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Regular City Council Meeting Monday, March 09, 2009 Page 14 Mr. Trudgeon advised Councilmembers that staff anticipated returning to the City Council on March 23, 2009, in Executive Session, to provide an update on nego- tiations to-date. 13. Business Items - Presentations/Discussions b. Continue Discussion on an Alternative Budgeting Process for 2010 City Manager Malinen led a discussion on alternative budgeting processes for 2010, and the Request for Council Action dated March 9, 2009 for outside con- sulting in an amount not to exceed $50,000. Finance Director Chris Miller noted the need to quantify costs for all programs and services to facilitate moving toward outcome-based budgeting; and any ad- justments that may be indicated, such as reallocation of funding, deleting pro- grams, or increasing fees; and allowing the City Council to prioritize those pro- grams and services accordingly, based on their true costs and as part of the deci- sion-making process. Councilmember Pust noted that, when this was discussed in the recent Council Worksession, tiers were discussed; but that this process indicated measuring pro- grams for results, and questioned how this would help Councilmembers draw the line without another level of detail, and without additional information based on similar services and programs of peer cities. Councilmember Pust asked to have some input or ability to review the scope of services and information sought prior to hiring an outside consultant. Councilmember Pust opined that additional dis- cussion was needed between staff and the City Council to make sure it was clear what information was being requested, and to draft a Request for Proposals (RFP.) Councilmember Roe opined his support of outside assistance, based on their ex- pertise and availability, recognizing time constraints on in-house staff and impacts to their day-to-day operations in gathering this data, while also allowing for an impartial look at everything. However, Councilmember Roe noted the need for substantial community feedback on their preferred service levels, and their awareness of the dollar impacts for businesses and citizens, in providing those service levels and programs. Councilmember Roe noted the need for more infor- mal discussions among staff and the City Council, similar to the recent Workses- sion, to avoid surprises during and at the end of the budget process, as noted by staff in the last budget process. Councilmember Johnson expressed some concerns from his discussions with staff and various levels of support for outcome-based budgeting; and his concerns that in providing core services, park programming and services may be reduced to fa- cilitate them. However, Councilmember Johnson noted the support for park and