The most well-compensated San Francisco government employee isn’t Mayor London Breed, District Attorney Brooke Jenkins or Police Chief Bill Scott. It’s actually Alison Romano, the chief executive and investment officer in the retirement services department. From July 2023 to June 2024, Romano earned $842,000 in total compensation for overseeing the investment and management of the city’s pension funds.

But close behind Romano’s $842,000 compensation is police Sgt. Frank Harrell and his $765,000 compensation — the third-highest among San Francisco government workers. The key to Harrell’s unusually large compensation is the nearly $450,000 of overtime pay — a sum that is more than double his regular salary.

Among the city’s top-paid government workers are many other public safety employees who earned substantially more money last year by working hundreds of overtime hours. Of the top 580 earners — who make up about 2.5% of full-time workers — 417 (or 72%) were in the police, sheriff’s or fire departments. Each made more than $400,000, rivaling the compensations of physician administrators, investment managers and top elected officials.