One of City Manager Brad Kilger’s tasks has been to put city operations on fiscally resilient footing. Tuesday he and Assistant City Manager Anne Cardwell will present the results of research they’ll use to reach that goal.

The Council also will take its first steps toward developing the city’s 2015-17 budget that needs to be in place July 1.

“The city has now completed the first phase of a long-term strategy for creating a fiscally resilient organization that can effectively weather an economic downturn,” Kilger and Cardwell wrote in their joint report.

That first phase of the Sustainable Community Services Strategy involved several financial studies, a General Fund 10-year forecast and an organizational scan of Benicia’s eight departments.

Kilger and Cardwell said the research will be the basis for determining whether the city is providing services to the public that it considers valuable, as well as the most efficient and effective ways of delivering those services.

They will ask the Council to comment on their report and make recommendations about the next steps city employees should take, particularly regarding Public Works and parks maintenance operations.

The Organization Scan Report was delivered this month by Gerald Newfarmer, president and chief executive officer of Management Partners, which has California offices in San Jose and Costa Mesa. In a letter accompanying the report, Newfarmer noted that most cities the size of Benicia are not full-service municipalities; unlike others, Benicia provides police, fire, water, wastewater and library services.

Others work with county agencies to receive some of those services, he wrote.

In addition, Benicia tends to customize its services to the public, which has become a challenge given that limited city staff is below the average number of peer cities, Newfarmer wrote.

As an example, he noted that use of the public library book and materials circulation has grown by 28 percent in the past five years, but by 2014 staff had been reduced by 19 percent, with no new full-time employees hired since 2006.

The Community Development Department had a third fewer employees than it did in Fiscal Year 2009-10, and the city attorney’s office and and Parks and Community Services experienced similar staffing cutbacks — yet the latter department maintains more buildings, landscapes and parks than they were required to do a few years ago, Newfarmer wrote.

“A strong focus on the fundamentals (core services) would improve operational efficiency and cost effectiveness,” he wrote. “Among those are enhanced technology, training and development, and updates to policies and procedures.

“The city’s Strategic Plan has many high priorities, yet staffing is not sufficient to carry them out. Further, many fundamental elements that need to be in place to expand staff capacity, such as through the use of technology, have not had much of an investment, and that impedes progress.”

Newfarmer suggested Benicia explore various service delivery options, but praised city employees as “highly committed and adaptable,” adding they “stay focused on excellent service delivery.”

His report noted that even though employee-related expenditures have been reduced by more than $11 million in the past five years, costs outpace revenues, something experienced even in cities that have seen major revenue increases: “The city estimates it has $100 million in unfunded needs in streets and transportation, storm drain improvements, facilities, library and the swimming pool.”

He added that Benicia is more tax-revenue dependent than its peer cities, and is below them in hotel occupancy revenues and non-tax money, such as fees.

The 1-cent sales tax increase approved by voters Nov. 4 will help, but the magnitude of city needs “will require additional funding solutions,” including a review of rates and fees charged to provide services.

Newfarmer recommended department heads and the Council discuss what constitutes fundamental services and functions and what should be considered “enhancements,” and use conclusions as a guide to resource allocation.

He also recommended the city make yearly updates to its 10-year financial forecast; calculate the benefits and costs of a dependency on volunteers; and start a five-year strategic planning process that produces long-range objectives and short-term priorities consistent with the capacity of employees and financial resources.

In addition, he wrote, the city needs to set priorities for multiple unmet needs, from planning and studies to equipment and buildings, information technology to staffing, training and emergency operations — then develop a long-range plan for addressing those needs.

Specifically, he called for a five-year funding plan to upgrade technology citywide and a halt to high turnover in executive and frontline staff, which he blamed on low compensation and the high cost of housing in Benicia.

Public Works alone has seen five directors in six years, he noted, and police department sworn staff had a 41-percent turnover in 2013 and 2014. He recommended the city create a staff development program throughout all departments and for all positions.

Benicia has 14 advisory panels, each of which needs staff support. In 2012, city employees spent 5,268 hours supporting those boards and commissions.

“Based on current resource challenges, it would be beneficial for the city to evaluate the results delivered through advisory bodies and determine the appropriate allocation of resources based on primary core service needs,” Newfarmer wrote, adding that employees have suggested reducing the number of meetings, combining some panels and eliminating others.

He wrote that the city needs to reduce staff workload or allocate more staff to support the panels.

Among the next steps in developing the city’s sustainable financial footing are a set of meetings at which public participation will be sought, and development of a long-term services plan that will be incorporated in the city budget, Kilger and Cardwell wrote.

In late summer or fall of this year the city will convene community meetings so the public can provide additional comment on the city’s financial outlook and weigh in on the organizational scan, they wrote; among the topics of those meetings will be the city’s 10-year financial forecast, risks to the city budget, what’s required to operate a full-service city, community priorities and what services residents are willing to reduce.

Before the end of the year, they wrote, city staff will develop the Sustainable Community Services Strategy based on the community meetings and the citywide analysis, as well as “more robust” performance standards.

Also Tuesday, the Council will see a draft of the Budget Implementation Plan and give Kilger, Cardwell and Finance Director Karin Schnaider their views on the document.

The plan is designed to identify city priorities and how Benicia should allocate resources in alignment with the Strategic Plan, which has as its five points protecting community health and safety, protecting and enhancing the environment, strengthening economic and fiscal conditions, preserving and enhancing infrastructure and maintaining and enhancing a high quality of life.

They provided the Council with a list of mandatory projects and programs as well as priorities from earlier budget discussions and new ones, including those suggested by employees.

The Council will meet at 6 p.m. Tuesday, an hour earlier than usual, in the Council Chamber of City Hall, 250 East L St.