StreetsThe cityCity of Los AltosCity of Los Altos · Dec 26, 2025
- Parks and recreationThe cityCity of Los AltosCity of Los Altos · Dec 26, 2025
- LibrarySeparate districtSanta Clara County Library DistrictCity of Saratoga · Jun 17, 2026
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 | SeasideCA | AtwaterCA | Los AltosCA | Santa PaulaCA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 31,681 | 31,806 | 31,921 | 31,976 |
| Top administrator's base pay | $285,000 | $193,747 | $340,808 | $222,664 |
| Council member pay | $4,800 | No salary | $11,400 | $7,200 |
| General fund per resident | $1,720 | $681 | $2,235 | $870 |
| Debt per resident | $513 | $1,880 | $255 | $3,489 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $2,019 | $888 | $1,426 | $1,037 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 5.1 | 3.5 | 5.0 | 4.4 |
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). Atwater and Los Altos and Santa Paula pays another agency for police or fire, so its own staff count is lower.
What Los Altos 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 operating budget book, adopted June 9, 2026, is posted on the city website. City of Los Altos · Jun 9, 2026
- Yes: City manager's contract findable onlineThe amended and restated City Manager employment agreement is posted on the city website. City of Los Altos · Oct 21, 2024
- Yes: Meeting videos and minutes onlineAgendas and minutes are on the city's Agendas and Minutes page; recorded meetings are on the city's YouTube channel. City of Los Altos
- Yes: Council pay stated in a public documentThe city salary schedule lists a Council Member stipend of $950 a month. City of Los Altos · Feb 10, 2026
- Yes: Employee pay published City of Los Altos · Feb 10, 2026
Questions to ask your council
- The forecast shows the general fund surplus before transfers narrowing from $8.8M in FY2026-27 to $6.4M in FY2029-30. Which capital projects would the council slow first if that happens?
- Unassigned general fund balance was $24.9M at June 30, 2025, on top of a $10.2M emergency reserve. What does the council plan to do with the amount above its 20% policy?
- The two CalPERS plans were $45.5M short at June 30, 2025, after years of extra payments. Will the city keep making extra payments from its PERS reserve?
- Public safety, police plus the county fire contract, is $29.5M of $63.2M in FY2026-27 operating spending. How will the council measure what it gets for that money?
The fiscal year starts July 1. Departments start budget work in March. The council reviewed the FY2026-27 budget on May 26, 2026 and adopted it on June 9, 2026 on a 4-0 vote. See who is running for council
Help decide what comes next
What do you want to know about Los Altos 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.