California / California Highway Patrol

Agency file

California Highway Patrol

Source file: California — State Employee Compensation (SCO Payroll Data Warehouse, CPRA) / ingested Jul 4, 2026

The California Highway Patrol provides law enforcement and public safety — patrol, criminal investigation, and emergency response.

In 2025, this agency had 11,847 employees with median total compensation of $162,741; the highest distinct record was $689,249.

Year: 2025
Total payroll: $1.8B
Employees: 11,847
Median total: $162,741
Highest record: $689,249

What the records show

Compensation analytics

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

Salary distribution

-$27,864$326,585+

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

How 2025 total compensation is spread across the 11,847 employees. Each bar is a pay range; taller bars mean more people earn in that range. The amber line marks the median ($162,741) — half earn less, half more. The far-right bar collects the highest earners.

Average pay composition

Base — $116,796 (79%)
Overtime — $22,914 (15%)
Other — $8,122 (5%)
Benefits — $0 (0%)

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

$40,480

$77,113

$162,741

$202,118

$242,085

The pay ladder for this department. Someone at the 90th percentile earns $242,085 — more than 90% of the department; the 10th percentile earns $40,480. The shaded band is the middle half of employees (25th–75th percentile).

Largest job titles

Officer, California Highway Patrol

6,424 · $180,005

Sergeant, California Highway Patrol

945 · $220,835

Public Safety Dispatcher, California Highway Patrol

743 · $93,159

Cadet, California Highway Patrol

422 · $24,238

Office Assistant (Typing)

364 · $44,431

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 3 published years.

Year	Total payroll	Employees	Median pay
2023	$1.5B —	11,005 —	$153,474 —
2024	$1.6B ▲ 9.2%	11,629 ▲ 5.7%	$158,333 ▲ 3.2%
2025	$1.8B ▲ 6.2%	11,847 ▲ 1.9%	$162,741 ▲ 2.8%

Record list

Employees

Page 34

Christopher Lancaster

Officer, California Highway Patrol/California Highway Patrol

2025 total comp

$164,211

Base pay: $160,183
Overtime: $3,108
Other pay: $920
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $164,211
Employment type: Full-Time
Union / bargaining unit: R05
Work county: Madera
Middle name: B

Source-specific fields

Base Pay: $11,995
Cs/csu: Cs
Position Number: 3894508397570
Salary Total: $13,580
Total Pay: $164,211

At California Highway Patrol, Christopher Lancaster serves as a Officer, California Highway Patrol. They work full-time. Their 2025 pay totaled $164,211. Union affiliation: R05.

Christopher V Hernandez Iii

Officer, California Highway Patrol/California Highway Patrol

2025 total comp

$164,208

Base pay: $143,951
Overtime: $16,828
Other pay: $3,429
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $164,208
Employment type: Full-Time
Union / bargaining unit: R05
Work county: Kern
Middle name: R

Source-specific fields

Base Pay: $11,194
Cs/csu: Cs
Position Number: 3894308397029
Salary Total: $12,113
Total Pay: $164,208

Christopher V Hernandez Iii holds the role of Officer, California Highway Patrol at California Highway Patrol. Their status is full-time. In 2025, their total compensation was $164,208. Their bargaining unit is R05.

Brian Rodems

Officer, California Highway Patrol/California Highway Patrol

2025 total comp

$164,187

Base pay: $156,197
Overtime: $6,573
Other pay: $1,417
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $164,187
Employment type: Full-Time
Union / bargaining unit: R05
Work county: Fresno
Middle name: J

Source-specific fields

Base Pay: $11,995
Cs/csu: Cs
Position Number: 3894958397055
Salary Total: $13,040
Total Pay: $164,187

Brian Rodems holds the role of Officer, California Highway Patrol at California Highway Patrol. Their status is full-time. In 2025, their total compensation was $164,187. They are represented by R05.

Eric Mulherin

Officer, California Highway Patrol/California Highway Patrol

2025 total comp

$164,186

Base pay: $159,703
Overtime: $3,563
Other pay: $920
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $164,186
Employment type: Full-Time
Union / bargaining unit: R05
Work county: Imperial
Middle name: D

Source-specific fields

Base Pay: $11,995
Cs/csu: Cs
Position Number: 3896208397059
Salary Total: $13,340
Total Pay: $164,186

Eric Mulherin is a Officer, California Highway Patrol at California Highway Patrol. They work full-time. 2025 total compensation came to $164,186. Their bargaining unit is R05.

David Keyser

Officer, California Highway Patrol/California Highway Patrol

2024 total comp

$164,141

Base pay: $158,695
Overtime: $133
Other pay: $5,313
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $164,141
Employment type: Full-Time
Union / bargaining unit: R05
Work county: Merced
Middle name: M

Source-specific fields

Base Pay: $11,465
Cs/csu: Cs
Position Number: 3894648397025
Salary Total: $13,630
Total Pay: $164,141

David Keyser is a Officer, California Highway Patrol at California Highway Patrol. They work full-time. 2024 total compensation came to $164,141. Their bargaining unit is R05.

Karan Chandel

Officer, California Highway Patrol/California Highway Patrol

2025 total comp

$164,138

Base pay: $127,009
Overtime: $34,397
Other pay: $2,733
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $164,138
Employment type: Full-Time
Union / bargaining unit: R05
Work county: Santa Clara

Source-specific fields

Base Pay: $10,154
Cs/csu: Cs
Position Number: 3893408397047
Salary Total: $10,994
Total Pay: $164,138

At California Highway Patrol, Karan Chandel serves as a Officer, California Highway Patrol. They work full-time. Their 2025 pay totaled $164,138. Union affiliation: R05.