Logistics director outlines FY2027 cuts, commissioners press for fleet consolidation

Sean Self, the city’s director of Logistics, told the City Commission on July 9 that his department’s proposed FY2027 budget trims roughly $175,350 from FY2026 levels while preserving core services. Self said Logistics — which includes purchasing, risk management, information technology, signs and facility maintenance — is proposing a $5,395,174 appropriation for FY2027, down from $5,570,524 in FY2026.

Self walked commissioners through division-level changes, including a modest 1.2% increase in the purchasing division’s budget after consolidating positions that reduced payroll from about $481,000 to $424,000; a risk-management effort that yielded nearly $2 million in premium savings over three years and recent subrogation recoveries of roughly $305,000; and IT spending driven by compliance costs such as NIST-related cybersecurity work and public‑records archiving. He said the signs and markings budget falls from about $597,680 to $531,874 next year after the department narrowed its focus and eliminated some in‑house sign manufacturing.

Commissioners seized on the fleet and procurement lines. Multiple commissioners urged staff to develop a centralized vehicle policy, consolidate vehicle purchasing and assign vehicles based on usage or a pool model rather than by department. Self said Logistics currently tracks assets, handles registration and insurance, and has begun running mileage and GPS reports; he identified roughly 20 vehicles with notably low usage that his team would review first. He cautioned that some specialty vehicles cannot be pooled and that mutual‑aid arrangements with neighboring jurisdictions raise insurance and liability questions.

On procurement and signage, commissioners repeatedly asked staff to solicit quotes from local Panama City and Bay County sign shops and to return cost comparisons showing local options versus current practice. Self said the in‑house sign shop is retained for emergency, rapid replacement of traffic signs but acknowledged contracting for larger or time‑sensitive projects.

Commissioners also asked for clearer apples‑to‑apples metrics from departments and for staff to show the trade‑offs tied to deeper budget targets. Several commissioners said they would protect public‑safety staffing but expect non‑public‑safety line items — travel, car allowances, discretionary software or service contracts — to be examined for additional savings. Self said some contract renewals are constrained by vendor rates but that Logistics continues to pursue vendor negotiations and internal audits to reduce recurring costs.

The commission did not take any formal action at the workshop; staff were directed to return with more detailed analyses of vehicle usage, fleet consolidation options, vendor quotes for signage and a clearer breakdown of IT and software license costs.