How Corvallis is run
Who runs Corvallis, 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 Corvallis's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.
Who runs Corvallis
The council appoints a city manager, who runs day-to-day operations, hires and fires city employees and serves as budget officer. The nine-member council, elected by ward, sets policy; the mayor presides and votes only to break a tie.
What they are paid
Corvallis city staff
534 full-time-equivalent positions. BN2025-27 adopted budget. Up from 529.05 FTE in FY2024-25. City of Corvallis · Jul 1, 2025
The adopted budget publishes salary ranges and FTE for every city position. We found no city-published list of pay by employee. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Corvallis 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 budget's forecast shows recurring general fund spending above recurring revenue by $3.4M in BN2025-27, $13.0M in BN2027-29 and $18.9M in BN2029-31. The budget cites PERS rates rising 26% a year on average and says there is no room for new or expanded services. City of Corvallis · Jul 1, 2025
Savings against the city's own target
Unassigned general fund balance: $20.4M (2025-06-30). The city's own target: Build a General Fund reserve equal to three months of payroll, about $12.3 million; the council must approve any use by resolution. The reserve stood at $11.6 million on June 30, 2025 and is counted in the unassigned balance. City of Corvallis · Dec 29, 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 BN2025-27 (two years).
Comes from
- Property taxes$80.9M · 43%
- Licenses, fees and permits (incl. franchise fees)$33.1M · 18%
- Charges for service$20.5M · 11%
- Use of fund balance$18.6M · 10%
- Intergovernmental$15.7M · 8%
- Miscellaneous (incl. interest)$8.3M · 4%
- Other taxes (lodging, marijuana)$7.5M · 4%
- Other$3.8M · 2%
Goes to (BN2025-27 (two years))
- Fire$48.3M · 26%
- Police$43.4M · 23%
- Parks and recreation$28.9M · 15%
- Library$20.8M · 11%
- Transfers to other funds (incl. pension bond payments)$13.3M · 7%
- Non-departmental$7.8M · 4%
- Community development$6.5M · 3%
- Other$19.4M · 10%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
About a third of each property-tax dollar goes to the city ($6.18 of $18.46 per $1,000). These are the rates in the city's audited report; Oregon's Measure 5 and Measure 50 limits can lower what an owner actually pays.
33¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Corvallis
- Corvallis School District 509J7.9226 · 43%
- City of Corvallis (permanent rate)5.1067 · 28%
- Benton County3.1052 · 17%
- City of Corvallis (local option levy)Voter-approved five-year levy for library, parks and social service grants, from July 1, 2024.1.07 · 6%
- Linn-Benton Community College0.5019 · 3%
- Benton County Library0.3947 · 2%
- Linn-Benton ESD0.3049 · 2%
- Benton Soil and Water District0.05 · <1%
- Total ($ per $1,000 of assessed value)18.456
FY2024-25 rates for property in the city of Corvallis (Benton County). City of Corvallis · Dec 29, 2025
See what a Corvallis house pays, line by line →Who provides your services
Not everything in Corvallis is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityCorvallis Police DepartmentCity of Corvallis
- Fire protectionThe cityCorvallis Fire DepartmentAlso serves Oregon State University and the Corvallis Rural Fire Protection District.City of Corvallis
- Ambulance (EMS)The cityCorvallis Fire DepartmentAdvanced Life Support transport ambulance under contract for Benton County.City of Corvallis
- WaterThe cityCorvallis Public WorksCity of Corvallis
- Sewer and stormwaterThe cityCorvallis Public WorksCity of Corvallis
- Trash and recyclingPrivate companyRepublic ServicesResidential curbside collection.City of Corvallis
- LibraryThe cityCorvallis-Benton County Public Library (city department)Serves residents of the Benton County Library Service District.City of Corvallis
- Parks and recreationThe cityCorvallis Parks & RecreationCity of Corvallis
- StreetsThe cityCorvallis Public WorksCity of Corvallis
- Bus transitThe cityCorvallis Transit System (city)City of Corvallis
- AirportThe cityCorvallis Municipal Airport (city)City of Corvallis
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 | AlbanyOR | TigardOR | SpringfieldOR | CorvallisOR |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 56,894 | 57,929 | 61,431 | 61,499 |
| Top administrator's base pay | $237,770 | $220,000 | Not confirmed | $233,198 |
| Council member pay | $1,560 | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | No salary |
| General fund per resident | $2,151 | $841 | $1,039 | $3,065 |
| Debt per resident | $1,329 | $2,108 | $475 | $283 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $1,184 | $255 | $1,043 | $1,126 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 7.2 | 6.1 | 7.2 | 8.7 |
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).
What Corvallis publishes
What a resident can find online today. A "no" is something you can ask the council to publish.
- Yes: Adopted budget posted onlineThe BN 2025-2027 adopted budget is posted as a PDF on the city's budget page. City of Corvallis
- Yes: Council pay stated in a public documentThe adopted budget states the mayor and councilors serve as volunteers without compensation. City of Corvallis
- Partly: Employee pay publishedThe adopted budget publishes salary ranges and FTE by position. We found no list of pay by employee. City of Corvallis
Questions to ask your council
- The budget forecast shows recurring general fund spending above recurring revenue by $13.0 million in BN2027-29 and $18.9 million in BN2029-31. Which services or revenues will close that gap?
- The General Fund reserve stood at $11.6 million on June 30, 2025, against a target of about $12.3 million. When does the city expect to reach the target?
- The city's share of the Oregon PERS net pension liability was $69.2 million, and all $17.4 million of city debt is pension obligation bonds. How will rising PERS rates affect the general fund?
- The BN2025-27 budget anticipates a $35 million bond for a Park Maintenance Facility. How will the city repay it?
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