How Keizer is run
Who runs Keizer, 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 Keizer's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 11, 2026.
Who runs Keizer
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
- $350 a month vehicle allowance
- Severance of six months' base salary, plus up to six months of health coverage
- City-paid life insurance of up to $250,000
- PERS retirement and the city's 457 plan on the same terms as department directors
- Must live in Keizer
Keizer city staff
104 full-time-equivalent positions, including Police 50, Public works 31, Finance 12, Community development 4, City attorney 2, City recorder 2, Human resources 2, City manager 1. FY2026-27 (adopted budget). Unchanged from FY2025-26. City of Keizer · May 12, 2026
The budget lists positions with monthly salary ranges. We found no city list of pay by employee. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Keizer 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: $6M (2025-06-30). The city's own target: Keep the general fund ending balance at no less than 15% of annual operating revenues. The budget shows the balance at 22.0% of revenue for FY2024-25 and 21.7% planned for FY2026-27. City of Keizer · Dec 15, 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
- Taxes and assessments$7.6M · 43%
- Licenses and fees (mostly franchise fees)$3.7M · 21%
- Transfer from the police services fee fund$2.5M · 14%
- Use of fund balance$1.7M · 10%
- Intergovernmental$1.4M · 8%
- Other (fines, miscellaneous, charges)$693,400 · 4%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Police$12M · 68%
- General services (administration)$3.2M · 18%
- Transfers out$1.2M · 7%
- Planning$707,700 · 4%
- Municipal court$250,600 · 1%
- Contingency$200,000 · 1%
- Transient occupancy tax programs$158,000 · 1%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
About 12 cents of each property-tax dollar goes to the city ($2.08 of $16.92 per $1,000). The city's table lists both fire districts in a $19.81 total; a property pays only one, so the Marion County Fire District rate is left out here.
12¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Keizer
- Salem-Keizer School District7.22 · 43%
- Marion County3.03 · 18%
- Keizer Fire District2.48 · 15%
- City of Keizer2.08 · 12%
- Other (community college, transit, education service district, library, soil and water, extension)2.11 · 12%
- Total ($ per $1,000 of assessed value)16.92
FY2024-25 rates for a home in the city of Keizer in the Keizer Fire District (Marion County). City of Keizer · Dec 15, 2025
See what a Keizer house pays, line by line →Who provides your services
Not everything in Keizer is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityKeizer Police DepartmentCity of Keizer · Dec 15, 2025
- WaterThe cityCity of Keizer Public WorksCity of Keizer · Dec 15, 2025
- StreetsThe cityCity of Keizer Public WorksCity of Keizer · Dec 15, 2025
- ParksThe cityCity of KeizerCity of Keizer · Dec 15, 2025
- Municipal courtThe cityKeizer Municipal CourtCity of Keizer · Dec 15, 2025
- SewerAnother agencyCity of SalemKeizer contracts with Salem to maintain its sewer system and handles the billing itself.City of Keizer · Dec 15, 2025
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 | RedmondOR | KeizerOR | Grants PassOR | Lake OswegoOR |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 38,547 | 39,140 | 39,239 | 39,722 |
| Top administrator's base pay | $218,397 | $182,915 | $189,278 | Not confirmed |
| Council member pay | Not confirmed | No salary | No salary | Not current (2015) |
| General fund per resident | $1,353 | $452 | $1,401 | $5,209 |
| Debt per resident | $2,648 | $188 | $542 | $4,954 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $898 | $538 | $871 | $1,568 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 7.0 | 2.7 | 6.5 | 10.3 |
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). Redmond pays another agency for police or fire, so its own staff count is lower.
What Keizer publishes
What a resident can find online today. A "no" is something you can ask the council to publish.
- Yes: City manager's contract findable onlineThe city manager's amended employment agreement, with his monthly salary, is in the June 1, 2026 council packet. City of Keizer · Jun 1, 2026
- Yes: Council votes recorded member by member online City of Keizer · Jun 1, 2026
- Yes: Council pay stated in a public documentThe audited report states the mayor and six councilors are volunteers. City of Keizer · Dec 15, 2025
- Partly: Employee pay published City of Keizer · May 12, 2026
Questions to ask your council
- Police ($12.0 million) is about two-thirds of the $17.7 million FY2026-27 general fund budget. How will rising police costs be paid for in later years?
- The FY2026-27 general fund plans to use $1.74 million of fund balance. How close will the June 30, 2027 balance be to the 15% policy minimum?
- The city's share of the Oregon PERS net pension liability was $21.0 million on June 30, 2025. How much of the planned property sales will go to paying it down?
The fiscal year starts July 1. The Budget Committee (the council plus appointed residents) receives the city manager's recommended budget in May; in 2026 it met May 11 and 12 and approved the budget. The council holds a public hearing and adopts the budget by June 30. The FY2026-27 budget was adopted June 1, 2026. See who is running for council
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