The city of Ceres is headed into the new budget year on July 1 with a number of shackles on expenditures to bring them more in line with revenue projections.

The Ceres City Council formally adopted the 2026-27 Fiscal Year Budget last week which has come closest to a balanced budget in recent memory.

Initially when city staff began laying out its budget requests, the city was staring at a staggering $5.6 million budget deficit. Finance Director Vanessa Portillo explained that with balancing strategies including spending cuts, operational adjustments, and updated revenue projections, the deficit was erased and the city projects a surplus of $22,800.

The General Fund – the only fund in which the council has discretionary spending – expects to receive $27.8 million in revenue and spending the same. The city budget in total, including enterprise accounts, and comes to $86.5 million in revenues and $110.4 million in expenditures because of one-time capital improvement projects.

Portillo said the city “continues to face the long-term financial challenges, including rising pay and pensions, insurance, operational, and inflation related costs.” She also said that city staff will “continue focusing on operational efficiencies in long-term financial planning to support the city’s financial stability.”

At its special meeting of June 1 the council decided to make a number of cuts in expenditures. They included:

• Ending donations to civic organizations saving $25,000;
• Foregoing a one-year payment of $304,000 for fire apparatus acquired a few years ago and owed to an internal city fund;
• Cancelling $64,000 contract with Alpine Security to provide security at parks and lock park restrooms in the evening;
• Cancelling the $266,000 contract with Bright View, the agency that provides right of way maintenance. Williams said the result will be that “the weeds will get longer, there may be trash in certain areas that would otherwise be picked up, or we assign existing staff to put it on their increasingly large list of things to do, and we will get to those items as quickly as they can.” Public groups and individuals could step up and adopt areas to clean.
• Cutting $8,000 in supplies for the annual Trunk or Treat Festival and $8,000 in costs to underwrite the annual Christmas Festival. The events will go on but city will need greater community support;
• Dropping the contract with Capital Advocacy to save $72,000. The group writes grants and tries to secure funding for Ceres.
• Cutting hours of some of the part-time recreation employees to save $50,000. There are approximately 10 on staff. Williams said that some programs that may be impacted by this reduction including Kids in the Kitchen, some crafts, dance, youth programs and that some of the hours that the building is available may be reduced.
• Eliminating two part-time code enforcement officers assigned to the street division but who were hired knowing their jobs could end when ARPA dollars dried up. Keeping them would cost $33,000.
• Cutting a park’s maintenance worker to save $60,000.
• Letting go of the full-time recreation coordinator that costs the city $91,575. The position engages in senior programming and Community Center rentals. But the council last week decided to keep that position funded for the next six months and re-evaluate.

Shirley Rogers, a Ceres senior citizen and a member of the Commission on Aging and who participates in senior programs at the Ceres Community Center, begged the council to keep the recreation coordinator who she said is vital for seniors.

“The seniors are 17 percent of Ceres,” said Rogers. “That’s 8,500 seniors; don’t want to p--- off that many people.”

She continued: “I want to keep the woman that’s doing the planning.”

Rogers also suggested that the city sell off the Clinton Whitmore Mansion.

Ceres resident John Warren recommended the city backing out of the Pecos Avenue fire station outside the city limits but within the Sphere of Influence. Another idea Warren shared is to end overtime by compensating employees with compensatory time off.

Mayor Javier Lopez asked about an open position for a part-time recreation coordinator and its cost. He was told the salaries range between $17 and $21 per hour and at 15-20 hours per week the cost is about $22,000 annually. He then asked why the city is recruiting for that when the $91,000 position for the recreation coordinator is on the chopping block. Lopez wondered if the position could be spared given the city is projecting a surplus.

Vice Mayor Daniel Martinez suggested keeping the recreation coordinator employed for another six months and re-evaluate the budget then to possibly keep her on. The council agreed.

Councilwoman Cerina Otero suggested once again eliminating the city paid health benefits and stipends to council members and digging into expenditures of the Planning Commission.

“Our part-time employees also don’t get the same benefits as the current City Council,” said Otero, who asked the council to reconsider the issue.

Councilman James Casey, noting a lack of many audience members, said the city has done a poor job of communicating with residents but said if it tries to seek a sales tax increase “I bet you $5 to a dime that there would be plenty of communications coming from the city.”

“They’ll find the money to communicate to the citizens why we need to increase our sales tax, and you’ll have plenty of money spent to invite them to public hearings, but every day, activity here. Nobody shows up because nobody knows.”

Out of the blue, Lopez asked if Casey knew who on the council takes health insurance from the city.

“I have no idea,” replued Casey. “All I know if it’s budgeted for $46,000. I have no idea who has the insurance and who doesn’t have insurance.”

Lopez then stated that he does not take health insurance from the city but will continue to support the concept for members who want it.

“I don’t think that is necessary for us to take away the one thing that allows people to even take into consideration in running for office,” said Lopez. “There’s a lot of hours that are spent. It is not a part-time job. If this was a part-time job, then it’s by choice. This is a full time job for me.”

Casey shot back: “We, five of us, are responsible to make sure that we have money for this hall, and to pay our fire, the police, the other staff people and if anybody needs to take a hit, it should be us … It needs to start at the top and go down.”

Later in the meeting Casey asked Lopez who on the council takes health insurance and he replied: “We shouldn’t be guessing who has insurance and who doesn’t have insurance.”

At no time during the meeting was it publicly disclosed who on the council takes advantage of the benefit.

Interim City Manager Steve Williams said as long as he is in charge he commits to quarterly budget updates. The council will also be able to adjust the budget mid-year, sometime around the first of 2027.

The budget was approved 4-0 with Councilwoman Rosalinda Vierra absent. She has been tending to a family member’s medical crisis.

“Congratulations, we avoided a $5.5 million deficit,” said Mayor Lopez. “Thank you, staff. Appreciate that.”