How Ceres is run
Who runs Ceres, what it costs, and where your money goes
The city manager, council pay, the budget, your property tax bill and who provides each service, from Ceres's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.
Who runs Ceres
A city manager appointed by the City Council serves as the city's chief executive and reports to the council. The council, with four members elected by district and the mayor elected citywide, is the legislative and policy-making body. The city treasurer is also elected.
What they are paid
- No city health, retirement or other benefits; he keeps his own health insurance
- No vacation, holiday or administrative leave; sick leave only as state law requires
- The city can end the contract on five days' written notice, paying only compensation then due
- Contract ends after one year, or sooner if the city appoints a city manager
- The elected officials' budget includes $46,854 for employee group insurance in FY2026-27
Ceres city staff
167 full-time-equivalent positions, including Police (sworn) 47, Police (non-sworn, incl. dispatch) 16. FY2026-27. Positions listed for FY2026-27, including the six elected officials. The same table lists 16 unfunded positions. City of Ceres · Jun 8, 2026
The budget lists approved positions by department but no pay rates. We found no city list of pay by employee. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Ceres in the red?
Cities must pass a balanced budget, so "profit" and "deficit" mean something different here. The useful questions: does the city's everyday money (the general fund) cover its everyday costs, how much does it keep in savings compared with its own target, and how big are its pension and debt bills.
The city's own outlook
Staff said a status quo FY2026-27 budget would have had a structural deficit of about $5.62 million. Balancing strategies of about $3.46 million cut that to about $2.16 million, to be covered from reserves. In April staff projected the general fund balance would fall to 6.6% of spending, below the 18% target. The adopted budget has $27.8 million of general fund revenue and $28.0 million of spending, and suspends a $304,000 fire engine loan payment for the year. City of Ceres · Jun 1, 2026
Savings against the city's own target
Unassigned general fund balance: $8.5M (2025-06-30). The city's own target: The city's target is a general fund balance of 18% of general fund expenses. In April 2026 staff projected the balance would fall to 6.6% by the end of FY2026-27. City of Ceres · Sep 28, 2026
Why we skip the "budgeted deficit": many cities plan to dip into savings, then spend less than planned. The audited result tells you what really happened.
Where the money comes from and goes
The general fund only: the city's everyday money for FY2026-27.
Comes from
- Sales tax$8.5M · 31%
- Property tax in lieu of vehicle license fees$5.3M · 19%
- Secured property tax$3.2M · 11%
- Business license tax$1.8M · 7%
- Utility users tax (electric, gas, cable and telephone)$1.5M · 5%
- RTTPF allocation (property tax from the former redevelopment agency)$1M · 4%
- Bertolotti refuse franchise$870,697 · 3%
- Ceres Unified school resource officer payments$799,800 · 3%
- Other (permits, fees, other taxes, grants, interest and other revenue)$4.9M · 18%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Police$12.2M · 44%
- Fire (Modesto Fire contract)$7.1M · 25%
- Police non-sworn (dispatch, records)$2.2M · 8%
- General city$1.1M · 4%
- Parks$906,216 · 3%
- Recreation$772,258 · 3%
- Animal control$731,249 · 3%
- Human resources$547,003 · 2%
- Other (code enforcement, building, planning, finance, clerk, city manager, council and other)$2.5M · 9%
Who provides your services
Not everything in Ceres is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityCeres Police DepartmentCity of Ceres · Jun 8, 2026
- Fire protection and emergency medical responseContractorModesto Fire Department, under contract with the cityThe council approved the contract with Modesto on June 14, 2021.City of Ceres · Jun 8, 2026
- 911 dispatchThe cityCeres Police Department Dispatch CenterThe center also dispatches for Newman.City of Ceres · Jun 8, 2026
- WaterThe cityCity of Ceres Water DivisionThe division oversees 13 active groundwater wells.City of Ceres · Jun 8, 2026
- Sewer and wastewater treatmentThe cityCity of Ceres Wastewater DivisionCity of Ceres · Jun 8, 2026
- Trash collectionContractorBertolotti, the city's contracted waste haulerCity of Ceres · Jun 8, 2026
- Animal servicesAnother agencyStanislaus Animal Services AgencyCity of Ceres · Jun 8, 2026
- ParksThe cityCity of Ceres Parks DivisionThe city maintains 16 developed parks.City of Ceres · Jun 8, 2026
- StreetsThe cityCity of Ceres Street Maintenance DivisionCity of Ceres · Jun 8, 2026
Compared with similar cities
The cities in this state closest in population that we cover. Read it for scale, not as a ranking: cities provide different services.
| Per city | AzusaCA | CeresCA | Los BanosCA | Aliso ViejoCA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 48,549 | 49,075 | 49,255 | 49,945 |
| Top administrator's base pay | $335,000 | $198,000 | $238,800 | $340,000 |
| Council member pay | $15,300 | Not confirmed | $3,600 | $6,240 |
| General fund per resident | $1,743 | $570 | $821 | $598 |
| Debt per resident | $2,020 | $152 | $277 | $221 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $431 | $878 | $649 | $32 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 7.8 | 3.4 | 5.0 | 0.7 |
Figures as shown in each city's section, divided by its population. Years differ by state, and pension figures are measured differently in each state (each city page says how). Ceres and Aliso Viejo pays another agency for police or fire, so its own staff count is lower.
What Ceres publishes
What a resident can find online today. A "no" is something you can ask the council to publish.
- No: Audited financial report filed on timeThe audit for the year ended June 30, 2025 is dated September 28, 2026, 15 months after year end. The prior year's audit is dated April 2, 2026. City of Ceres · Sep 28, 2026
- Yes: Adopted budget posted onlineThe FY2026-27 adopted budget and past budgets are posted on the Financial Information page. City of Ceres
- Yes: City manager's contract findable onlineThe interim city manager's employment agreement is attached to item 17 of the April 13, 2026 council agenda packet. City of Ceres · Apr 13, 2026
- Yes: Council votes recorded member by member onlineCouncil minutes show each member's roll call vote by name. City of Ceres · Aug 10, 2026
- No: Employee pay publishedThe budget lists approved positions by department but no pay rates. We found no list of pay by employee. City of Ceres · Jun 8, 2026
Questions to ask your council
- The general fund had $8,483,564 unassigned on June 30, 2025, but staff projected the balance would fall to 6.6% of spending, below the 18% target. How will the city rebuild it?
- Police ($12,188,003) and the Modesto fire contract ($7,054,063) make up most of the $27,986,800 FY2026-27 general fund budget. How will the city pay for them as costs rise?
- The city reports a $43,075,938 net pension liability for its share of StanCERA. How much will the city put toward it each year?
- The audit for the year ended June 30, 2025 is dated September 28, 2026. When will the FY2025-26 audit be published?
The fiscal year starts July 1. Staff held a budget workshop on April 21, 2026, the council heard a follow-up presentation on May 11, and it reviewed budget scenarios at a special meeting on June 1. The council adopted the FY2026-27 budget on June 8, 2026. See who is running for council
Help decide what comes next
What do you want to know about Ceres next?
One tap, no sign-in. We count answers; we never show who chose what.
Every number here was checked by hand against the linked document. Cities publish on different schedules, so years differ between sections; each figure says which year it describes. Spotted something wrong or out of date?
See something wrong? Report an error
Something wrong or missing? Tell us what and where, with a link to a source if you have one. Reports feed the next verification run.