How San Mateo is run
Who runs San Mateo, 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 San Mateo's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.
Who runs San Mateo
A city manager appointed by the council is the chief executive officer and runs the city day to day. The five council members, elected by district to four-year terms, are the legislative and policy-making body and pick one of themselves as mayor each December. Fire service comes from a joint fire department shared with Belmont and Foster City.
What they are paid
- Contract runs Aug. 21, 2023 to Aug. 20, 2028 and renews each year unless four of five council members vote not to renew
- Severance of 12 months' salary plus 12 months of health insurance allowance if fired while willing and able to do the job
- $1,500 a month city contribution to his deferred compensation plan
- The same benefits as department heads, including health and life insurance, retirement and a car allowance
- Gets the same cost-of-living raises as unrepresented department heads
- City medical insurance worth up to $31,250 a year, or a $499.92 yearly flexible spending benefit if waived
- CalPERS retirement: the city projects $1,359 a year (9.44% of pay)
- After 5 years in CalPERS and retirement from the council, an optional $385 a month toward medical insurance
San Mateo city staff
633 full-time-equivalent positions, including Police 177, Public Works 166, Parks and Recreation 109. FY2026-27. 632.79 full-time equivalents in all funds: 556.63 merit positions plus 76.16 per diem. Down from 636.65 in FY2025-26. The budget freezes ten vacant positions. City of San Mateo · Jun 15, 2026
The city posts a master salary schedule with the pay range for every job title, and links to the State Controller's pay database for actual pay. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is San Mateo 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 draws $16.8 million from reserves to cover a deficit. The city's ten-year forecast shows deficits in every year of the forecast, with general fund balance falling from $119.5 million to below zero by FY2032-33 if nothing changes. The city says it faces an ongoing $5 to $7 million structural deficit even if state VLF funding is fully restored, and it has frozen ten vacant positions as part of a financial sustainability plan. City of San Mateo · Jun 15, 2026
Savings against the city's own target
Unassigned general fund balance: $107M (2025-06-30). The city's own target: Keep a Contingency Reserve of 15% of budgeted general fund operating spending and a Budget Stabilization Reserve of 15% of budgeted general fund revenues, plus a Housing Set-Aside Reserve and a Pension Stabilization Reserve. All four are held in unassigned fund balance. City of San Mateo · Jan 6, 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$85M · 45%
- Sales taxes (local 1%, Prop. 172 and the quarter-cent Measure S)$27.9M · 15%
- From reserves (unassigned fund balance)$16.8M · 9%
- Transfers in from other city funds (overhead charges, sewer fund rent, gas tax)$10.2M · 5%
- Property transfer tax$9M · 5%
- Business license tax$8.3M · 4%
- Permits, fees and fines$7.7M · 4%
- Interest and miscellaneous$6.6M · 3%
- Other (recreation and golf fees, hotel tax, franchises, state and county aid)$19.1M · 10%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Police$67.3M · 35%
- Fire (San Mateo Consolidated Fire Department contribution and legacy fire costs)$40.7M · 21%
- Parks and recreation$25M · 13%
- Administration (council, manager, clerk, attorney, finance, HR, IT)$19.6M · 10%
- Public works$11.7M · 6%
- Library$9.9M · 5%
- Transfers out (capital projects, debt service)$7.1M · 4%
- Other (non-departmental, community development)$9.3M · 5%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
Every property pays the 1% base levy, and about 17.6 cents of each base-levy dollar goes to the city. Voter-approved bond rates for the school and college districts, plus a small city library bond, are added on top. Rates in a given neighborhood can differ by school district.
16¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of San Mateo
- 1% base levy: share to other San Mateo County agencies (county, schools, special districts)0.8239 · 73%
- 1% base levy: City of San Mateo share0.1761 · 16%
- Voter-approved school and college district bondsSan Mateo-Foster City, San Mateo Union High and San Mateo County Community College district bonds0.1233 · 11%
- City of San Mateo library bonds (voter-approved)0.003 · <1%
- Total (percent of assessed value)1.1263
FY2024-25 rates for a property in the city of San Mateo (San Mateo County). City of San Mateo · Jan 6, 2026
See what a San Mateo home costs each year, line by line →Who provides your services
Not everything in San Mateo is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe citySan Mateo Police DepartmentCity of San Mateo · Jan 6, 2026
- Fire and emergency responseAnother agencySan Mateo Consolidated Fire Department (joint agency of San Mateo, Belmont and Foster City)City of San Mateo · Jan 6, 2026
- Sewer and wastewater treatmentThe cityCity of San Mateo sewer enterpriseCity of San Mateo · Jan 6, 2026
- Trash and recyclingContractorRecology San Mateo County, through the South Bayside Waste Management Authority (RethinkWaste)City of San Mateo
- LibraryThe citySan Mateo Public Library (main library and two branches)City of San Mateo · Jan 6, 2026
- Parks and recreationThe cityCity of San Mateo Parks and Recreation35 parks, six recreation centers and an 18-hole golf courseCity of San Mateo · Jan 6, 2026
- StreetsThe cityCity of San Mateo Public WorksCity of San Mateo · Jan 6, 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 | VacavilleCA | HesperiaCA | San MateoCA | El CajonCA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 103,195 | 103,349 | 104,020 | 104,932 |
| Top administrator's base pay | $301,000 | $280,686 | $380,120 | $341,260 |
| Council member pay | $9,948 | $3,600 | $14,400 | $28,032 |
| General fund per resident | $1,641 | $583 | $1,833 | $1,016 |
| Debt per resident | $900 | $302 | $7,373 | $1,271 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $2,255 | $347 | $2,644 | $770 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 6.5 | 2.0 | 6.1 | 4.0 |
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). Hesperia and San Mateo pays another agency for police or fire, so its own staff count is lower.
What San Mateo 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 San Mateo
- Yes: City manager's contract findable online City of San Mateo
- Yes: Council votes recorded member by member onlineMinutes list each member's yes or no vote, such as the 5-0 vote adopting the FY2026-27 budget on June 15, 2026. City of San Mateo · Jun 15, 2026
- Yes: Council pay stated in a public documentOrdinance 2024-3 sets $1,200 a month, and a city web page lists council pay and benefit costs. City of San Mateo
- Yes: Employee pay published City of San Mateo
Questions to ask your council
- The FY2026-27 general fund budget uses $16.8 million of reserves, and the city's forecast shows the fund balance falling below zero by FY2032-33. Which cuts or new revenues will close the gap?
- The city says it still faces a $5 to $7 million yearly structural deficit even if state VLF funding is fully restored. What is the plan to close that part of the gap?
- The city pays $40.7 million a year to the joint fire department and its legacy fire costs. How is San Mateo's share of that cost set, and how has it changed?
The fiscal year starts July 1. Council sets priorities at a strategic planning workshop in February and gets a budget preview in mid-April. Two public hearings follow in June: the first on June 1, 2026, and the council adopted the FY2026-27 budget 5-0 on June 15, 2026. See who is running for council
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