How Riverbank is run
Who runs Riverbank, 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 Riverbank's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.
Who runs Riverbank
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
- Six months' base salary as severance if fired without cause
- CalPERS 2.5% at 55 classic pension plan; she pays the 7% employee share
- $7,500 a year paid into a deferred compensation plan
- $200 a month car allowance and $65 a month cell phone allowance
- 25 vacation days a year plus 96 hours of executive leave
Riverbank city staff
The city posts salary ranges by job title on its Salaries page, not pay for named employees. Police work is done by Sheriff's deputies under contract, so they are not city employees. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Riverbank 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 general fund budget has a structural operating deficit of $2.7 million. Reserves are projected to fall from $6.3 million on July 1, 2026 to $3.6 million on June 30, 2027, about 17% of spending, above the 15% the city requires ($2.8 million). City of Riverbank · Jun 23, 2026
Savings against the city's own target
Unassigned general fund balance: $10.5M (2025-06-30). The city's own target: The council requires a general fund reserve of 13% to 15% of current-year spending. City of Riverbank · Jan 26, 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
- Taxes (sales, property and other taxes)$12.2M · 65%
- Charges for services$1.5M · 8%
- Transfers in from other city funds$1.2M · 7%
- Licenses and permits$624,479 · 3%
- Interest$240,000 · 1%
- Grants$180,000 · 1%
- Other (fines and penalties)$53,553 · 0%
- From reserves (budgeted structural deficit)$2.7M · 14%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Police (Stanislaus County Sheriff contract)$7.5M · 40%
- Economic development$1.5M · 8%
- Parks$1.4M · 8%
- Administrative services$1.3M · 7%
- Development services administration$993,762 · 5%
- Recreation$909,921 · 5%
- Planning$895,046 · 5%
- Other (finance, storm water, city manager, animal and code control, council, building, maintenance, legal)$4.2M · 23%
Who provides your services
Not everything in Riverbank is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceContractorStanislaus County Sheriff's Department (Riverbank Police Services)City of Riverbank
- Fire and emergency responseSeparate districtStanislaus Consolidated Fire Protection DistrictCity of Riverbank
- WaterThe cityCity of Riverbank Water DivisionCity of Riverbank
- SewerThe cityCity of RiverbankCity of Riverbank · Jan 26, 2026
- Parks and recreationThe cityCity of Riverbank Parks and RecreationCity of Riverbank · Jun 23, 2026
- City streetsThe cityCity of RiverbankCity of Riverbank · Jan 26, 2026
- Street sweepingContractorCentral Valley SweepingCity of Riverbank · 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 | HerculesCA | South PasadenaCA | PattersonCA | RiverbankCA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 26,323 | 26,380 | 26,386 | 26,594 |
| Top administrator's base pay | $260,000 | $312,000 | $244,660 | Not current (2022) |
| Council member pay | $9,979 | $11,400 | Not confirmed | $10,800 |
| General fund per resident | $813 | $1,697 | $1,560 | $705 |
| Debt per resident | $1,767 | $1,979 | $3,245 | $218 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $798 | $1,735 | $478 | $352 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 2.5 | 6.7 | 6.1 | — |
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). Hercules and Patterson and Riverbank pays another agency for police or fire, so its own staff count is lower.
What Riverbank 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 Riverbank
- Yes: City manager's contract findable onlineThe 2022 employment agreement is in the April 12, 2022 agenda packet. We found no later amendment online. City of Riverbank · Apr 12, 2022
- Yes: Council votes recorded member by member onlineCouncil minutes list each member's vote, e.g. the 4-1 vote adopting the FY2026-27 budget. City of Riverbank · Jun 23, 2026
- Yes: Council pay stated in a public documentThe council compensation plan states $900 a month for council members and $950 for the mayor. City of Riverbank · Dec 6, 2024
- Partly: Employee pay publishedThe Salaries page posts pay ranges by job title. We found no city list of actual pay by employee. City of Riverbank
Questions to ask your council
- The FY2026-27 general fund budget has a $2.7 million structural deficit and projects reserves falling to $3.6 million by June 30, 2027. What is the plan to close the gap in later years?
- Unassigned general fund balance was $10.5 million on June 30, 2025, but the budget starts FY2026-27 with $6.3 million in reserve. What used the difference?
- Police services under the Sheriff's contract are the largest general fund cost. How will the council weigh adding the extra deputy the police chief requested?
- The city's CalPERS unfunded liability payment rose 10.06% to $970,291 this year. How will rising pension costs be covered?
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