How Tustin is run
Who runs Tustin, 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 Tustin's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 9, 2026.
Who runs Tustin
A City Manager appointed by the council runs the city day to day and appoints department directors. The council has five members: a mayor elected citywide and four members elected by district, all for four-year terms. The council sets policy, approves the budget and appoints the City Manager and City Attorney.
What they are paid
- 12 months' salary plus 12 months of flexible benefits as severance if let go without cause
- $3,200 a month flexible benefits contribution for health and other insurance
- City pays 50% of the yearly 457(b) deferred compensation limit
- City-paid $300,000 life insurance policy
- $200 a month technology allowance
- CalPERS pension, retiree medical and a vehicle allowance as set for executive managers
- May cash out 80 hours of general leave once a year
Tustin city staff
339 full-time-equivalent positions, including Police 166, Public Works 84. FY2026-27. City of Tustin · Jun 2, 2026
The city posts a salary schedule with hourly pay ranges for every job title, including the City Manager. We did not pull pay bands from the State Controller database. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Tustin 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.
Savings against the city's own target
Unassigned general fund balance: $117M (2025-06-30). The city's own target: Keep general fund reserves of 15% to 20% of yearly general fund operating spending; they may fall below 15% only if the council declares a financial emergency. The city projects $22 million (21% of recurring spending) at June 30, 2027, above the target. A separate $1 million emergency reserve exists. The audited unassigned balance is much larger because the general fund also holds Tustin Legacy land sale money. City of Tustin · Dec 22, 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
- Sales tax$38.7M · 31%
- Property taxes (incl. in-lieu of vehicle license fees)$29.3M · 24%
- Transfers in (mostly land sale proceeds)$22.4M · 18%
- Building and planning permit fees$8.7M · 7%
- Use of city property$3.1M · 2%
- Hotel tax$2.3M · 2%
- Franchise fees$1.9M · 2%
- Other (fines, recreation fees, reimbursements, misc.)$13M · 11%
- From reserves$3.5M · 3%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Police$45.4M · 37%
- Non-departmental (pension paydown, shelter, transfers for vehicles and technology)$22.4M · 18%
- Public works$19.9M · 16%
- Fire and paramedics (Orange County Fire Authority contract)$11.5M · 9%
- Community development$7.2M · 6%
- Parks and recreation$6.8M · 6%
- Administration (council, clerk, attorney, manager, finance, HR)$9.9M · 8%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
Most of a Tustin property tax bill is the 1% base levy set by Proposition 13, shared by the county, the city, schools and special districts. The rest repays voter-approved Tustin Unified school bonds and Metropolitan Water District debt. The city has no voter-approved debt rate of its own. Rates differ slightly in other parts of the city.
0¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Tustin
- 1% base levy (county, city, schools, special districts)The city receives about 13 cents of each dollar of this levy1 · 92%
- Tustin Unified School District bonds0.08449 · 8%
- Metropolitan Water District0.007 · <1%
- Total (percent of assessed value)1.09149
FY2025-26 rates for a home in Tustin (tax rate area 13-001, Orange County). Orange County Auditor-Controller · Sep 1, 2025
See what a Tustin house pays, line by line →Who provides your services
Not everything in Tustin is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityTustin Police DepartmentCity of Tustin
- FireContractorOrange County Fire AuthorityContract renewed in FY2007-08 for twenty more yearsCity of Tustin
- EMS / ambulanceContractorOrange County Fire Authority (paramedic services)City of Tustin
- 911 dispatchThe cityTustin Police Department Communications UnitCity of Tustin
- WaterThe cityCity of Tustin Water Services (water enterprise fund)City of Tustin
- SewerSeparate districtEast Orange County Water District and Irvine Ranch Water DistrictCity of Tustin
- Trash and recyclingContractorCR&R IncorporatedCity of Tustin
- ParksThe cityCity of Tustin Parks and Recreation and Public WorksCity of Tustin
- City streetsThe cityCity of Tustin Public WorksCity of Tustin
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 | NapaCA | TustinCA | AlamedaCA | PerrisCA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 77,803 | 79,175 | 80,023 | 81,027 |
| Top administrator's base pay | $303,779 | $354,286 | $383,111 | $332,497 |
| Council member pay | $17,220 | $22,800 | Not current (2023) | $19,478 |
| General fund per resident | $2,173 | $1,553 | $1,990 | $1,109 |
| Debt per resident | $477 | $480 | $716 | $1,896 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $2,803 | $930 | $3,891 | $61 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 6.8 | 4.3 | 6.4 | 2.7 |
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). Tustin and Perris pays another agency for police or fire, so its own staff count is lower.
What Tustin 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 Tustin
- Yes: City manager's contract findable online City of Tustin
- Yes: Meeting videos and minutes onlineThe Granicus portal posts agendas, minutes and video for council and commission meetings. City of Tustin
- Yes: Council pay stated in a public documentThe salary schedule lists council and mayor pay at $1,900 a month under Ordinance 1511. City of Tustin · Jun 16, 2026
- Partly: Employee pay published City of Tustin · Jun 16, 2026
Questions to ask your council
- CalPERS reported $73.6 million of unfunded pension liability for the city at June 30, 2025. With the five-year paydown plan finished, how will the council track progress toward the 2031 target for the PARS trust?
- The FY2026-27 budget moves $22.4 million into the general fund, mostly from Tustin Legacy land sale proceeds. How will services be funded when land sales end?
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