From a $5.5 Million Deficit to a Balanced Budget: Ceres Moving Forward Responsibly.

Earlier this year, during my State of the City address, I spoke honestly about the difficult financial times ahead. I said then that families were feeling the pressure of the economy, and so was our City. I also made it clear that our top priority had to be protecting the essential services our residents depend on, especially public safety, emergency response, clean neighborhoods, parks, and basic city services.

That warning became very real during this year’s budget process on June 8th 2026.

The City of Ceres started with a projected budget deficit of nearly $5.5 million. That was not a small gap. It forced difficult conversations, hard decisions, and a serious review of how we budget your taxpayer dollars. But through that process, the City Council and staff worked to bring that deficit down and pass a balanced budget per say.

That is important, and residents deserve to know it.

Balancing the budget means we made responsible decisions to protect the City’s financial future. It means we did not ignore the problem. It means we took action. It also means we worked to protect services and avoid deeper cuts where possible.

One of the most important parts of this budget process was protecting people. These decisions are not just numbers on a page. They affect employees, families, and the services residents receive every day. During this process, we worked to help protect a position funded by the general fund that could have impacted someone’s job. I believe we can be fiscally responsible while still remembering the human side of every decision.

This budget also marks the closing chapter of ARPA funding. Those federal dollars helped cities across the country respond to the impacts of the pandemic, but they were always temporary. As that funding comes to an end, we have to be careful not to build permanent expenses on temporary money.

That is one of the biggest lessons moving forward.

Passing a balanced budget is a major step, but it is not the finish line.

The real question now is: how do we prevent more cuts in the future? One solution is that we must grow our General Fund.

The General Fund is the primary fund the City Council uses to pass and as we did to balance the City’s budget. It pays for many of the services residents care about most, including police, parks, code enforcement, community programs, and everyday city operations.

If we want stronger public safety, better roads, improved parks, more family programs, and better services for our residents, then we need a stronger and more stable local revenue base.

That means Ceres must continue to focus on economic development, attracting new businesses, supporting existing businesses, and making sure local tax dollars stay local. Growing the General Fund is how we avoid deeper cuts in the future and how we continue improving the quality of life for Ceres families.

That means Ceres must continue becoming a more competitive city.

We need to attract new businesses, support existing businesses, improve the permitting process, and make it easier for responsible investment to happen in our community. Economic development is not just about ribbon cuttings. It is about creating jobs, growing local revenue, and building the financial foundation that allows us to provide better services to our residents.

We also need to continue investing in the things that improve quality of life. Families want safe parks, youth programs, community events, recreation opportunities, clean neighborhoods, and places where residents can come together. These are not extras. They are part of what makes a city feel like home.

At the same time, public safety must remain a top priority. Residents have been clear that they want strong police services, fast emergency response, clean public spaces, and continued action on homelessness, blight, and illegal dumping. A safe city is also a city where families want to live and businesses want to invest.

Moving forward, we must stay focused on a few key goals:

Protect public safety and essential city services.

Grow the General Fund.

Support businesses that invest in Ceres and create local jobs.

Improve parks, recreation, and community programs for families.

Maintain fiscal discipline and avoid relying on one-time money for ongoing expenses.

Fight for our fair share of state, federal, and regional funding.

The City of Ceres is not standing still. We are growing, competing, and planning for the future. But growth must be responsible, and our financial decisions must protect both today’s residents and the next generation.

The budget we passed shows that Ceres is willing to make difficult decisions. Now we must continue the work of building a stronger financial foundation so we can avoid deeper cuts, improve services, and keep moving our city forward.

Ceres deserves to be safe, clean, competitive, and full of opportunity. That is the future we are working toward.