Where the money comes from
Menlo Park's main operating fund collects about $88 million a year. Almost all of it comes from just a handful of sources.
This page is about the General Fund— the City's main checkbook, the one that pays for everyday services. Here is where that roughly $88M comes from each year:
- Property tax$37,022,153≈ 42% of the fund
- You pay this if you own a home or business property in Menlo Park. The City gets a share of the property-tax bill the County collects. It is the single largest source — and the steadiest.
- Transient occupancy tax (hotel tax)$18,404,642≈ 21% of the fund
- A tax on hotel and short-term rental stays. Visitors pay it on their bill; residents usually don't pay it directly. Voters raised the rate in 2024, which is why this line has grown.
- Charges for services$8,450,119≈ 10% of the fund
- Fees the City charges for specific things — recreation programs, plan checks, and similar services where the user pays part of the cost.
- Sales tax$7,207,900≈ 8% of the fund
- You pay a sliver of this every time you buy something in Menlo Park. Most of the sales tax goes to the state; the City keeps about one cent of every dollar.
- Building permits & development fees$5,652,632≈ 6% of the fund
- One-time fees collected when someone builds something new. This line rises and falls with what's being built — which is why big projects matter to the City's bottom line.
- Everything else$11,244,783≈ 13% of the fund
- Franchise fees from utilities, business licenses, interest income, transfers, fines, and a long tail of smaller items.
A note on stability
Property tax is the most stable line — it grows slowly and predictably. Hotel tax and building permits swing a lot from year to year, depending on hotel occupancy and what's under construction. When City staff talk about “budget uncertainty,” they almost always mean those two.
A note on what isn't here
The General Fund doesn't include water, garbage, or stormwater — those are paid for by separate fees and tracked in their own funds. The next page explains that split.
›Show source
General Fund revenue is summed from the budget records for fiscal year 2027 (view v_revenues, General Fund only), grouped by revenue type. The named lines total $87,982,229; smaller lines are rolled into “Everything else.”