How Temple Terrace is run
Who runs Temple Terrace, 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 Temple Terrace's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 9, 2026.
Who runs Temple Terrace
A city manager hired by the council runs the city day to day and appoints the department directors. The council of five, including the mayor, passes ordinances and resolutions and appoints the city manager, city clerk and city attorney.
What they are paid
- Eligible at minimum for the yearly raises given to the city's non-union employees
Temple Terrace city staff
333 full-time-equivalent positions, including Public safety 150, Public works and utilities 70, Leisure services 49, General government 39, Sanitation 23, Roadway 3. FY2026-27. Full-time equivalent positions in all funds; 249.4 are in the general fund. City of Temple Terrace · Sep 17, 2026
The budget shows wages by department and position counts, not pay for each position. Florida has no statewide pay database. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Temple Terrace 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: $15.1M (2025-09-30). The city's own target: The general fund should strive to keep unassigned reserves of at least 25% of operating spending, including debt service. The audit says the city met this. The city estimates unassigned reserves of $12.7 million, 31.84% of operating spending, on Oct. 1, 2026. City of Temple Terrace · Jun 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
- Property taxes$20.1M · 49%
- Utility and other taxes$5.5M · 13%
- State and county shared revenue$4.4M · 11%
- Franchise fees (TECO electric and gas)$3.6M · 9%
- Overhead charged to utility and other funds$2M · 5%
- Charges for services$1.9M · 5%
- Interest$1.2M · 3%
- Other (recreation, permits, fines, rentals, donations, misc.)$2.6M · 6%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Police$12.9M · 31%
- Fire and EMS$11.8M · 29%
- Public works$3.6M · 9%
- Parks and recreation$3M · 7%
- Non-departmental (transfers, retiree health)$1.9M · 5%
- Information technology$1.3M · 3%
- City manager's office and communications$1.3M · 3%
- Other (human resources, library, finance, council and clerk, code compliance, legal, planning)$5.5M · 13%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
Of each property-tax dollar a Temple Terrace homeowner pays, about 33 cents goes to the city. The city runs its own library, so city homes do not pay the county library levy. The council kept the 6.455 mill rate for FY2027.
33¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Temple Terrace
- City of Temple Terrace6.455 · 33%
- Hillsborough County schools (local and state levy)6.34 · 32%
- Hillsborough County general revenue5.4608 · 28%
- Transit authority (HART)0.5 · 3%
- Children's Board0.4589 · 2%
- Southwest Florida Water Management District0.1831 · <1%
- Port authority0.0737 · <1%
- Hillsborough County environmental lands0.0604 · <1%
- Total (mills)19.5319
2025 tax year (FY2025-26) final rates for a home in Temple Terrace (Hillsborough County). Hillsborough County Property Appraiser · Oct 6, 2025
See what a Temple Terrace home costs each year, line by line →Who provides your services
Not everything in Temple Terrace is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityCity of Temple Terrace Police DepartmentCity of Temple Terrace · Jun 26, 2026
- FireThe cityTemple Terrace Fire DepartmentCity of Temple Terrace · Jun 26, 2026
- WaterThe cityCity of Temple TerraceCity of Temple Terrace · Jun 26, 2026
- LibraryThe cityCity of Temple TerraceCity of Temple Terrace · Jun 26, 2026
- Parks and recreationThe cityCity of Temple TerraceCity of Temple Terrace · Jun 26, 2026
- City streetsThe cityCity of Temple TerraceCity of Temple Terrace · Jun 26, 2026
- Planning and zoningThe cityCity of Temple TerraceCity of Temple Terrace · Jun 26, 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 | EdgewaterFL | Key WestFL | Temple TerraceFL | VeniceFL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 25,655 | 26,526 | 27,698 | 29,802 |
| Top administrator's base pay | $185,000 | $265,000 | $211,000 | $224,895 |
| Council member pay | $18,000 | Not confirmed | $9,200 | $22,646 |
| General fund per resident | $1,654 | $3,904 | $1,489 | $1,873 |
| Debt per resident | $1,246 | $201 | $361 | $2,826 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $302 | $279 | $908 | $1,395 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 9.0 | 20.2 | 12.0 | 13.5 |
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).
What Temple Terrace publishes
What a resident can find online today. A "no" is something you can ask the council to publish.
- No: City manager's contract findable onlineThe council approved a new agreement Sept. 16, 2025. Minutes state the salary, but we did not find the agreement on the city site or agenda portal. City of Temple Terrace · Oct 21, 2025
- Yes: Council votes recorded member by member onlineMinutes in the agenda packets list how the mayor and each council member voted on each motion. City of Temple Terrace · Oct 21, 2025
- Partly: Council pay stated in a public documentThe city's 2026 election notice states council members are paid $9,200 a year. We did not find the mayor's pay stated. City of Temple Terrace · Jul 1, 2026
Questions to ask your council
- The police pension plan is 73.53% funded and the firefighters' plan 85.90%, with $25.1 million unfunded in total. What is the plan to close that gap?
- About $4.8 million of Hurricane Milton costs had not been repaid by FEMA at Sept. 30, 2025. How much has come in since, and where will it go?
The fiscal year starts Oct. 1. Departments begin budget work in February, and the city manager presents the proposed budget to the council in workshops in July. The council held the first public hearing Sept. 3, 2026 and adopted the FY2027 budget and the 6.455 mill tax rate on Sept. 17, 2026. See who is running for council
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