How Lynwood is run
Who runs Lynwood, 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 Lynwood's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.
Who runs Lynwood
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
- Three-year contract, January 2026 to January 2029
- An extra 5% of salary paid as a 457 deferred compensation payment
- $500 monthly car allowance and $125 monthly electronic media allowance, plus a city-paid cell phone plan
- Severance if fired without cause: six months' salary, rising to nine months after one year
- City pays health premiums at the Kaiser family rate, plus dental and vision premiums and a $50,000 life insurance policy
- 140 hours of vacation and 90 hours of executive leave a year
- The FY2026-27 council budget has $15,000 for auto allowances and $15,000 for electronic media allowances
- $7,915 for CalPERS retirement (FY2026-27)
Lynwood city staff
145 full-time-equivalent positions, including Public Works 53, Community Development 28, Recreation & Community Services 28, Finance & Administration 12, City Manager's Office 8. FY2026-27. City of Lynwood · Jun 2, 2026
Sheriff's deputies and county firefighters are county employees and are not counted. The city publishes a salary schedule with pay ranges by job title. Individual pay is on the State Controller's public pay site. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Lynwood 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: $4.2M (2025-06-30). The city's own target: Keep an undesignated general fund reserve equal to 10% of the general fund budget (Resolution 2006-110). Separately, the council may put $500,000 a year into a Contingency Set-Aside, and a rainy day reserve receives 10% of the 2016 sales tax measure's revenue. At June 30, 2025 the general fund also held $17.0M committed, including a $5.2M rainy day reserve and a $6.4M retirement reserve. City of Lynwood · Apr 30, 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 tax$15.5M · 32%
- Sales tax (including the 2016 Measure PS local sales tax)$13.7M · 28%
- Other revenues (fees, permits, fines, interest, grants)$9.2M · 19%
- Utility users tax$7.4M · 15%
- From reserves and fund balance$1.8M · 4%
- Franchise fees$908,464 · 2%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Operating spending, all departments (public safety contracts are about half)$48M · 99%
- Transfers to reserves and other funds$495,000 · 1%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
Our sum from the city's audited rate table: the 1% base levy plus the Lynwood Unified, Compton Community College District, Metropolitan Water District and "Tax District" rates. Not all rates apply to every property. Homes in the parts of Lynwood served by the Compton or Los Angeles school districts pay those districts' rates instead.
0¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Lynwood
- 1% base levy (shared by the county, schools, the city and others)The city's share is about 0.113 of the 1%.1 · 76%
- Lynwood Unified School District bonds0.142781 · 11%
- "Tax District" levy, as named in the city's table0.125 · 9%
- Compton Community College District bonds0.045087 · 3%
- Metropolitan Water District0.007 · <1%
- Total (% of assessed value)1.319868
FY2024-25 rates for a home in the Lynwood Unified School District (Lynwood, Los Angeles County). City of Lynwood · Apr 30, 2026
Who provides your services
Not everything in Lynwood is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe countyLos Angeles County Sheriff's Department, by contractCity of Lynwood · Jun 17, 2025
- Fire and emergency medicalThe countyLos Angeles County Fire Department, by contractThe city's fire department moved to the county in 2000.City of Lynwood · Jun 17, 2025
- WaterThe cityCity of Lynwood water utilityCity of Lynwood · Jun 17, 2025
- Parks and recreationThe cityCity of Lynwood Recreation & Community ServicesCity of Lynwood · Apr 30, 2026
- StreetsThe cityCity of Lynwood Public WorksCity of Lynwood · Apr 30, 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 | BrentwoodCA | Yorba LindaCA | Union CityCA | LynwoodCA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 66,070 | 66,190 | 66,665 | 66,901 |
| Top administrator's base pay | $304,515 | $315,000 | $352,873 | $315,000 |
| Council member pay | $13,807 | $6,000 | $25,500 | $11,700 |
| General fund per resident | $1,285 | $761 | $1,336 | $725 |
| Debt per resident | $2,201 | $183 | $1,590 | $1,640 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $779 | $301 | $1,657 | $591 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 5.3 | 2.6 | 4.1 | 2.2 |
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). Brentwood and Yorba Linda and Union City and Lynwood pays another agency for police or fire, so its own staff count is lower.
What Lynwood 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 Lynwood
- Yes: City manager's contract findable onlineSuja Lowenthal's employment agreement is attached to the Jan. 6, 2026 council agenda packet. City of Lynwood · Jan 6, 2026
- Yes: Council votes recorded member by member onlineResolutions in council agenda packets list each member's vote, e.g. a June 16, 2026 resolution passed with all five members voting yes. City of Lynwood · Jun 16, 2026
- Yes: Council pay stated in a public documentThe salary schedule adopted June 2, 2026 lists council member pay at $975 a month. City of Lynwood · Jun 2, 2026
- Partly: Employee pay publishedThe city publishes a salary schedule with pay ranges by job title. It does not post pay for each employee. City of Lynwood · Jun 2, 2026
Questions to ask your council
- The FY2024-25 audit report was dated April 30, 2026, ten months after year end. What would it take to finish it sooner?
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