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Regular City Council Meeting Monday, August 17, 2009 Page 15 Councilmembers, individually and corporately, repeatedly encouraged staff to provide them with the list of 200 programs for their individual ranking and con- sideration. Discussion included ranking and re-ranking among and across departments for programs and services; staff's development of an acceptable and user-friendly format, including staffing, supplies, materials, professional services, and what it costs to provide the service and/or program; funding levels for programs and ser- vices versus their actual elimination; recognition that 87% of the City's cost is personnel related; outsourcing costs versus in-house staffing; addressing the ever- changing service levels and equating their cost and staffing; and levels of expecta- tions based on costs and benefits. Further discussion included challenges in funding the total programs, while not reducing programs and or services. based on philosophical issues, whether they were fully funded or not (i.e., park and recreation programming); philosophical and wellness community versus cost considerations; recognizing that the City is not in the business of making money, but of providing services, and that the analysis needed to be across the board, and not limited to specific departments, but balancing the overall community benefits with competing interests. Additional discussion included realties of this process with that previously used in the budget process; level of detail that will be available for Councilmembers from the consultant and staff; preparation of individual Councilmembers for difficult and challenging discussions and decision-making throughout this process; and recognizing that this was the first year in the BFO process, and may need to serve as a leaning process, with not all information readily available, or fully analyzed to-date; and noting what can and cannot be accomplished in that first year. Councilmembers noted the need for the analysis to include the cost for the pro- gram/service; the wage/labor component to that calculation based on full-time equivalencies (FTE's) rather than specific numbers of employees; how current staffing is impacted and where adjustments are indicated, as recommended by the City's management team. Councilmembers further noted the need to recognize that this year's process would be a combination of past budget processes and the BFO process, and needed to be considered in the decision-making process for general functions of the City, within and among programs and services, as previously indicated. City Manager Malinen noted that the BFO process would be challenging to staff and the City Council, but in the end, opined that it would be the right thing to do for the long-term health of the organization, further opining that the City could not continue to function as it was currently.