Daly City Lifts Part-Time City Pay to $18.10 in Unanimous Vote
City Council • Daly CityNovember 10, 2026
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Daly City's lowest-paid city workers will get a raise on Jan. 1, 2027, after the City Council voted 5-0 on Nov. 9 to align recurrent and part-time hourly rates with a 3.4% minimum wage increase to $18.10. The rest of the evening previewed a wet, tense winter: officials and residents pressed for El Niño preparations, a public commenter questioned the budget's tilt toward police and fire, and lingering friction over council ethics surfaced twice.
- Part-time city pay floor rises to $18.10 on Jan. 1, 2027, after a 5-0 roll-call vote
- El Niño preparations get attention from the mayor, a councilmember, staff and a resident. A county call with 20 cities is set for Nov. 18.
- Resident questions 63% police-fire budget share and urges treating street safety as public safety
- Public commenter asks for a council committee on Daly City Partnership and HR department support
- Mayor mutes a colleague during a proclamation as a speaker demands follow-through on a censure
Part-Time Pay Tracks the Minimum Wage
The basics: Ordinance 1425 raises Daly City's minimum wage each January. The increase is the lesser of 3.5% or the change in the consumer price index (CPI). CPI rose 3.4% from August 2025 to August 2026, so the smaller figure applies.
Where things stand: Natalie Sakal, Director, presented a resolution amending the city's recurrent and part-time hourly rate schedule to comply with the new floor.
"Effective January 1st, 2027, the City of Daly City minimum wage will increase by 3.4% to $18.10 per hour," said Sakal.
Councilmembers asked no questions. Mayor Glenn R. Sylvester thanked staff for keeping part-time pay in step with the minimum wage. Councilmember Juslyn C. Manalo stressed how much every dollar matters to working people, especially as food costs rise.
Why it matters: The city is both the enforcer and an employer under its own wage ordinance. Updating the pay schedule keeps Daly City from paying its own part-time staff less than the minimum it requires of private employers.
Decisions and stakeholder impacts: The resolution passed on a roll call. For: 5 (Sylvester, Vice Mayor Teresa G. Proaño, Manalo, Councilmember Rod Daus-Magbual, Councilmember Pamela DiGiovanni). Against: 0. Absent: 0. Recurrent and part-time city workers are the direct beneficiaries. The budget cost of the change was not discussed.
What's next: The new rates take effect Jan. 1, 2027.
El Niño Puts Sandbags and Soil on the Agenda
Why it matters: Officials expect heavy winter rains. A resident flagged an exposed construction site, and a councilmember raised concerns about seniors who can't haul sandbags.
Where things stand: Reporting back from a San Mateo County emergency management meeting, Sylvester delivered a blunt forecast.
"El Niño is supposed to be very, very big this year, and we will be affected," said Sylvester. He asked that residents get clear public information about where to find sandbags and what to do.
Manalo pressed on the most vulnerable residents. "I do have a request, and I don't know how feasible this is, in regards to helping our older adult senior population getting the sandbags," said Manalo.
Earlier, public commenter Sylvia Alvarez Lynch asked the city manager for a report on soil stabilization at the March Bank Park project. She also asked for written biweekly progress updates before the rains arrive. She repeated a request, her third, for an explanation of how items get placed on the council agenda.
City response: City Manager Thomas J. Piccolotti said city departments are coordinating with the county.
"Police, fire, Department of Public Works, my office, in conjunction with the county, is working on plans to prepare for this coming El Niño winter," said Piccolotti.
He said preparedness information will go out on social media and in a January notice. He added that the county will host a Nov. 18 call with 20 cities in the affected area, including Daly City.
Decisions and stakeholder impacts: No action was taken. Neither the March Bank Park soil questions nor the senior sandbag request received a specific answer at the meeting. Residents near the project site and older homeowners have the most at stake.
What's next: The county's call with affected cities is Nov. 18. Watch for city outreach on social media and in January.
Residents Push on Budget Priorities and Staffing
The mayor reported eight speaker cards, with a 2-minute limit per speaker. Two speakers zeroed in on how the city spends and organizes itself.
Street safety as public safety: Public commenter Rebecca Truong said police and fire account for 63% of the 2027 operating budget. Public works and economic and community development receive 13%. She contrasted those shares with figures of 17% and 20% that she cited for South San Francisco.
Truong said she values police and fire. She described a neighbor who stopped walking because vehicles block sidewalks and drivers ignore daylighting rules, speed and run stop signs. Daylighting means keeping the curb space next to crosswalks clear so drivers and pedestrians can see each other.
Partnership and HR: Public commenter Tatum King repeated a request from the previous meeting. King asked the council to form a committee to find cost-efficient ways to support both Daly City Partnership and the city's HR department, and to pause current moves in the meantime. King suggested space sharing or county help as options. King also asked the city to allow remote oral comment so more residents can take part.
Why it matters: Both comments question how a constrained budget is divided. One targets the split between public safety and the departments that handle streets. The other targets a community service partner and internal staffing.
Decisions and stakeholder impacts: No action was taken, and the council did not respond to the committee request. Pedestrians, older residents, Daly City Partnership and HR staff are the groups most affected by how these questions are resolved.
Council Friction Surfaces, Twice
Where things stand: During the Arboretum Day proclamation, the mayor declined to let DiGiovanni comment.
"This is a ceremonial position, and as such, this is what the council has decided," said Sylvester. He said he would mute her microphone.
Later, public commenter Fernando Montanas spoke for 6 minutes with time yielded by two other speakers. He asked the city manager and city attorney to follow up on whether an admonishment issue should go to the district attorney or the Fair Political Practices Commission, the state's political ethics regulator. He also asked how a censure of a sitting council member is being upheld. Montanas praised the mayor for upholding the censure. He alleged bullying and an attempted police report against him by a council member. Those are his claims, not findings, and no councilmember or staff member responded.
The other side: In his council report, Sylvester emphasized collaboration. "It takes the full council with a majority to come up and say, yes, I think that's a good idea," said Sylvester.
Why it matters: The council still voted unanimously on the evening's only substantive item. However, the muted microphone and the censure demands show that governance conflict remains an open issue.
Minor Items
- Arboretum Day: The mayor proclaimed the seventh annual event at Cypress Lawn, 1363 El Camino Real, for Saturday, Nov. 14, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
- State holiday pitch: Cypress Lawn's Joshua Govertz said, "It is my firm belief that Arboretum Day should be a state holiday in California."
- Routine approvals: The Oct. 26 minutes (with a Vice Mayor correction), the agenda and the consent agenda passed by voice vote.
- Open seat: The mayor noted a vacancy on the Small Business Commission.
- Veterans program: Ocean View Stables owner Zachary Leyden asked the city to publicize his nonprofit horsemanship program for veterans and youth.
Looking ahead: The county's El Niño call is Nov. 18, and a groundbreaking for a Dr. Jose Rizal statue is set for Nov. 19 at 3:30 p.m. Housing manager Lynell Silligan retires after 26 years. The council adjourned in memory of labor leader Dolores Huerta.