How Placerville is run
Who runs Placerville, 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 Placerville's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 9, 2026.
Who runs Placerville
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
- Five months' base salary and health benefits as severance if fired without cause, rising one month per year of service to nine months
- Serves at the council's pleasure; the agreement expires January 1, 2030
- CalPERS pension and the same medical, dental and vision benefits as the Executive Management Unit
- $325 a month car allowance or a city vehicle, plus a $100 a month cell phone allowance
- 80 hours of management leave a year in addition to vacation
Placerville city staff
79 full-time-equivalent positions, including Police (incl. dispatch) 27, Public works 16. FY2026-27. City of Placerville · Jun 23, 2026
The city posts its salary schedule with pay ranges for every position and the city manager's contract. We found no city list of pay by employee. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Placerville 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 budget message says the city faced deficits of about $1 million in each of the two prior years, driven by flat revenues and rising costs. The FY2026-27 budget is balanced by freezing more positions and cutting general fund spending 1.91%, with only a $25,000 contingency. The city expects revenue growth of 0.78% this year and hopes for 2.90% in FY2027-28. City of Placerville · Jun 23, 2026
Savings
Unassigned general fund balance: $4.1M (2025-06-30). City of Placerville · Jun 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
- Sales tax$6.3M · 56%
- Other taxes (property, hotel, franchise and others)$1.6M · 15%
- Intergovernmental revenue$1.2M · 11%
- Charges for services$1.1M · 10%
- Other financing sources$567,491 · 5%
- Other (permits, fines, interest)$416,201 · 4%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Police (incl. 911 dispatch)$3.8M · 34%
- Community services (parks, recreation, facilities)$2.7M · 24%
- Non-departmental$1M · 9%
- City administration (manager, attorney, IT, HR, clerk)$952,859 · 9%
- Development services (planning, building)$869,148 · 8%
- Public works$815,372 · 7%
- Other (finance, engineering, city council)$949,535 · 9%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
Every property pays the 1% base levy, which the county collects and shares. Under a 1993 agreement, the city's share of property tax goes to the El Dorado County Fire Protection District to pay for fire and EMS service. Voter-approved school and college bonds bring the total to about 1.05%.
0¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Placerville
- 1% base levy (shared by the county, city, schools and others)1 · 95%
- Los Rios Community College District (voter-approved bonds)0.0208 · 2%
- Placerville Union School District (voter-approved bonds)0.016281 · 2%
- El Dorado Union High School District (voter-approved bonds)0.010422 · <1%
- Total (percent of assessed value)1.047503
2025 tax year (FY2025-26) rates for a home in the city of Placerville (El Dorado County, tax rate area 001-002). El Dorado County Auditor-Controller · Aug 18, 2025
Who provides your services
Not everything in Placerville is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityPlacerville Police DepartmentCity of Placerville · Jun 23, 2026
- 911 dispatchThe cityPlacerville Police dispatch centerCity of Placerville · Jun 23, 2026
- Fire and EMSSeparate districtEl Dorado County Fire Protection DistrictPaid with the city's property tax share: $2,303,285 in FY2024-25City of Placerville · Jun 30, 2026
- WaterThe cityCity of Placerville Public Works (water distribution)City of Placerville · Jun 23, 2026
- Parks and recreationThe cityCity of Placerville Community ServicesCity of Placerville · Jun 23, 2026
- StreetsThe cityCity of Placerville Public WorksCity of Placerville · Jun 23, 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 | Shasta LakeCA | FarmersvilleCA | PlacervilleCA | ClaytonCA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 10,195 | 10,338 | 10,428 | 10,759 |
| Top administrator's base pay | $255,981 | Not confirmed | $199,764 | $240,000 |
| Council member pay | $11,400 | Not confirmed | $4,236 | $5,640 |
| General fund per resident | $1,136 | $765 | $1,069 | $579 |
| Debt per resident | $2,672 | $1,489 | $3,595 | $90 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $271 | $155 | $2,373 | $637 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | — | 4.6 | 7.5 | 2.6 |
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). Shasta Lake and Placerville pays another agency for police or fire, so its own staff count is lower.
What Placerville publishes
What a resident can find online today. A "no" is something you can ask the council to publish.
- No: Audited financial report filed on timeThe FY2024-25 audit report is dated June 30, 2026, a full year after the fiscal year ended, and omits the management discussion and analysis. City of Placerville · Jun 30, 2026
- Yes: Adopted budget posted onlineThe FY2026-27 adopted operating budget is posted on the city's Finance pages. City of Placerville · Jun 23, 2026
- Yes: City manager's contract findable onlineJoseph Wren's employment agreement is attached to the Aug. 25, 2026 council agenda as item 12.2. City of Placerville · Aug 25, 2026
- Yes: Council votes recorded member by member onlineMinutes list each member's roll-call vote, such as the 5-0 vote adopting the FY2026-27 budget on June 23, 2026. City of Placerville · Jun 23, 2026
- Yes: Council pay stated in a public documentThe city's salary schedule lists City Councilmember pay of $4,236 a year ($353 a month). City of Placerville
- Partly: Employee pay published City of Placerville
Questions to ask your council
- The budget message says the city ran deficits of about $1 million in each of the two prior years, and the FY2026-27 budget freezes more positions and keeps only a $25,000 contingency. What is the plan if revenue growth stays near 0.78%?
- The FY2024-25 audit report is dated June 30, 2026, a full year after the fiscal year ended. What will the city do to finish future audits sooner?
- Unassigned general fund balance was $4.1 million on June 30, 2025, and we found no adopted reserve target. Will the council set one?
- The CalPERS plans were 63.86% and 69.40% funded, with a net pension liability of $24.7 million. How will the city pay down that liability while revenues are flat?
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