Press Releases

SACRAMENTO — State Controller Betty T. Yee has updated her Government Compensation in California website to include 2015 self-reported data for cities and counties. The data covers 668,240 positions and a total of more than $42 billion in wages in 2015 for 54 counties and 459 cities.

Users of the site can:

• View compensation levels on maps and search for compensation by region;
• Quickly see lists of top earners at cities, counties, and other local governments;
• Narrow results by name of employer or by job title;
• Build charts and trend graphics; and
• Export raw data or custom reports.

For instance, the new data show that the three counties with the highest average government salaries in 2015 were Santa Clara ($81,808), Alameda ($76,832), and Los Angeles ($73,722). For cities in 2015, Vernon was highest ($107,848), followed by Hayward ($103,607), and Palm Desert ($97,997). Average wages in city governments increased by more than 3 percent from 2014 to 2015, from $61,724 to $64,058. Average wages increased by almost 5 percent in county governments, from $60,831 to $63,823.

The top paid county elected officials in 2015 were in Los Angeles County, Riverside County, San Bernardino County, and Santa Clara County. For cities, the top paid elected officials hailed from Redondo Beach, Long Beach, San Francisco, and Santa Clara.

The new data show that average retirement and health care costs in counties increased by more than 5 percent to $25,352 and by more than 1 percent in cities to $19,067. City governments with the highest average retirement and health care costs were Industry, San Jose, and Vallejo. For county governments, it was Alameda, Kern, and Orange.

Twenty-three cities and three counties failed to file or provided incomplete or late information. A list of non-compliant entities is available here.

Since the website was launched in 2010, it has registered nearly 9 million page views. The site now contains information on more than 2 million jobs in California, as reported by each government entity.

State government, California State University, superior court, and special district compensation data for 2015 will be added this summer.

As the chief fiscal officer of California, Controller Yee is responsible for accountability and disbursement of the state’s financial resources. The Controller also safeguards many types of property until claimed by the rightful owners, and has independent auditing authority over government agencies that spend state funds. She is a member of numerous financing authorities, and fiscal and financial oversight entities including the Franchise Tax Board. She also serves on the boards for the nation's two largest public pension funds. Elected in 2014, Controller Yee is the tenth woman elected to a statewide office in California’s history. Follow the Controller on Twitter at @CAController and on Facebook at California State Controller’s Office.

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