City and County of San Francisco / Public Defender

Agency file

Public Defender

Source file: City and County of San Francisco — Employee Compensation / ingested Jun 17, 2026

The Public Defender handles legal functions of government — prosecution, legal advice, and representing the state in court.

In 2025, this agency had 250 employees with median total compensation of $202,487; the highest distinct record was $403,576.

Year: 2025
Total payroll: $54.7M
Employees: 250
Median total: $202,487
Highest record: $403,576

What the records show

Compensation analytics

These summaries compare pay within the agency before listing individual records.

Salary distribution

$3,436$377,856+

Hover a bar for its range; click to filter the list below.

How 2025 total compensation is spread across the 250 employees. Each bar is a pay range; taller bars mean more people earn in that range. The amber line marks the median ($202,487) — half earn less, half more. The far-right bar collects the highest earners.

Average pay composition

Base — $163,313 (75%)
Overtime — $166 (0%)
Other — $1,352 (1%)
Benefits — $53,842 (25%)

What an average paycheck here is made of — base salary versus overtime, other pay (bonuses, allowances), and benefits. A large overtime or other-pay share means take-home often exceeds base salary.

Pay percentiles

10th

25th

Median

75th

90th

$119,216

$151,643

$202,487

$282,409

$348,663

The pay ladder for this department. Someone at the 90th percentile earns $348,663 — more than 90% of the department; the 10th percentile earns $119,216. The shaded band is the middle half of employees (25th–75th percentile).

Largest job titles

Attorney (Civil/Criminal)

108 · $262,504

Legal Assistant

35 · $153,177

Senior Public Defenders Invstgtor

16 · $198,123

Head Attorney Civil & Criminal

15 · $365,930

Court Alternative Specialist 1

13 · $138,963

The most common job titles in this department by headcount, with the median total compensation for each. Click a title to see everyone who holds it.

Trend

Year over year

How this department's total payroll, headcount, and median pay changed across the 2 published years.

Year	Total payroll	Employees	Median pay
2024	$52M —	252 —	$199,423 —
2025	$54.7M ▲ 5.1%	250 ▼ 0.8%	$202,487 ▲ 1.5%

Compare

Similar departments

Departments elsewhere with the most similar mix of roles — a proxy for the same kind of agency, matched by workforce composition rather than name. Pay is not cost-of-living adjusted.

Office of Public Utility Counsel Texas80% match
Office of Administrative Law California75% match
City Attorney City and County of San Francisco74% match
District Attorney Allegheny County, Pennsylvania66% match
Public Defender Council, Georgia Georgia65% match
Attorney General's Office South Carolina62% match

Record list

Employees

Page 1

Amy Tao

Attorney (Civil/Criminal)/Public Defender

2025 total comp

$221,424

Sub-department: Legal & Court
Organization group: Public Protection
Base pay: $163,542
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $0
Benefits: $57,882
Total compensation: $221,424
Employment type: Permanent Exempt
Union / bargaining unit: Municipal Attorneys Assoc
Full-time equivalent (FTE): 1

Source-specific fields

Data As Of: Jun 14, 2026
Data Loaded At: Jun 15, 2026
Department Code: PDR
Health and Dental Benefits: $21,941
Job Code: 8177
Job Family Code: 8100
Organization Group Code: Public Protection
Other Benefits: $12,685

Amy Tao is a Attorney (Civil/Criminal) at Public Defender within Legal & Court. They work permanent exempt. 2025 total compensation came to $221,424. Union affiliation: Municipal Attorneys Assoc.

Alexandra Stack

Attorney (Civil/Criminal)/Public Defender

2025 total comp

$219,399

Sub-department: Legal & Court
Organization group: Public Protection
Base pay: $162,198
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $0
Benefits: $57,201
Total compensation: $219,399
Employment type: Permanent Exempt
Union / bargaining unit: Municipal Attorneys Assoc
Full-time equivalent (FTE): 0.98

Source-specific fields

Data As Of: Jun 14, 2026
Data Loaded At: Jun 15, 2026
Department Code: PDR
Health and Dental Benefits: $21,519
Job Code: 8177
Job Family Code: 8100
Organization Group Code: Public Protection
Other Benefits: $12,610

Alexandra Stack holds the role of Attorney (Civil/Criminal) at Public Defender within Legal & Court. Their status is permanent exempt, 0.98 FTE. In 2025, their total compensation was $219,399. They are represented by Municipal Attorneys Assoc.

Brittany Ford

Senior Community Development Specialist 2/Public Defender

2025 total comp

$218,368

Sub-department: Community Development
Organization group: Public Protection
Base pay: $162,854
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $0
Benefits: $55,514
Total compensation: $218,368
Employment type: Permanent Civil Service
Union / bargaining unit: SEIU, Local 1021, Misc
Full-time equivalent (FTE): 1

Source-specific fields

Data As Of: Jun 14, 2026
Data Loaded At: Jun 15, 2026
Department Code: PDR
Health and Dental Benefits: $19,876
Job Code: 9775
Job Family Code: 9700
Organization Group Code: Public Protection
Other Benefits: $12,476

At Public Defender, Brittany Ford serves as a Senior Community Development Specialist 2 within Community Development. They work permanent civil service. Their 2025 pay totaled $218,368. Their bargaining unit is SEIU, Local 1021, Misc.

Judy Liu

Manager I/Public Defender

2025 total comp

$217,970

Sub-department: Management
Organization group: Public Protection
Base pay: $150,994
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $0
Benefits: $66,975
Total compensation: $217,970
Employment type: Permanent Exempt
Union / bargaining unit: Municipal Exec Assoc, Misc
Full-time equivalent (FTE): 1

Source-specific fields

Data As Of: Jun 14, 2026
Data Loaded At: Jun 15, 2026
Department Code: PDR
Health and Dental Benefits: $34,024
Job Code: 0922
Job Family Code: 0900
Organization Group Code: Public Protection
Other Benefits: $11,483

At Public Defender, Judy Liu serves as a Manager I within Management. They work permanent exempt. Their 2025 pay totaled $217,970. They are represented by Municipal Exec Assoc, Misc.

Liliana Garcia

Attorney (Civil/Criminal)/Public Defender

2025 total comp

$217,872

Sub-department: Legal & Court
Organization group: Public Protection
Base pay: $160,412
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $0
Benefits: $57,461
Total compensation: $217,872
Employment type: Permanent Exempt
Union / bargaining unit: Municipal Attorneys Assoc
Full-time equivalent (FTE): 1

Source-specific fields

Data As Of: Jun 14, 2026
Data Loaded At: Jun 15, 2026
Department Code: PDR
Health and Dental Benefits: $21,941
Job Code: 8177
Job Family Code: 8100
Organization Group Code: Public Protection
Other Benefits: $12,707

At Public Defender, Liliana Garcia serves as a Attorney (Civil/Criminal) within Legal & Court. They work permanent exempt. Their 2025 pay totaled $217,872. They are represented by Municipal Attorneys Assoc.

Megan Votaw

Attorney (Civil/Criminal)/Public Defender

2025 total comp

$212,582

Sub-department: Legal & Court
Organization group: Public Protection
Base pay: $156,337
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $0
Benefits: $56,245
Total compensation: $212,582
Employment type: Permanent Exempt
Union / bargaining unit: Municipal Attorneys Assoc
Full-time equivalent (FTE): 1

Source-specific fields

Data As Of: Jun 14, 2026
Data Loaded At: Jun 15, 2026
Department Code: PDR
Health and Dental Benefits: $21,941
Job Code: 8177
Job Family Code: 8100
Organization Group Code: Public Protection
Other Benefits: $12,076

Megan Votaw is a Attorney (Civil/Criminal) at Public Defender within Legal & Court. They work permanent exempt. 2025 total compensation came to $212,582. They are represented by Municipal Attorneys Assoc.

Francisco Ugarte

Head Attorney Civil & Criminal/Public Defender

2025 total comp

$211,695

Sub-department: Legal & Court
Organization group: Public Protection
Base pay: $154,612
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $0
Benefits: $57,083
Total compensation: $211,695
Employment type: Permanent Exempt
Union / bargaining unit: Municipal Attorneys Assoc
Full-time equivalent (FTE): 0.54

Source-specific fields

Data As Of: Jun 14, 2026
Data Loaded At: Jun 15, 2026
Department Code: PDR
Health and Dental Benefits: $23,082
Job Code: 8182
Job Family Code: 8100
Organization Group Code: Public Protection
Other Benefits: $11,759

Francisco Ugarte is a Head Attorney Civil & Criminal at Public Defender within Legal & Court. They work permanent exempt, 0.54 FTE. 2025 total compensation came to $211,695. They are represented by Municipal Attorneys Assoc.

Laurence Roberts

IT Operations Support Administrative IV/Public Defender

2025 total comp

$211,614

Sub-department: Information Systems
Organization group: Public Protection
Base pay: $157,672
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $0
Benefits: $53,942
Total compensation: $211,614
Employment type: Permanent Civil Service
Union / bargaining unit: Prof & Tech Eng, Local 21
Full-time equivalent (FTE): 1

Source-specific fields

Data As Of: Jun 14, 2026
Data Loaded At: Jun 15, 2026
Department Code: PDR
Health and Dental Benefits: $19,546
Job Code: 1094
Job Family Code: 1000
Organization Group Code: Public Protection
Other Benefits: $11,973

At Public Defender, Laurence Roberts serves as a IT Operations Support Administrative IV within Information Systems. They work permanent civil service. Their 2025 pay totaled $211,614. Union affiliation: Prof & Tech Eng, Local 21.

Stephanie Aquino

Senior Human Resources Analyst/Public Defender

2025 total comp

$207,685

Sub-department: Personnel
Organization group: Public Protection
Base pay: $154,401
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $0
Benefits: $53,284
Total compensation: $207,685
Employment type: Permanent Civil Service
Union / bargaining unit: Prof & Tech Eng, Local 21
Full-time equivalent (FTE): 1

Source-specific fields

Data As Of: Jun 14, 2026
Data Loaded At: Jun 15, 2026
Department Code: PDR
Health and Dental Benefits: $19,546
Job Code: 1244
Job Family Code: 1200
Organization Group Code: Public Protection
Other Benefits: $11,781

Stephanie Aquino holds the role of Senior Human Resources Analyst at Public Defender within Personnel. Their status is permanent civil service. In 2025, their total compensation was $207,685. They are represented by Prof & Tech Eng, Local 21.