How much do Fresno city employees make? Here’s what our searchable database shows
The Bee has compiled a searchable database where you can look up the salary and compensation data for employees of the city of Fresno from 2018 through 2020. Use the tool below to search by year, by department and employee last name.
The median earnings for Fresno residents who had income from full-time, year-round work in 2019 was about $41,800 per year.
If you work for the City of Fresno, however, odds are that you made more than that – a lot more, in many instances. Public employee compensation data provided by the city under a California Public Records Act request shows that the median salary or wages for a city employee was almost $61,000 in 2019.
And for 2020, that median figure for city employees grew to more than $66,600 – almost $25,000 more than for residents of the city overall. That includes not only full-time employees but also part-time workers and people who serve on city boards or commissions and don’t earn a salary, but receive a modest stipend for their efforts.
The median is the midway point at which half of workers made more and half were paid less.
Of the 4,285 payroll records provided for 2020, the highest paid city employee last year was now-retired Police Chief Andy Hall. Between his base pay and various other payouts and premiums, Hall’s salary was $278,642 in 2020.
Add in the city’s contributions of almost $55,000 toward Hall’s retirement and health insurance, and the police chief’s total compensation amounted to $333,544.
More than two dozen city employees earned at least $200,000 last year in regular wages or salary, overtime and other pay. Others among the top five in addition to Hall are:
- City Attorney Douglas Sloan, $263,650.
- Former City Manager Wilma Quan, $247,486. Quan, who served as city manager under then-mayor Lee Brand, was not retained in the position by new mayor Jerry Dyer and now works for the city of Fowler.
- Now-retired Assistant City Manager Jane Sumpter, $240,691.
- Deputy Fire Chief Richard Cabral Jr., $236,156.
California’s cities and counties are required to file annual reports of pay and benefits with the California State Controller’s office. Those reports, however, don’t include employees’ names. Public employee compensation including employee names is, with very few exceptions, a matter of public record, and was included in the request by The Bee.
One of the limitations is that agencies may redact the names of people who are involved in confidential or undercover operations.
More than 1,000 other city workers or officials were paid between $100,000 and $200,000 last year, including Brand, who left office at the beginning of 2021. Brand’s 2020 compensation as the city’s top executive was $133,000 in wages, plus a little more than $1,800 in benefits.
Among the seven elected members of the Fresno City Council, pay and compensation included:
- Councilmember Miguel Arias, who served as council president last year, $90,359 in pay, $1,584 in benefits.
- Councilmember Garry Bredefeld, $70,100 in pay, $1,117 in benefits.
- Councilmember Paul Caprioglio, who served as council vice president, $69,568 in pay, $1,584 in benefits. Caprioglio has since been replaced by Tyler Maxwell.
- Councilmember Luis Chavez, $85,100 in pay, $1,359 in benefits.
- Councilmember Nelson Esparza, $83,815 in pay, $1,584 in benefits.
- Councilmember Mike Karbassi, $85,100 in pay, $1,117 in benefits.
- Councilmember Esmeralda Soria, $85,000 in pay, $1,584 in benefits.
This story was originally published July 7, 2021 at 10:07 AM.
