[Recodified ATM 3-8-1965 by Art. 14]
The fiscal year of the Town shall begin with
the first day of July and end with the thirtieth day of June.
Immediately after the close of each fiscal year
all Town accounts shall be verified by an expert accountant, preferably
one furnished or recommended by the State Bureau of Statistics, who
shall report in writing to the Selectmen.
A.
No appropriation for any special improvement, change,
repair or purchase of property not included in the usual or ordinary
appropriations exceeding $300 in amount or value shall be made until
some board of officers, officer, authorized committee or agent of
the Town shall have obtained and submitted to a meeting notified to
act thereon proper plans, specifications and estimates of the probable
expense or cost thereof as near as can be reasonably ascertained considering
the nature and character thereof.
B.
No money granted for a special purpose shall be applied
to any other use unless by a vote of the Town, and all unexpended
balances of such grants shall be reported in the annual report of
the Selectmen.
Except as otherwise permitted by statute, and
except at an Annual Town Meeting, no annual appropriation shall be
increased and no salary or rate of pay of any Town officer shall be
increased or decreased unless the proposition for the change shall
have been inserted in a suitable separate article in the warrant,
specifically setting forth the amount of such proposed increase or
decrease.
A.
All bills against the Town shall specify hours and
price of labor; kind and price and amount of materials wherever labor
or materials is charged for. All bills against the Town of whatever
nature shall be addressed to the Selectmen and sent to the Town House.
B.
There shall be added to each bill against the Town
a voucher on a form, supplied in the first instance by the 1910 Committee
on Town Accounts, subject to revision by the Selectmen with the approval
of the Town Accountant.
[Amended ATM 5-3-1999 by Art. 15]
A.
No voucher or bill shall be paid which is not approved
by the appropriate board or officer, the Town Accountant and the Board
of Selectmen. The Treasurer/Collector shall forthwith draw checks
for all vouchers so approved.
B.
The approved vouchers shall never leave the town offices
and shall be filed in numerical order.
Every board or committee shall, by vote, determine
the person or persons whose signatures upon a voucher shall be its
authority to pay the same and shall forthwith notify the Selectmen.
The bills against the Town shall be listed and
classified according to a list of departments prepared in the first
instance by the Committee on Town Accounts, subject to revision by
the Selectmen with the approval of the Town Accountant.
[Amended ATM 5-6-1985 by Art. 22]
Every Town officer, board or committee shall
annually, at the first meeting of the Selectmen after the close of
the fiscal year, report in detail all bills and other liabilities
under his or its jurisdiction which have not been approved by the
Selectmen and Town Accountant. The Town Accountant shall compile a
list of such bills and liabilities which shall be printed with the
financial report of the Town.
All the accounts of the Town shall, twice each
month on stated days and for stated hours not less than half the business
day, be open to inspection by any voter or taxpayer.
No bill shall be approved by the Selectmen or
Town Accountant or paid by the Treasurer which exceeds the available
appropriation to which it is properly chargeable.
No Town board or officer shall contract with
or employ, sell to or purchase from any member of such board or himself
without the written consent of the Selectmen.
[Added 5-6-2013 ATM by Art. 12]
A.
This provision shall govern the expenditure of funds by the Board
of Selectmen and/or the Park and Recreation Commission for any project
resulting in installation or construction upon, or the improvement
of, any Town-owned property in the custody of the Park and Recreation
Commission when the total project development cost is $150,000 or
more, but less than 50% of such total project development cost has
been or will be subject to appropriation by the Town.
B.
Prior to the commencement of construction of such project, all plans
and specifications for such project, along with the proposed budget
for the installation, construction and/or improvements shall be provided
to the Board of Selectmen for review. The Board of Selectmen shall
make such information available to the public in an appropriate and
timely manner. For the purposes of this section, "commencement of
construction" shall occur when the clearing and grubbing (removal
of stumps and topsoil) has been initiated.
The sponsor of any project within the scope of the main motion
is required to file with the Town Clerk, on at least a quarterly basis,
a report listing the name and address of every person, entity or household
that makes any one or more donations with a total value of more than
$5,000 in support of the project, and listing the amount of each donation
during the reporting period, the total amount of donations made as
of the end of the reporting period, and the amount of any additional
amounts that have been pledged as future donations by that person,
entity or household.
