How Pacifica is run
Who runs Pacifica, 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 Pacifica's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 9, 2026.
Who runs Pacifica
A city manager hired by the council runs the city day to day and appoints the department directors. The five council members are elected by district to four-year overlapping terms, and the council picks the mayor from among its members each year.
What they are paid
- Severance of 12 months' salary plus health insurance if the council ends his employment without cause
- $10,000 a year in deferred compensation
- CalPERS pension at 2.5% at 55; he pays 11% of pay toward pension costs
- City-paid long-term disability insurance and $400,000 of term life insurance
- 24 days of vacation a year
Pacifica city staff
203 full-time-equivalent positions. FY2026-27. Citywide full-time equivalent count in the FY2026-27 budget's forecast assumptions. City of Pacifica · Jun 22, 2026
The city adopts pay schedules and labor agreements at public council meetings, such as the City Manager salary schedule on Dec. 8, 2025. Staff pay is not shown by name. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Pacifica 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 says the FY2026-27 budget is balanced but not structurally balanced: operating spending exceeds operating revenue, and it balances only with salary savings from vacant positions. The long-term forecast shows reserves could fall below two months of operating spending as early as FY2030-31 and be fully used up by FY2032-33, with deficits as high as $5.5 million in 2032. City of Pacifica · Jun 22, 2026
Savings against the city's own target
Unassigned general fund balance: $16.4M (2025-06-30). The city's own target: The council's minimum policy guideline is 10% of general fund operating spending for budget shortfalls. At June 30, 2025 the assigned balance included a $4.7 million budget shortfall reserve, and the unassigned balance was in addition to the 10% guideline. City of Pacifica · Jan 16, 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$18.4M · 34%
- Charges for services$7.6M · 14%
- Excess ERAF (state property tax refund)$3.9M · 7%
- Utility users tax$3.7M · 7%
- Vehicle license fees$3.5M · 6%
- Sales tax$3.2M · 6%
- Hotel tax (transient occupancy)$2.8M · 5%
- Other (Measure Y sales tax, intergovernmental, franchise, cannabis and business taxes, transfers, other)$10.8M · 20%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Police$14.5M · 26%
- Fire$9.4M · 17%
- General government$8M · 14%
- Parks, beaches and recreation$6.9M · 12%
- Community development$5.8M · 10%
- Public works$5.3M · 10%
- Non-departmental$5.6M · 10%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
Every property pays the 1% base levy. Voter-approved school and college bond rates are added on top. The city's share of the 1% levy is about 0.19 cents of each dollar of value.
0¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Pacifica
- 1% base levy (shared by the county, the city, schools and special districts)1 · 82%
- Jefferson high school and elementary school districts0.1316 · 11%
- Pacifica elementary school district0.0731 · 6%
- San Mateo junior college district0.0178 · 1%
- Total (percent of assessed value)1.2225
FY2024-25 rates for a home in Pacifica (San Mateo County). City of Pacifica · Jan 16, 2026
Who provides your services
Not everything in Pacifica is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityPacifica Police DepartmentCity of Pacifica · Jan 16, 2026
- Fire protectionAnother agencyNorth County Fire AuthorityProvides fire services to Pacifica, Daly City and BrisbaneCity of Pacifica · Jun 22, 2026
- Emergency medical servicesAnother agencyNorth County Fire AuthorityIts Emergency Medical Services divisionCity of Pacifica · Jun 22, 2026
- Sewer and wastewater treatmentThe cityCity of Pacifica sewer utilityRuns the wastewater collection system and water recycling plantCity of Pacifica · Jan 16, 2026
- Trash and recyclingContractorRecology of the CoastThe city's solid waste collection franchiseeCity of Pacifica · Jan 16, 2026
- Parks, beaches and recreationThe cityCity of PacificaCity of Pacifica · Jan 16, 2026
- Streets and stormwaterThe cityCity of PacificaCity of Pacifica · Jan 16, 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 | MartinezCA | AdelantoCA | PacificaCA | ClaremontCA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 36,521 | 36,652 | 37,073 | 38,262 |
| Top administrator's base pay | $282,468 | Not confirmed | $330,000 | $299,752 |
| Council member pay | $9,984 | $10,201 | Not confirmed | $15,300 |
| General fund per resident | $1,083 | $731 | $1,497 | $1,072 |
| Debt per resident | $1,451 | $1,780 | $1,913 | $370 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $1,460 | $47 | $1,879 | $1,341 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 4.1 | — | 5.5 | 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). Adelanto and Pacifica pays another agency for police or fire, so its own staff count is lower.
What Pacifica publishes
What a resident can find online today. A "no" is something you can ask the council to publish.
- Yes: City manager's contract findable onlineThe employment agreement with Sean Charpentier is Attachment A to the March 23, 2026 council item on the city's meeting portal. City of Pacifica · Mar 23, 2026
- Yes: Council votes recorded member by member onlineMinutes list ayes and nays by name, such as the 4 to 1 vote on the city manager appointment item on March 23, 2026. City of Pacifica · Mar 23, 2026
- Partly: Council pay stated in a public documentThe City Council budget page lists $122,000 for salaries and benefits in FY2026-27, with no pay rate per member. City of Pacifica · Jun 22, 2026
Questions to ask your council
- The city's forecast shows reserves could fall below two months of operating spending by FY2030-31, with deficits as high as $5.5 million in 2032. Which revenue measures or service changes will close that gap?
- The FY2026-27 general fund budget balances only with $1,565,517 of salary savings from vacant positions. How long can the city keep relying on vacancies?
- Net pension liability was $69.7 million in the latest audit, and the safety plan was 69.59% funded. How will rising pension payments fit into future budgets?
- Police ($14,486,747) and fire ($9,448,932) are the two largest parts of the $55,504,839 FY2026-27 general fund budget. How will the council protect response times if more cuts are needed?
The fiscal year starts July 1. For FY2026-27, the council held a strategic planning workshop on March 7, 2026, budget study sessions on April 13, May 11 and June 8, 2026, and a public hearing on June 22, 2026, the date of the adoption resolution. The mid-year review of the current budget comes in March; the FY2025-26 mid-year changes went to the council March 9, 2026. See who is running for council
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