State Controller Publishes 2025 Payroll Data

Comprehensive Higher Education Payroll Data Published

State Controller Malia M. Cohen published the 2025 self-reported payroll data for University of California institutions and California Community College Districts on the Government Compensation in California website. According to a report published by PR Newswire M&A on Friday, Oct. 2, 2026, the compiled records cover 451,244 positions in Sacramento. The filings detail more than $34 billion in wages alongside over $6 billion in retirement and health contributions, pushing total compensation past $40.1 billion.

All 10 University of California campuses and the Office of the President submitted complete reports for the dataset. Their filings account for 357,167 positions, more than $29.2 billion in wages, and nearly $4.5 billion in retirement and health contributions. Total compensation for the university system exceeded $33.7 billion. University of California institutions have maintained a 100 percent reporting rate since joining the transparency program as voluntary participants in reporting year 2013.

Compliance proved uneven among community colleges. Thirty-six of the state's 73 community college districts submitted complete reports, covering 94,077 positions, more than $4.8 billion in wages, and over $1.5 billion in retirement and health contributions. Total compensation for reporting districts reached more than $6.3 billion. Twenty-six districts failed to file a report, and eleven submitted incomplete filings.

Transparency and Accountability in Public Spending

State Controller Malia M. Cohen addressed the transparency push in a public statement. Our public colleges and universities open doors to opportunity, and Californians deserve to know how public dollars support that work, said Controller Cohen. She praised the University of California for its continued commitment to complete reporting while urging every community college district to follow suit so the public can see the full investment in campus operations and student success.

Campus-level breakdowns show wide disparities in headcount across the state. Among the university campuses, UCLA reported the most positions at 74,519, followed by UC San Diego at 54,598. Among community college districts with published data, Los Angeles Community College District reported the most positions at 11,182, followed by Los Rios Community College District at 7,154.

An internal review of university earnings reveals concentration in specialized sectors. The data shows that 42 of the 50 highest-paid university employees worked in the medical field. Among the 15 highest-paid employees specifically, nine worked in medicine and six in athletics. Furthermore, the average wages of the 10 highest-paid university employees rose by more than 17 percent over five years, climbing from $3.14 million in 2021 to $3.69 million in 2025.

Mandatory Reporting and Financial Oversight

State law mandates that cities, counties, and special districts report annual compensation data to the State Controller's Office. The office also publishes payroll figures for state departments and California State University while soliciting voluntary reports from other public entities, including university institutions and community college districts. The public can search pay and benefit information by employer and job title, view regional results, and export custom reports on the official website.

As the chief fiscal officer of the fourth-largest economy in the world, California State Controller Malia M. Cohen independently oversees and manages the state's financial resources with integrity and transparency to build trust. Controller Cohen is responsible for accountability and disbursement of the state's financial resources. She has independent auditing authority over government agencies that spend state funds. The Controller 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. Follow the California State Controller's Office on X, Facebook, and YouTube at @CAController and on Instagram at @CaliforniaController.