How Montebello is run
Who runs Montebello, 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 Montebello's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 9, 2026.
Who runs Montebello
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
- 18 months' base salary and benefits as a lump-sum severance if fired before the term ends
- City pays his full 8% CalPERS employee contribution (2.7% at 55 formula)
- Same raises, auto allowance, technology stipend and other pay approved for the executive management group
- City-paid health, dental, vision and life insurance
Montebello city staff
609 full-time-equivalent positions, including Transit 244, Police 119, Fire 101. FY2026-27. City of Montebello · Jun 10, 2026
The city publishes a compensation plan with yearly or hourly pay ranges for every position (Resolution No. 26-42). We did not add statewide pay-database totals. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Montebello 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 small general fund surpluses: $155,100 in the adopted FY2026-27 budget, then $50,500 in FY2027-28, $123,500 in FY2028-29 and $215,500 in FY2029-30. It assumes salaries grow 5.0% a year. City of Montebello · Jun 10, 2026
Savings
Unassigned general fund balance: $781,557 (2025-06-30). City of Montebello · Mar 31, 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
- Sales tax (including the Measure H 3/4-cent tax)$29.1M · 31%
- Property tax (including in-lieu vehicle license fees)$19.8M · 21%
- Licenses and permits$12.4M · 13%
- Charges for services (including residential trash billed on tax bills)$10.7M · 12%
- Transfers in (retirement tax reimbursing pension costs)$6.3M · 7%
- Other revenue$5.4M · 6%
- Franchise fees$4.1M · 4%
- Fines and forfeitures$3.4M · 4%
- Other (other taxes, interest, intergovernmental)$1.6M · 2%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Police$27M · 29%
- Fire and paramedics$22.1M · 24%
- Public works (streets, sewers, buildings, trash contract)$15.7M · 17%
- Parks and recreation$9.2M · 10%
- Community development$5.4M · 6%
- Finance$3.4M · 4%
- Non-departmental$3.4M · 4%
- Other (administration and elected offices, human resources, IT)$6.6M · 7%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
Rates per $100 of assessed value from the city's audited rate table, with the city's share of the 1% levy (9.86 cents per dollar) from its budget. About 22 cents of each property-tax dollar goes to the city, most of it from the retirement tax.
22¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Montebello
- Countywide 1% levy: Los Angeles County, schools and other agencies0.9014 · 67%
- City of Montebello: voter-approved retirement taxApproved by voters in 1946; pays city pension costs and pension bond debt0.19788 · 15%
- City of Montebello: share of the 1% levy0.0986 · 7%
- Montebello Unified School District bonds0.0916 · 7%
- Community college district bonds0.05136 · 4%
- Metropolitan Water District0.007 · <1%
- Total (% of assessed value)1.34784
FY2024-25 rates for a home in Montebello Unified School District (Los Angeles County). City of Montebello · Mar 31, 2026
See what a Montebello house pays, line by line →Who provides your services
Not everything in Montebello is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityMontebello Police DepartmentCity of Montebello
- FireThe cityMontebello Fire Department (3 stations)City of Montebello · Jun 10, 2026
- EMS (paramedics)The cityMontebello Fire Department paramedic rescue squadsCity of Montebello · Jun 10, 2026
- Ambulance transportContractorFalck AmbulanceCity of Montebello · Jun 10, 2026
- 911 dispatch (police)The cityMontebello Police Department Communications CenterCity of Montebello · Jun 10, 2026
- Water (former city system)Private companySan Gabriel Valley Water CompanyBought the city's water system in February 2023City of Montebello · Jun 10, 2026
- SewersThe cityCity of Montebello Public WorksCity of Montebello · Jun 10, 2026
- Bus transitThe cityMontebello Bus Lines (city-run)Third largest transit system in Los Angeles CountyCity of Montebello
- Animal controlAnother agencySoutheast Area Animal Control AuthorityCity of Montebello · Jun 10, 2026
- Golf courseThe cityCity of Montebello (city-owned course)City of Montebello · Jun 10, 2026
- HotelsThe cityCity-owned Hilton Garden Inn and Home2SuitesCity of Montebello · Jun 10, 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 | San ClementeCA | MontebelloCA | Santa CruzCA | PortervilleCA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 62,636 | 62,994 | 63,065 | 63,719 |
| Top administrator's base pay | $324,966 | $354,235 | Not current (2022) | $180,000 |
| Council member pay | Not current (1998) | $12,384 | $20,524 | Not confirmed |
| General fund per resident | $1,402 | $1,472 | $2,695 | $575 |
| Debt per resident | $128 | $4,812 | $4,197 | $1,226 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $685 | $422 | $3,531 | $962 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 3.2 | 9.7 | 15.6 | 5.2 |
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). San Clemente pays another agency for police or fire, so its own staff count is lower.
What Montebello 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 budget book, with reserve policies and a three-year forecast, is posted on the city's Budget page. City of Montebello
- Yes: Council votes recorded member by member onlineMinutes list each member's vote, e.g. the 4-0 vote adopting the FY2026-27 budget on June 10, 2026, with one member absent. City of Montebello · Jun 10, 2026
- Yes: Meeting videos and minutes onlineThe city's agendas page posts meeting materials and archive videos; approved minutes are posted, e.g. June 10, 2026. City of Montebello
- Yes: Council pay stated in a public documentThe FY2026-27 compensation plan (Resolution No. 26-42) lists council pay of $1,032 a month. City of Montebello · Jun 10, 2026
- Yes: Employee pay published City of Montebello · Jun 10, 2026
Questions to ask your council
- The city still owed $126.8 million on its 2020 pension obligation bonds in June 2025, paid from the voter-approved retirement tax. What is the plan for that tax once the bonds are repaid?
- Auditors qualified their opinion on the two city-owned hotel funds for FY2024-25. What has the city changed in the hotels' accounting since then?
The fiscal year starts July 1. The city holds community budget forums in February (three in February 2026), council budget review sessions in May, and adopts the budget in June. The FY2026-27 budget was adopted June 10, 2026, by a 4-0 vote with one member absent. See who is running for council
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