Over the past decade, the amount of money each Santa Claran forks over to the government for services has nearly doubled.
Santa Clara’s population in 2010 was 116,648, but a 2023 estimate shows that it rose by 14,594, according to census data.
City budgets go back to 2014. Spending that year averaged across the 2010 population shows that each Santa Claran paid the government $5,670. Using 2023’s estimated population and the city’s projected spending in 2025, that amount has risen to 82% to $10,341 per resident.
While that per-resident growth in spending may seem stark, it doesn’t tell the whole story. Santa Clarans’ earning power has grown at an even faster rate than how much their government spends.
From 2010 to 2023, the median income in Santa Clara rose 92%, from $85,750 to $165,228. The average city salary in 2022 was $164,496, but that salary ignores the robust pensions city employees enjoy.
Santa Clara is also ahead of state averages, both for government salaries and private-sector earnings. In 2023, city salaries were 45% higher than the state average, while the median income was 79% higher.
City spending on salaries in 2014-2015 was $171.6 million. The most recent budget, for 2024-2025, shows that number has risen to $339.66 million. However, salaries as percent of spending have remained more or less static, around 26% of the city’s total expenditures.
Santa Clara’s politicians and bureaucrats have regularly drawn attention to how many vacancies there are at city hall. Widespread cuts brought on by the pandemic led to layoffs, something city employees have said are hampering services.
Publicly available figures on government salaries show that from 2011 to 2023 Santa Clara has increased how many people it employs by 24% despite the population only growing an estimated 9%.
Perhaps more telling is how much the top earners are paid. From 2011 to 2023, the average government salary in Santa Clara rose 61%, but salaries for the top earners rose 130%.
In 2011, the top-paid city employee earned $370,103. By 2023, the top salary ballooned to $851,896. Pay that year for the top 10% of earners started at $416,050.
Further, who is getting that money reveals a trend.
In 2011, 9 of the 15 highest salaries were paid to employees working for the police or fire departments. By 2023, the top six earners worked for Silicon Valley Power.
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View Comments (3)
David,
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Thank you for this informative article on city employee compensation trends.
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You conclude by contrasting how in 2011 out of the top 15 earners 9 were in public safety and how in 2023 out of the top 15 earners 6 are Silicon Valley Power employees. That does not necessarily show what the change as been as 9 and 6 total up to 15. How many of the top 15 in 2011 were Silicon Valley Power employees? And how many of the current top 15 are in public safety?
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Also relevant to understand this change would be to know the change in revenue and profits that go into the general fund that Silicon Valley Power generates.
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And also relevant to understanding how our city's employee compensation compares to other city's do you have data on how the median and average salaries and percentage of city expenses compare to neighboring cities such as Sunnyvale and Cupertino and Mountain View. Or other cities that are comparable to Santa Clara. I do not think it sheds light on our situation to compare our city employees' compensation to statewide averages since so many cities and towns in our state have drastically lower cost of living and many of them do not have the big and complicated operations we have in our stadium and public utility.
Perhaps it was unclear. It is not just that six of the top 15 earners in 2023 were SVP employees. The top six earners work for SVP. Only one of the top 15 in 2011 were SVP employees. In 2023, seven of the top 15 earners were police and fire, but the top six spots have been taken over by SVP workers. I hope that clears it up. Thanks for reading.
David,
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Thank you for your response. Looking back at your description it was clear and I read you incorrectly.
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In all your reporting have you learned how much the revenues of SVP have grown and how much more profit they make and contribute to the general fund between 2011 and now?
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Did you make comparisons of average or median city employee salary for Santa Clara compared to other cities that are similar to Santa Clara or of the percentages of city expenses that go to employee salaries?