How Palm Springs is run
Who runs Palm Springs, 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 Palm Springs's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.
Who runs Palm Springs
A City Manager hired by the council runs the city day to day. The five council members are elected by district to staggered four-year terms, and the council picks one of them as mayor each year under a rotation policy. The council adopts the budget and also appoints the City Attorney.
What they are paid
- Car allowance of $500 a month
- 12 months' severance if removed without cause before March 6, 2026; none after that
- 10 hours of vacation a month plus 40 hours of administrative leave a year
- Four-year contract running through March 5, 2027
- $12,000 for moving costs and $3,000 a month in temporary housing aid for six months
Palm Springs city staff
661 full-time-equivalent positions, including Police 168, Aviation (airport) 114, Fire 100. FY2026-27. City of Palm Springs · Jun 24, 2026
The city adopts a pay plan each year that lists the pay range for every job title. We did not pull individual pay from the State Controller's database. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Palm Springs 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 FY2026-27 budget shows a $1.88M operating surplus in the general fund, and a $691,000 deficit after a one-time $2.6M housing payment. Staff warned in May 2026 that salaries and benefits will rise $5M to $6M each year, and that the city added $4M in FY2026-27 to run the Navigation Center as state grants end. City of Palm Springs · May 27, 2026
Savings
Unassigned general fund balance: $56.2M (2025-06-30). City of Palm Springs · Dec 18, 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
- Hotel tax (transient occupancy tax)$49.6M · 28%
- Property tax$39.1M · 22%
- Sales tax$30.9M · 17%
- Permits, fines and fees$16.7M · 9%
- Utility users tax$11M · 6%
- Vehicle license fee (state)$8.1M · 5%
- Other taxes$7.1M · 4%
- Other (charges to other funds, franchise fees, interest, cannabis tax)$15.1M · 8%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Police$47.1M · 27%
- Fire$30.1M · 17%
- Development services$22.7M · 13%
- General government$22M · 13%
- Parks and recreation$12M · 7%
- Public works$10.6M · 6%
- Administration and economic development$9.7M · 6%
- Other (tourism support, transfers, library, miscellaneous)$21.6M · 12%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
California's base property tax is 1% of assessed value, shared among the city, county, schools and other agencies. Voter-approved bonds and district rates are added on top. The city's audit notes that not all overlapping rates apply to every property.
18¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Palm Springs
- City of Palm Springs (share of the 1% base levy)0.22716 · 18%
- County, schools and other agencies (rest of the 1% base levy)0.77284 · 62%
- Palm Springs Unified School District bonds0.1065 · 8%
- Coachella Valley Water DistrictNot every property in the city pays this rate.0.11 · 9%
- Desert Community College District0.0395 · 3%
- Total (per $100 of assessed value)1.256
FY2024-25 rates for property in Palm Springs (Riverside County). City of Palm Springs · Dec 18, 2025
See what a Palm Springs home costs each year, line by line →Who provides your services
Not everything in Palm Springs is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityPalm Springs Police DepartmentCity of Palm Springs · Dec 18, 2025
- FireThe cityPalm Springs Fire DepartmentCity of Palm Springs · Dec 18, 2025
- WaterSeparate districtDesert Water AgencyCity of Palm Springs
- Sewer and wastewater treatmentContractorVeolia Water West Operating Services (under contract)The city owns the treatment plant; Veolia operates it and the collection system under contract.City of Palm Springs
- AirportThe cityPalm Springs International Airport (city)City of Palm Springs · Dec 18, 2025
- LibraryThe cityPalm Springs Public LibraryCity of Palm Springs · Dec 18, 2025
- City streetsThe cityCity of Palm Springs Public WorksCity of Palm Springs · Dec 18, 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 | CampbellCA | Palm SpringsCA | Rohnert ParkCA | HollisterCA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 43,195 | 43,893 | 44,191 | 44,233 |
| Top administrator's base pay | $358,883 | $325,000 | $335,466 | $265,000 |
| Council member pay | $15,300 | $41,604 | $15,300 | Not confirmed |
| General fund per resident | $1,713 | $4,004 | $1,309 | $1,279 |
| Debt per resident | $1,175 | $3,386 | $160 | $1,410 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $1,677 | $3,906 | $936 | $965 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 4.3 | 15.0 | 5.5 | 4.5 |
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). Campbell pays another agency for police or fire, so its own staff count is lower.
What Palm Springs publishes
What a resident can find online today. A "no" is something you can ask the council to publish.
- Yes: Adopted budget posted onlineThe two-year budget and the June 2026 changes for FY2026-27 are in the council agenda packets online. City of Palm Springs · Jun 10, 2026
- Yes: City manager's contract findable onlineThe full employment agreement is in the Jan. 26, 2023 council agenda packet. City of Palm Springs · Jan 26, 2023
- Yes: Council votes recorded member by member onlineMinutes list each member's vote (ayes, nays, abstentions and recusals) on each motion. City of Palm Springs
- Yes: Council pay stated in a public documentThe FY2026-27 pay plan lists council pay of $41,604 a year and mayor pay of $49,920. City of Palm Springs · Jun 24, 2026
- Partly: Employee pay published City of Palm Springs · Jun 24, 2026
Questions to ask your council
- Staff expect salaries and benefits to rise $5 million to $6 million each year. How will the general fund cover that after the FY2026-27 budget's $1.88 million operating surplus?
- The city's two CalPERS plans were $171.5 million unfunded at June 30, 2025. When will the planned $18 million Section 115 pension trust be set up?
- The general fund balance fell $26.6 million in FY2024-25, when the city paid $28 million toward pension debt. How much more of the reserves does the council plan to use for pensions?
- The city added $4 million in FY2026-27 to run the Navigation Center as state grants end. How will it be paid for in later years?
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