How El Paso is run
Who runs El Paso, 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 El Paso's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 9, 2026.
Who runs El Paso
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
- $500 a month car allowance
- City pays 10% of base salary into her 401(a) retirement account
- 12 months' base salary as severance if fired without cause (18 months until March 31, 2026)
- Can bank up to six months of vacation
- Contract runs to March 2, 2028 and renews for one year unless either side gives notice
El Paso city staff
6,984 full-time-equivalent positions. FY2026-27. Authorized full-time equivalent positions, all funds. The proposed budget had 4,608.91 in the general fund. City of El Paso · Aug 7, 2026
The budget lists a pay grade for each job title (Schedule D). We found no city-published list of pay by employee. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is El Paso 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
Unassigned general fund balance: $25.3M (2025-08-31). City of El Paso · Feb 20, 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$328M · 50%
- Sales taxes$158M · 24%
- Franchise fees (electric, water, gas, telecom)$61.1M · 9%
- Charges for services$35.4M · 5%
- Transfers in (incl. international bridges)$33.1M · 5%
- Rents and other$14.1M · 2%
- Licenses and permits$11.7M · 2%
- Other (fines, intergovernmental, interest)$13.5M · 2%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Salaries and wages$346M · 53%
- Employee benefits (incl. pensions)$119M · 18%
- Outside contracts$48.3M · 7%
- Transfers out to other funds$45.4M · 7%
- Utilities$24.3M · 4%
- Materials and supplies$16.9M · 3%
- Professional services$13.6M · 2%
- Other (maintenance, fuel, leases, equipment, other costs)$41.8M · 6%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
Of each property-tax dollar an El Paso homeowner in El Paso ISD pays, about 29 cents goes to the city. For FY2026-27 the council raised the city rate from 0.759649 to 0.798. Parts of the city are in Ysleta, Socorro, Canutillo and other school districts.
29¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of El Paso
- El Paso ISD (schools)Operations 0.7699 plus debt 0.31081.0807 · 41%
- City of El Paso (operations)0.549469 · 21%
- El Paso County0.458889 · 17%
- University Medical Center (R. E. Thomason General Hospital District)0.240892 · 9%
- City of El Paso (debt)0.21018 · 8%
- El Paso County Community College District0.103563 · 4%
- Total ($ per $100 of taxable value)2.643693
2025 tax year (FY2025-26) rates for a home in the city of El Paso in El Paso ISD (El Paso County). Texas Comptroller · Jan 28, 2026
See what a El Paso house pays, line by line →Who provides your services
Not everything in El Paso is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityEl Paso Police DepartmentCity of El Paso · Feb 20, 2026
- FireThe cityEl Paso Fire DepartmentCity of El Paso · Feb 20, 2026
- Water, wastewater and drainageThe cityEl Paso Water, run by the Public Service BoardA component unit of the city. The council appoints six of the seven board members; the mayor is the seventh.El Paso Water
- City streetsThe cityCity of El Paso Streets and MaintenanceCity of El Paso · Jul 17, 2026
- LibraryThe cityEl Paso Public LibraryCity of El Paso · Jul 17, 2026
- Parks and recreationThe cityCity of El Paso Parks and RecreationCity of El Paso · Jul 17, 2026
- Public healthThe cityCity of El Paso Department of Public HealthCity of El Paso · Jul 17, 2026
- Airport and international bridgesThe cityCity of El PasoCity of El Paso · Feb 20, 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 | LaredoTX | Corpus ChristiTX | El PasoTX | AustinTX |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 269,515 | 317,247 | 683,012 | 1,002,632 |
| Top administrator's base pay | Not confirmed | Not current (2023) | $350,000 | $470,018 |
| Council member pay | $50,000 | $6,000 | $72,800 | Not current (2022) |
| General fund per resident | $1,114 | $1,131 | $964 | $1,540 |
| Debt per resident | $3,897 | $6,856 | $2,227 | $8,489 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $955 | $731 | $1,052 | $3,523 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 13.4 | 13.1 | 10.2 | 16.8 |
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 El Paso publishes
What a resident can find online today. A "no" is something you can ask the council to publish.
- Yes: Audited financial report filed on timeFY2025 audited report (year ended Aug. 31, 2025) is dated Feb. 20, 2026, within the six months state law allows. Auditors gave a clean opinion. City of El Paso · Feb 20, 2026
- Yes: City manager's contract findable onlineThe city posts the manager's restated employment agreement and severance agreement (Aug. 27, 2025) on its website. City of El Paso · Aug 27, 2025
- Yes: Council votes recorded member by member onlineMinutes list each member's vote, e.g. the 6-2 vote adopting the FY2027 budget on Aug. 18, 2026. City of El Paso · Aug 18, 2026
- Yes: Meeting videos and minutes onlineLegistar posts the agenda, final minutes and video for council meetings, e.g. Aug. 18, 2026. City of El Paso
- Partly: Council pay stated in a public document City of El Paso · May 6, 2023
Questions to ask your council
- Council pay rose from $63,183 to $72,800 on Sept. 1, 2026 under the charter formula. Does the council plan to ask voters to review the formula?
The fiscal year starts Sept. 1. The city manager filed the proposed budget on July 17, 2026. The council held the public hearing Aug. 17 and adopted the FY2027 budget and a $0.798 tax rate on Aug. 18, 2026. See who is running for council
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