How Pflugerville is run
Who runs Pflugerville, 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 Pflugerville's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 9, 2026.
Who runs Pflugerville
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
Pflugerville city staff
490 full-time-equivalent positions, including Police (101 officers, 42 civilians) 143, Parks and recreation 56, Streets 39, Library 24. FY2025. City of Pflugerville · Feb 23, 2026
The budget gives salary totals by department. We found no city-published pay list by position or employee. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Pflugerville 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 city's general fund forecast assumes 2% property tax growth and 3% sales tax growth from FY2028 on, with some added Public Works staff and yearly vehicle-replacement transfers, while keeping fund balance over the 25% policy. The FY2027 budget spends reserves on one-time requests and capital, taking them from 31% of recurring spending at the end of FY2026 to 26%. City of Pflugerville · Sep 8, 2026
Savings against the city's own target
Unassigned general fund balance: $19.5M (2025-09-30). The city's own target: Keep general fund unassigned fund balance equal to 25% of budgeted operating spending, as the charter sets. If it falls short, the city manager must give the council a plan to restore it. City of Pflugerville · Feb 23, 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$30.2M · 44%
- Sales taxes$20M · 29%
- Franchise fees$3.8M · 5%
- Transfer from utility funds$3.6M · 5%
- Development fees$3.3M · 5%
- Intergovernmental (incl. Travis County EMS subsidy)$1.2M · 2%
- Other (interest, recreation, fines, incentives, other taxes, misc.)$4M · 6%
- From savings (fund balance)$2.8M · 4%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Police$22.6M · 33%
- Parks and recreation$9.3M · 13%
- Citywide costs (insurance, incentives, utilities, EMS contract)$6.1M · 9%
- Streets and drainage$4.7M · 7%
- Information technology$4.4M · 6%
- Library$2.6M · 4%
- City manager's office$2.6M · 4%
- Other (finance, legal, HR, planning, building, engineering, fleet, facilities, animal welfare, court, other)$16.4M · 24%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
Of each property-tax dollar a Pflugerville homeowner in Pflugerville ISD pays, about 24 cents goes to the city. The city's budget puts the city tax on the average homestead ($362,231 taxable) at $1,969.09 for FY2027. The school district, county, health district and fire district rates are the ones the city's budget listed as proposed. Homes in Williamson County or in another school district pay different rates.
24¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Pflugerville
- Pflugerville ISD (schools)1.1069 · 49%
- Travis County0.38621 · 17%
- City of Pflugerville (operations)0.261 · 12%
- City of Pflugerville (debt)0.2826 · 12%
- Travis County Healthcare District (Central Health)0.135195 · 6%
- Travis County ESD No. 2 (fire and EMS)0.09704 · 4%
- Total ($ per $100 of taxable value)2.268945
FY2026-27 rates for a home in Pflugerville in Pflugerville ISD (Travis County). City of Pflugerville · Sep 8, 2026
See what a Pflugerville house pays, line by line →Who provides your services
Not everything in Pflugerville is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityPflugerville Police DepartmentCity of Pflugerville · Feb 23, 2026
- FireSeparate districtTravis County Emergency Services District No. 2 (Pflugerville Fire Department)Hoodline · Jul 15, 2026
- EMS / ambulanceSeparate districtTravis County Emergency Services District No. 2, under an interlocal agreement with the city since Oct. 1, 2026Before that, a private company, Allegiance Mobile Health, ran ambulances under a city contract.Community Impact
- WaterThe cityCity of Pflugerville utilityCity of Pflugerville · Feb 23, 2026
- Trash and recyclingContractorWaste Connections, under contract with the cityCity of Pflugerville · Sep 8, 2026
- Streets and drainageThe cityCity of Pflugerville Streets and Drainage DepartmentMaintains more than 250 miles of roadway.City of Pflugerville · Sep 8, 2026
- Parks and recreationThe cityCity of Pflugerville Parks & Recreation35 parks and about 70 miles of hike-and-bike trails.City of Pflugerville · Sep 8, 2026
- LibraryThe cityPflugerville Public Library (city)City of Pflugerville · Sep 8, 2026
- Animal shelter and controlThe cityPflugerville Animal Welfare Services (city)City of Pflugerville · Sep 8, 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 | PflugervilleTX | KyleTX | San MarcosTX | BaytownTX |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 68,316 | 69,917 | 77,830 | 86,561 |
| Top administrator's base pay | Not confirmed | $270,758 | $288,699 | Not confirmed |
| Council member pay | No salary | $12,000 | $17,400 | Not confirmed |
| General fund per resident | $1,005 | $1,020 | $1,792 | $1,779 |
| Debt per resident | $16,465 | $4,007 | $7,178 | $3,263 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $236 | $121 | $599 | $759 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 7.2 | 6.6 | 12.7 | 11.6 |
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). Pflugerville pays another agency for police or fire, so its own staff count is lower.
What Pflugerville publishes
What a resident can find online today. A "no" is something you can ask the council to publish.
- Yes: Adopted budget posted online City of Pflugerville
- No: City manager's contract findable onlineCouncil approved James Hartshorn's employment and severance agreements on May 12, 2026 after a closed session. We found no posted copy in Legistar. City of Pflugerville
- Yes: Council votes recorded member by member onlineLegistar records each member's vote, e.g. the 5-2 vote adopting the FY2027 budget on Sept. 8, 2026. City of Pflugerville
- Yes: Meeting videos and minutes onlineCouncil meeting videos, agendas and minutes are posted in the city's Granicus archive. City of Pflugerville
- Yes: Council pay stated in a public documentThe FY27 budget states that all council positions are voluntary and unpaid. City of Pflugerville
- No: Employee pay publishedThe budget gives salary totals by department and fund. We found no pay list by position or employee. City of Pflugerville
Questions to ask your council
- Bonded debt was $1.12 billion on Sept. 30, 2025, for general government and the water and wastewater system. How much more borrowing does the FY2027-2031 capital plan need, and what would it do to the $0.2826 debt tax rate?
- The FY2027 budget draws general fund reserves from 31% to 26% of recurring spending, just above the 25% goal. Sales tax is budgeted flat at $19,954,700. What is the plan if it falls short?
- The council approved James Hartshorn's employment and severance agreements on May 12, 2026. Will the city post the agreements and his salary?
- Ambulance service moved to Travis County ESD No. 2 on Oct. 1, 2026. What response times does the new agreement require, and what does it cost the general fund?
The fiscal year starts Oct. 1. The city manager files the proposed budget by Aug. 1. The public hearing was Aug. 25, and on Sept. 8, 2026 the council adopted the FY2027 budget 5-2, with a $0.5436 tax rate. See who is running for council
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