ENCINITAS — Encinitas and Carlsbad were the only two municipalities to earn top marks in a report the San Diego County Taxpayers Association released today grading fiscal health and transparency.
The association’s 2026 Cities Report Card is touted as an independent evaluation of the finances and taxpayer accountability of the county’s 18 cities.
Encinitas and Carlsbad earned the county’s only overall A grades, followed by La Mesa and Oceanside at A-minus. San Diego and National City both failed the report, with El Cajon just ahead at a D-plus. San Diego posted the lowest fiscal health result of any jurisdiction reviewed, earning 3.9 of 11 possible points, while National City had the lowest total score, 14 out of 25.
“The Report Card exists to give taxpayers a clear, apples-to-apples look at how their city manages their money,” said Mark Kersey, president and CEO of the Taxpayers Association. “The good news is that many San Diego County cities are managing their finances responsibly and reporting them transparently. The concerning news is that some of our largest jurisdictions are not, and the residents of those cities are the ones who will ultimately pay for it.”
The association said it seeks to ensure fair comparisons by grouping cities by population. It scores calculation-based measures — including pension costs, net pension liability per capita, bonded debt per capita, debt service as a share of the budget, personnel costs and staffing per 1,000 residents — against the average for each city’s population group.
Additional criteria include evaluations of budgeting, reporting and transparency. Each city received an interim report card and an opportunity to submit feedback, documentation or corrections, the association said.
Vista earned the top grade on fiscal health with an A, followed by Encinitas, Imperial Beach and San Marcos at A-minus. The lowest fiscal health grades went to San Diego, National City and Escondido, all of which the report knocked for “structural budget pressures, elevated pension and personnel costs, and reserves and debt metrics that lag their peers.”
“A good grade on this report card is not about how much money a city has — it is about discipline, planning and honesty with taxpayers,” said Mike McLaughlin, chairman of the Taxpayers Association board of directors. “Cities that plan for the long term, set measurable goals, and report their finances openly consistently rise to the top. That is a model every city in the county can follow.”
The full report card, along with methodology and scoring, is available at SDTaxpayers.org.
