How Santa Barbara is run
Who runs Santa Barbara, 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 Santa Barbara's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 9, 2026.
Who runs Santa Barbara
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
- Car allowance of $755 a month, indexed to the IRS mileage rate
- Housing allowance of $3,423 a month for her first 36 months
- Six months' severance pay if the council ends her employment without cause
- The November 2025 raise proposal added a $24,000 yearly city contribution to a deferred compensation plan
Santa Barbara city staff
1,156 full-time-equivalent positions, including Police 218, Public Works 158, Water Resources 147, Fire 106, Parks & Recreation 85. FY2026-27. Budgeted full-time equivalent positions, all departments, including water, wastewater, airport and waterfront. City of Santa Barbara · Jul 1, 2026
The city's salary resolution lists monthly, biweekly and hourly pay ranges for every job class. We did not pull pay bands from the State Controller's database. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Santa Barbara 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 FY2027 general fund budget is balanced with a small surplus, but adding the contribution needed to rebuild reserves turns it into a $3.4 million deficit, and many of the fixes are one-time. Its five-year forecast projects operating deficits in each year, with reserves fully used up by FY2029. City of Santa Barbara · Jul 1, 2026
Savings
Unassigned general fund balance: $-15.2M (2025-06-30). That means every dollar the general fund has saved is set aside in a named reserve or category, not that it has no savings. City of Santa Barbara · Mar 3, 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 (adopted).
Comes from
- Property tax$56.5M · 25%
- Sales and use tax$32.5M · 15%
- Transient occupancy (hotel) tax$31M · 14%
- Charges to other city funds$29.3M · 13%
- Fees and service charges$21.7M · 10%
- Measure I sales tax (half cent, 2024)$16.4M · 7%
- Utility users tax$10.5M · 5%
- Other (business license, real property transfer and cannabis taxes, other revenue, fines, interest and rents, grants, permits)$24.3M · 11%
Goes to (FY2026-27 (adopted))
- Police$66.3M · 30%
- Fire$47.5M · 21%
- Parks and Recreation$28.8M · 13%
- Public Works$17.1M · 8%
- Community Development$16.8M · 8%
- City Administrator's Office$13.2M · 6%
- Library$10.5M · 5%
- Other (Finance, City Attorney, Mayor and Council, Human Resources, general government, sustainability)$21.7M · 10%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
The city has no voter-approved property tax rate of its own. Its share of the 1% base levy is about 12 cents of each base-levy dollar (0.11963%). The city's table also lists bond rates for the Cold Spring, Hope, Goleta and Montecito elementary districts; not every rate applies to every home in the city.
0¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Santa Barbara
- 1% base levy (shared by the county, the city, schools and other agencies)1 · 95%
- Santa Barbara elementary school district bonds0.02584 · 2%
- Santa Barbara high school district bonds0.0238 · 2%
- Santa Barbara Community College bonds0.00713 · <1%
- Total (% of assessed value)1.05677
FY2024-25 rates for a home in the city of Santa Barbara in the Santa Barbara elementary and high school districts. City of Santa Barbara · Mar 3, 2026
See what a Santa Barbara home costs each year, line by line →Who provides your services
Not everything in Santa Barbara is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe citySanta Barbara Police DepartmentCity of Santa Barbara · Jul 1, 2026
- 911 dispatchThe citySanta Barbara Police DepartmentCity of Santa Barbara · Jul 1, 2026
- Fire and emergency medical responseThe citySanta Barbara Fire DepartmentEight fire stationsCity of Santa Barbara · Jul 1, 2026
- WaterThe cityCity of Santa Barbara Water ResourcesCity of Santa Barbara · Jul 1, 2026
- Sewer (wastewater)The cityCity of Santa Barbara Water ResourcesCity of Santa Barbara · Jul 1, 2026
- LibraryThe citySanta Barbara Public Library (city department)City of Santa Barbara · Mar 3, 2026
- Parks and recreationThe cityCity of Santa Barbara Parks and RecreationOver 1,800 acres of parklandCity of Santa Barbara · Jul 1, 2026
- StreetsThe cityCity of Santa Barbara Public WorksCity of Santa Barbara · Jul 1, 2026
- AirportThe citySanta Barbara Municipal Airport (city department)City of Santa Barbara · Mar 3, 2026
- Harbor and Stearns WharfThe cityCity of Santa Barbara Waterfront DepartmentCity of Santa Barbara · Jul 1, 2026
- Animal controlThe citySanta Barbara Police DepartmentCity of Santa Barbara · Jul 1, 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 | San RamonCA | Santa BarbaraCA | HawthorneCA | LivermoreCA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 84,220 | 85,083 | 85,515 | 86,118 |
| Top administrator's base pay | $366,233 | $353,577 | $323,400 | $392,895 |
| Council member pay | $13,031 | $66,416 | Not confirmed | $13,482 |
| General fund per resident | $1,021 | $2,609 | $1,368 | $1,843 |
| Debt per resident | $603 | $3,020 | $1,789 | $991 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $557 | $4,638 | $203 | $1,832 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 3.3 | 13.6 | 4.9 | 5.9 |
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). San Ramon and Livermore pays another agency for police or fire, so its own staff count is lower.
What Santa Barbara 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 Santa Barbara
- Yes: Council pay stated in a public documentThe city's salary table lists monthly pay of $5,534.66 for council members and $6,918.34 for the mayor. City of Santa Barbara · Sep 15, 2026
- Yes: Employee pay published City of Santa Barbara · Jun 30, 2026
Questions to ask your council
- The FY2027 budget counts on $16.4 million from the Measure I sales tax. Which services would be cut if it came in lower?
- The city's long-term debt was $257.0 million at June 30, 2025, much of it 2024 bonds for the new police station and Dwight Murphy Field Park. How much will the general fund pay on that debt each year?
The fiscal year runs July 1 to June 30, on a two-year budget plan. For FY2027 the council held a budget work session April 9, 2026; the city administrator filed the recommended budget April 21; hearings followed May 5 (Finance Committee), May 12, May 19, June 9, June 16 and June 23; and the council adopted the budget June 30, 2026. See who is running for council
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