Elk Grove Budget Manager Shay Narayan has been hired as the City of Manteca’s finance director

The southern Sacramento County city grew 15 percent since 2010 going from 153,015 to 180,000 residents today.

Manteca has grown during the same time period by just over 30 percent going from 67,749 to 90,000

That provides Narayan with the expertise of not just municipal budgeting and finances of a larger city but doing so in a city experiencing significant growth pressures.

He has served as Elk Grove’s budget manager since 2017.

Before that he was interim director finance and served as interim budget manager, senior budget analyst, and as budget analyst.

Narayan started at Elk Grove in 2014.

City Manager Toni Lindgren indicated Narayan will start his new job on Monday, Sept. 11.

Lundgren on Friday also noted municipal audits have almost all been brought up to date.

Manteca – due to internal issues that developed after Suzanne Mallory retired in 2017 after serving as finance director for 16 years without any issue — hasn’t been current on audits for four years.

A quick succession of city managers and turnover at the top of the finance department, the city was unable to get a correct read on its books.

While dollars per se were accounted for, the general ledger wasn’t being updated correctly prompting departments to essentially keep their own books so they knew where they stood.

Two outside financial consultants were brought in to help untangle the mess.

At the same time, elected leaders noted that previous city managers had repeatedly rejected staffing requests for additional finance department personnel. That helped create a significant manpower shortage.

Originally from Oregon, Narayan’s public service career began over 15 years ago as a Budget Analyst with the USDA Forest Service.

He continued in the realm of finance and analysis, including roles with the US Department of Energy and the City of Elk Grove, where he made his mark as the city's first budget analyst and later as budget manager.

In addition to his local government experience, Narayan’s leadership extends to roles such as Finance Director/Treasurer for the Municipal Management Association of Northern California (MMANC).

Narayan holds a Master's Degree in Economics and a Bachelor's Degree in both Mathematics and Economics from Portland State University.

He currently resides in Galt, California with his family.

Outside of his professional commitments, he embraces outdoor activities such as hiking, camping, and overlanding in the scenic Sierra, Oregon Cascades, and Coastal Range.  

The finance director is the city’s sixth highest paid position with the highest step on the pay scale reaching $225,960.

The hiring of Narayan leaves the police chief’s job as the only senior management team post not filled with a  permanent employee.

Stephen Schluer is currently serving as interim police chief.

Schluer, who was a captain before being picked to serve as interim chief, has applied for the permanent position.

To contact Dennis Wyatt, email dwyatt@mantecabulletin.com