A recent audit of the city of Birmingham's operations found up to $21 million in potential cost savings.

Not all of the recommendations from Crowe Horwath LLP, a Chicago-based public accounting and consulting firm, will be implemented, according to the Birmingham mayor's office. The firm conducted the performance assessment from Feb. 6 to March 30 on nine city departments: police, public works, community development, finance, information management services, human resources, law, municipal court and planning, engineering and permits.

The firm provided 33 recommendations to the city. The suggestions range from studying the closure of city jail and the privatization of garbage collection and landfills to the selling the naming rights to Legion Field and reducing overtime costs.

Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin provided the 78-page Crowe Horwath document of recommendations to the city council on Wednesday. He didn't explain the findings to the council.

In a memo to council, Woodfin said the recommendations in the report "are just that - recommendations. We found incredible value in many of their recommendations and we have already initiated implementation efforts. Some recommendations require more consideration and possible alterations to ensure solutions work well for the city of Birmingham."

He said citizens and businesses have said "our city is not working well for them." The recommendations will help the city position itself "as a world-class service provider in competition for talent and economic opportunity for residents."

Also, on Wednesday, the mayor provided the council with highlights of his forthcoming $436 million 2019 fiscal year operating budget. Woodfin said he cut 133 vacant jobs from the budget, saving $4.7 million.

City pension

The city needs to develop a plan to address the underfunding of the city's pension and post-employment benefit plan liabilities. The underfunded liability was approximately $330 million of as July 1, 2016, according to the report.

The mayor's office said staff is working on a plan to address the issues.

City jail

According to the assessment, the city could save $1.5 million to $3 million per year and avoid $5.5 million in capital expenditures by transferring jail operations to Jefferson County. The firm recommended conducting a feasibility study to explore the option.

The city currently spends $7.5 million a year on jail operations and has an average daily cost per inmate of $127. This is above county and national average.

Alabama spends $42.54 per inmate per day, according to an AL.com report from 2014.

The city jail's capacity is 406, but less than half of the beds are regularly used, according to Crowe Horwath's report.

According to the mayor's office, this recommendation is still being discussed.

Insurance

Some of the biggest cost savings to the city could be in insurance, according to the report. The city could save up to $5.6 million through prescription drug price negotiations, claims management and other areas.

This would take six to nine months to implement, according to the report.

The mayor's office said staff are working to determine the timing of the implementation.

Legion Field

The performance assessment indicated that the city should explore naming rights partnerships with local and regional businesses for Legion Field to generate new revenue.

According to the report, Legion Field maintenance and operation cost the city more than $5 million in fiscal year 2017. The stadium continues to experience "declining infrastructure and decreasing utilization."

The city should explore creating a quasi-government authority to oversee all operations for sporting venues like Legion Field, according to the report.

City employee wellness

The performance assessment recommended transitioning management of the city-operated fitness centers to local vendors. The mayor plans to implement this recommendation.

To operate one of the city's three fitness centers, cost the city $1 million in fiscal year 2017, the report stated, and the staffing of the fitness centers accounts for 30 percent of human resources total staff.

Student interns

Based on a recommendation from Crowe Horwath, the city plans to establish an internship program with area schools. This program should identify 20 to 40 positions within "high need areas" across all city departments.

The mayor's office hasn't determined a timeline for starting this program.

Garbage collection

Crowe Horwath recommended the city look at optimizing garbage collection by reducing the frequency of pickups to once per week and biweekly or monthly for brush service. This will reduce the strain on fleet, conserve fuel, reduce costs and ensure efficient route management, the report stated.

The firm also suggested the city study outsourcing garbage collection.

Charging for garbage collection was also recommended. The city currently doesn't do this.

Adding fees of at least $10 a month on 50,000 households could generate revenues of $6 million. That could rise to $36 million annually if a fee of $30 a month is charged to 100,000 households.

The city is exploring the possible implications of this move, according to the mayor's office.

Landfill operations

The performance assessment recommended the city conduct a feasibility study to determine if outsourcing or privatizing the city-owned landfills would be more cost effective and sustainable solution.

The city is spending $450,000 on plans for landfill expansion with an estimated $7 million of capital needed to construct. The city's landfill capacity is expected to last only four to six more years, and the city has no current plans to address waste management long term.

The city is exploring the possible implications of moving forward with the recommendation, according to the mayor's office.

Reduce overtime

According to the report, the city spent nearly $21 million in overtime in fiscal year 2017, which was 255 percent over budget. The city been using overtime instead of filling vacant positions. This practice costs more than filling the position, the report stated.

The city is already working to improve efficiency and reduce overtime, according to the mayor's office.

Other recommendations

Implementing a formal minority and women-owned business procurement program to expand vendor participate.

Allow Birmingham's police academy to train officers for other police departments for a fee.

Outsourcing printing services