There shall be a commissioner of finance who shall be appointed
in according with the charter. He shall be a person with knowledge
of municipal accounting and taxation and shall have had experience
or training in budgeting and financial control.
Except for the assessment of property and as otherwise expressly
provided in the charter and this code the commissioner of finance
shall have, under the direction of the mayor and the city administrator,
charge of the financial affairs of the city. He shall have all the
powers, duties and responsibilities assigned to a city treasurer by
other provisions of law, and have authority and be required to:
(a)
Compile the current expense and capital estimate for the budget for
the mayor and city administrator.
(b)
Supervise and be responsible for the disbursement of all moneys and
have control over all expenditures to ensure the budget appropriations
are not exceeded.
(c)
Maintain a general accounting system for the city government and
each of its officers, departments and agencies; keep books for and
exercise financial budgetary control over each office; keep separate
accounts for the items of appropriation contained in the city budget,
each of which accounts shall show the amount of the appropriation,
the amounts paid therefrom, the unpaid obligations against it and
the unencumbered balance; require or arrange for reports of receipts
and disbursements from each receiving and spending agency of the city
to be made daily or at such intervals as he may deem expedient.
(d)
Submit to the common council through the mayor and city administrator
for submission to the common council a monthly statement of all receipts
and disbursements in sufficient detail to show the exact financial
condition of the city.
(e)
Prepare for the mayor and city administrator, as of the end of each
fiscal year, a complete financial statement and report.
(f)
Give such notice of taxes and special assessments as may be required
by law.
(g)
Collect all taxes (including special taxes authorized by law), special
assessments, license fees, water rates, sewer rents, parking meter
fees and other revenues of the city or for whose collection the city
is responsible, and receive all money receivable by the city from
the state or federal government or from any court or from any office,
department or agency of the city.
(h)
Have custody of all public funds belonging to or under the control
of the city or any office, department or agency of the city government,
and deposit all funds coming into his hands in such depositories as
may be designated by the common council.
(i)
Make all arrangements for the issuance of city bonds and notes as
authorized by the common council; have custody of all investments
and invested funds of the city government, or in possession of such
government in a fiduciary capacity; and be responsible for the safekeeping
of all bonds and notes of the city and the receipt and delivery of
city bonds and notes for transfer, registration or exchange.
(j)
Supervise and be responsible for the purchase, storage and distribution
of all supplies, materials, equipment and other articles used by any
office, department or agency of the city government.
(k)
Approve all proposed expenditures; unless he shall certify that there
is an unencumbered balance of appropriation and that there are funds
available, no appropriation shall be encumbered and no expenditure
made.
(l)
Temporarily deposit or invest moneys not required for immediate expenditure,
except proceeds of loans and moneys the investment of which is otherwise
provided for by law, in obligations of the United States of America,
or in obligations of the state or in special time deposit accounts
in, or certificates of deposit issued by a bank or trust company located
and authorized to do business in this state; provided however, that
such time deposit account or certificate of deposit shall be payable
within such time as the proceeds shall be needed to meet expenditures
for which such moneys were obtained; and provided further, that such
deposit account or certificate of deposit be secured by a pledge of
obligations of the United States of America or obligations of the
state, subject to all the conditions set forth in § 11 of
the General Municipal Law; provided however, that the obligations
or certificates of deposit or other evidence of ownership shall be
registered in and delivered in the name of the city and placed in
a bank vault, subject to withdrawal on the joint signature of the
mayor and the commissioner of finance.
As purchasing agent of the city, the commissioner of finance
shall:
(a)
Contract for, purchase or lease, store and distribute all supplies,
materials and equipment required by any office, department or agency
of the city.
(b)
Establish and enforce specifications with respect to all supplies,
materials and equipment purchased or leased by him.
(c)
Inspect or supervise the inspection of all deliveries of such supplies,
materials and equipment, and determine their quality, quantity and
conformity with specifications.
(d)
Have charge of such general storerooms and warehouses as the common
council may provide for by ordinance.
(e)
With the approval of the mayor and city administrator, transfer to
or between offices, departments or agencies, or sell, surplus, obsolete
or unused supplies, materials and equipment, making the proper accounting
charges for the offices, departments and agencies involved.
(f)
With the approval of the mayor and city administrator, make arrangements
for a cash account, not exceeding one hundred dollars ($100), for
the emergency purchase of needed supplies directly by any officer
likely to require such emergency purchasing and for prompt reports
of such purchases to the commissioner of finance.
(g)
Ascertain the regularity of all purchases made and contracts executed
by him. All such purchases and contracts shall be pursuant to a written
requisition from the head of the office, department or agency whose
appropriation will be charged, and no contract or order shall be issued
to any vendor unless and until the commissioner of finance certifies
that there is to the credit of such office, department or agency a
sufficient unencumbered appropriation balance to pay for the supplies,
materials, equipment or contractual services for which the order or
contract is to be issued.
The commissioner of finance shall file a bond securing the faithful
performance of his office as provided in § 2.12 of this
code. Said bond shall, after execution and approval, be filed in the
office of the clerk of the county, and shall be entered by said clerk,
and shall be a lien on the real estate of the commissioner of finance
and his sureties in the manner and to the same extent as now provided
by law in case of bonds of town collectors; and in case of any breach
of the condition of said bond suit may be maintained thereon by the
city. After the expiration of one year from the final settlement had
with the commissioner of finance the completion of his term of office,
for which a bond was given, the common council shall, if requested,
direct the chamberlain to give such commissioner of finance, or to
any of his sureties, satisfaction piece in writing, which shall be
acknowledged by said chamberlain before some person authorized to
take acknowledgements of the satisfaction of judgments in courts of
record. Upon the production of such satisfaction piece, acknowledged
as aforesaid, the said county clerk shall enter satisfaction of record
of said bond, which shall thereby be discharged. The county clerk
for entering such satisfaction shall be entitled to the same fees
as for entering satisfaction of judgment. Such commissioner of finance
and the sureties upon said bond shall also be liable to the same proceedings
to enforce the payment of money collected on any warrant issued to
him by the county legislator, as provided by law in respect to town
collectors and their sureties.
(a)
The commissioner of finance as city treasurer shall perform the duties,
possess all the power and authority, and be subject to the liabilities
and obligations prescribed by law for town collectors, subject to
the provisions of the charter and subject to the direction and control
of the mayor and the city administrator.
(b)
The position of commissioner of special taxes is hereby abolished
and all the powers, duties and responsibilities of such commissioner,
except the power and authority to appoint employees, are hereby transferred
to the commissioner of finance.
(c)
The commissioner of finance shall have control over all expenditures
for the operation, maintenance and administration of all boards, departments,
commissions and agencies of the city, except the board of education
of the city school district, including control over all expenditures
of all committees of the common council, to insure that budget appropriations
are not exceeded.
(d)
The commissioner of finance shall keep accounts in conformity with
the uniform system of accounts prescribed from time to time by the
comptroller of the state for cities of the size of the city, and such
additional accounts as from time to time may be prescribed by the
laws of the state or by resolution of the common council.
(e)
The commissioner of finance shall not make any expenditures from
the moneys appropriated to the various departments, boards, commissions
or agencies of the city until the officer or agency of the city requiring
such expenditures furnishes him with a statement containing the date
when the materials purchased were received or the services charged
for were performed, the name of the person, firm or corporation to
whom the payment is due and the purpose for which such payment is
to be made. When the above requirements have been complied with, the
commissioner of finance shall prepare and sign a check in accordance
therewith, which check shall be countersigned by the city chamberlain
and delivered to the person, firm or corporation to whom it is due
or to his or its agents or assigns.
(f)
The commissioner of finance shall maintain a record of all such payments
in his office and they and all accounts of receipts and expenditures
kept by him shall be public records.
(g)
The commissioner of finance may at any time, with the approval of
the mayor and city administrator, transfer any unencumbered appropriation
balance, or portion thereof, except appropriations for personal services,
from one general classification of expenditures to another such general
classification within the same department, board, commission or agency
of the city.
The common council shall designate some incorporated bank or
banks located in the city for the deposit of all moneys belonging
to said city, and shall forthwith notify the commissioner of finance
of such designation. A bank once designated shall continue to be a
place of deposit until the common council withdraws such designation.
The commissioner of finance shall deposit all moneys received by him
to the credit of the city within twenty-four hours of the receipt
thereof by him, but Sundays and legal holidays shall not be taken
as any part of the twenty-four hours. All moneys so deposited shall
be drawn only on the check of the commissioner of finance. All interest
allowed by such bank or banks upon any money so deposited shall belong
to the city.
Each month the commissioner of finance shall provide to the
mayor and city administrator for presentation to the common council
a report showing the cash balance of each fund at the beginning of
the preceding month, a summary of all revenues received, the sources
and distribution of such revenues, a summary of all disbursements
made against budgetary appropriations and all disbursements made for
purposes not included in budgetary appropriations during the preceding
month, the balance in each fund at the close of the month preceding
such report and such other information as the mayor, city administrator
or the common council shall request him to include. Such reports shall
be filed as a public record with the city chamberlain and in the office
of the commissioner of finance.
[L.L. No. 2-2014, 3-18-2014, § 2]
On or after the effective date of this law, the City of Poughkeepsie may award purchase contracts subject to bidding under General Municipal Law § 103, including contracts for service work, but excluding any purchase contracts necessary for the completion of a public works contract pursuant to Labor Law Article 8, on the basis of "best value," as defined in State Finance Law § 163, to a responsive and responsible bidder or offerer.
(a)
Where
the basis for award is the best value offer, the Commissioner of Finance
as the purchasing agent shall document, in the procurement record
and in advance of the initial receipt of offers, the criteria to be
used to determine "best value." Whenever possible, the determination
shall be made on an objective and quantifiable analysis of such criteria.
The criteria may include, but shall not be limited to, any or all
of the following: cost of maintenance; proximity to the end user if
distance and response time is a significant term; durability; availability
of replacement parts or maintenance contractors; longer product life;
product performance criteria, quality of craftsmanship.
(b)
Where
appropriate, the solicitation shall identify the relative importance
and/or weight of each criterion identified within the procurement
record to be considered by the Board of Contract and Supply in its
determination of best value.
(c)
Whenever
any contract is awarded on the basis of best value instead of lowest
responsible bidder, the basis for determining best value shall be
thoroughly and accurately documented.
(d)
The
election to award any such contract on the basis of best value shall
be made by the Commissioner of Finance as purchasing agent. In the
event that no such election is made, purchase contracts will continue
to be awarded to the lowest responsible bidder furnishing any required
security.
