How Elko is run
Who runs Elko, 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 Elko's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.
Who runs Elko
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.
Charter of the City of Elko (Nevada Legislature) · Jul 1, 2025
What they are paid
- Six months' salary as severance if let go without cause after two years
- Same benefits as city department heads
- Up to $2,000 a year for professional and community group dues
- City-paid cell phone for city business
- Annual leave of 6.4615 hours per pay period, up to 240 hours
- Serves at will, with no fixed term
- Salary is fixed by the council itself under the city charter
Elko city staff
197 full-time-equivalent positions, including Public safety 76, Public works 31. FY2026-27 adopted budget. All funds, down from 208 in FY2025-26. City of Elko · May 26, 2026
The city publishes pay grades in job descriptions. We found no city list of pay by employee. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Elko 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
We found no multi-year forecast in the budget. The FY2026-27 budget plans general fund spending $3.0 million above revenue, drawing the fund balance down from $16.1 million to $11.9 million. That is still above the 8.3% balance City Code requires ($2.57 million). City of Elko · May 26, 2026
Savings
Unassigned general fund balance: $11.3M (2025-06-30). City of Elko · Nov 19, 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 (state-shared)$15.6M · 48%
- Property tax$4.8M · 15%
- Drawn from fund balance$4.2M · 13%
- Licenses, permits and franchise fees$2.5M · 8%
- Government services tax (vehicles)$2M · 6%
- Charges for services$824,720 · 3%
- Other$2.3M · 7%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Public safety$17.2M · 53%
- Public works$6.5M · 20%
- General government$3.5M · 11%
- Recreation$1.3M · 4%
- Animal shelter and cemetery$1M · 3%
- Community support$1M · 3%
- Other (transfers, court, contingency)$1.7M · 5%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
About 35 cents of each property-tax dollar goes to the city ($1.2977 of $3.66 per $100 of assessed value). The rest goes to the county, schools, state and other entities.
35¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Elko
- Elko County, school district, state and other entities2.3623 · 65%
- City of ElkoGeneral fund 0.6148; the rest goes to capital, equipment, facility and debt funds1.2977 · 35%
- Total ($ per $100 of assessed value)3.66
FY2026-27 rates for a home in the city of Elko (tax district 11.0). City of Elko · Sep 23, 2026
Who provides your services
Not everything in Elko is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityElko Police DepartmentCity of Elko · Sep 23, 2026
- FireThe cityElko Fire DepartmentCity of Elko · Sep 23, 2026
- WaterThe cityCity of Elko Water FundCity of Elko · Nov 19, 2025
- SewerThe cityCity of Elko Sewer FundCity of Elko · Nov 19, 2025
- LandfillThe cityCity of Elko regional landfillCity of Elko · Nov 19, 2025
- StreetsThe cityCity of Elko Streets DepartmentCity of Elko · Sep 23, 2026
- ParksThe cityCity of Elko ParksCity of Elko · May 26, 2026
- AirportThe cityElko Regional Airport (city-run)City of Elko · Nov 19, 2025
- Animal shelter and cemeteryThe cityCity of ElkoCity of Elko · May 26, 2026
- Golf courseThe cityCity of Elko Golf FundCity of Elko · Sep 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 | Boulder CityNV | ElkoNV | MesquiteNV | FernleyNV |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 14,884 | 21,019 | 24,001 | 26,214 |
| Top administrator's base pay | $222,052 | Not current (2023) | $170,000 | Not confirmed |
| Council member pay | $20,000 | $9,636 | Not confirmed | $15,204 |
| General fund per resident | $3,363 | $1,531 | $1,505 | $1,259 |
| Debt per resident | $845 | $387 | $408 | $1,750 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $3,281 | $1,552 | $1,548 | $417 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 15.0 | 9.4 | — | 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). Fernley pays another agency for police or fire, so its own staff count is lower.
What Elko publishes
What a resident can find online today. A "no" is something you can ask the council to publish.
- Yes: Council pay stated in a public documentA December 2024 agenda sheet states mayor pay of $14,460 and council pay of $9,636 a year. City of Elko · Dec 10, 2024
- Partly: Employee pay published City of Elko · Nov 22, 2022
Questions to ask your council
- The FY2026-27 general fund budget of $32,178,909 relies on $4,201,272 drawn from fund balance. How will later budgets close that gap?
- Sales tax of $15,594,470 is more than half of general fund revenue. What would the city cut first if sales tax fell?
- The city's share of the state pension shortfall was $32,626,043 on June 30, 2025. How will rising contribution rates for police and fire be paid for?
- Mayor pay of $14,460 and council pay of $9,636 had not changed since 1991. Should pay be tied to another benchmark, such as county commission pay?
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