The fiscal year of Ulster County shall
begin with the first day of January and end with the last day of December
of each year.
It shall be the duty of the County Executive
to prepare and file the County expense and capital budgets and capital
program for each fiscal year in accordance with the provisions of
the Charter and applicable state law. Pursuant to this duty, the County
Executive shall have the power, personally or through his or her representatives,
to require all necessary information from all departments, agencies,
offices or units of County government for the purpose of ascertaining
and/or assessing their budgetary requirements.
[Amended 6-16-2020 by L.L. No. 3-2020]
The head of each department, agency, office or unit
of County government shall submit to the County Executive, in writing,
and through such channels and processes as specified by him or her,
an overall estimate for that department, agency, office or unit and
estimates by program within that department, agency, office or unit
of expected expenses and expected revenues for the next ensuing fiscal
year. A copy of said estimates from each department, agency, office
or unit shall be simultaneously submitted to the Clerk of the Legislature.
These estimates shall be called "departmental estimates" and shall
be organized with proposed grand totals of expenses and revenues for
personnel services and other than personnel services for the department,
agency, office or unit and proposed subtotal appropriations for personnel
services and other than personnel services for each program within
each department, agency, office or unit. A statement of actual expenses
and actual revenues for the immediately preceding completed fiscal
year, budgeted expenditures and revenues for the current fiscal year,
and expenditures and revenues to date for the current fiscal year
shall be included in departmental submission, prepared in the same
specified format for comparison purposes. Each departmental estimate
of expenses and revenue by program shall be supported by such other
detail and other supporting information concerning the economy, efficiency
and effectiveness of departmental performance as the County Executive
shall require. Departmental estimates shall be public records and
shall at all reasonable times be open to public inspection.
A.
On or before the first Friday of October in each year, the County Executive shall submit to the Clerk of the Legislature, for consideration by the County Legislature, a proposed operating and capital budget for the next ensuing fiscal year and a proposed capital program for the next ensuing six fiscal years or other period as may be authorized by law, together with a budget message as provided in § C-35. Upon their submission, the proposed expense and capital budgets, hereinafter called the "County budget," together with the budget message, shall be posted on the County website and become public records in the office of the Clerk for distribution.
B.
The proposed County budget shall be balanced,
with projected revenues equaling or exceeding estimated expenses for
the next ensuing fiscal year, and shall be presented in three sections,
one of which shall set forth the estimated revenues and receipts,
one of which shall set forth the estimated expenses, and one of which
shall set forth the proposed capital authorizations and expenditures.
A statement of actual expenses and actual revenues for the immediately
preceding completed fiscal year, budgeted expenditures and revenues
for the current fiscal year, and expenditures and revenues to date
for the current fiscal year shall be included in the proposed County
budget, prepared in a format that facilitates year-to-year comparison.
The proposed County budget shall present the complete financial plan
for the County and its agencies for the next ensuing fiscal year,
including setting forth proposed borrowing, if any. An estimate of
unencumbered balances at the end of each completed fiscal year, except
when otherwise provided by law or appropriated for a capital improvement
or other authorized continuing project, shall be treated as revenue
for the County budget for the next ensuing fiscal year.
The County Executive shall submit with
the County budget a budget message summarizing and explaining the
main features of the County budget, including information identifying
and analyzing new or changed programs, with such supporting schedules
and explanatory materials as he or she may deem desirable or the Legislature
may by resolution require. The County Executive's proposed budget
shall include a clear summary demonstration that there is a balanced
relationship between the total estimated expenditures and the total
estimated revenues for the next ensuing fiscal year and shall compare
these figures with the actual receipts and expenditures for the last
completed fiscal year and the year-to-date actual and year-to-date
projected total expenditures and revenues for the current fiscal year.
The County Executive's budget message shall also outline the existing
and any proposed financial policies of the County relating to the
capital program, including a description of each capital improvement
proposed to be undertaken in the preceding fiscal year and not yet
completed. The budget message shall specify the manner in which the
County Executive is overseeing management of departmental operations
to assure economic, efficient, effective delivery of public services,
and contain such additional information as the County Executive may
deem appropriate, and shall be posted on the County's website.
The Legislature or a committee designated
by it will review the County Executive's proposed County budget and
budget message and may require attendance of the heads of departments,
agencies, offices or units or their representatives and/or their production
of records and information in explanation of their departmental estimates
as the Legislature shall deem appropriate. The Legislature or a committee
designated by it shall prepare a written analysis and review of the
County Executive's proposed budget and make it publicly available,
including posting it on the County government website, no later than
the second Friday of November of each year.
Beginning no later than the third Friday
of November of each year, the Legislature shall hold, in at least
three geographically dispersed locations in the County, public hearings
on the County Executive's proposed County budget, the budget message
submitted by the County Executive, the report resulting from the review
and analysis of that budget and message by the Legislature or its
designated committee. The Clerk of the Legislature shall cause to
be posted on the County website, published in the official newspaper
of the County and such other newspapers as may be designated by the
Legislature, notices of the places, locations and times when these
hearings shall be held, and their purposes; a concise summary of the
proposed County budget, budget information, together with copies of
the proposed budget. The budget message and the report submitted by
the Legislature or its committee may be inspected or obtained by any
interested person. At least 10 days shall elapse between the publication
of a notice and the date specified for any budget hearing. At a budget
hearing any person may be heard. Insofar as necessary and practicable
within the deadline for the timely final adoption of the County budget,
a budget hearing may be adjourned to a date certain or from day to
day.
A.
After the conclusion of the public hearings,
the Legislature may strike items of appropriation or anticipated revenue
from the proposed County budget or reduce items therein, excepting
appropriations required by law for debt service. The Legislature may
add items to or increase items in the County budget, provided that
such additions or increases are stated separately and distinctly,
and so long as projected expenditures and projected revenues in the
County budget remain in balance.
B.
The balanced County budget as changed, altered
or revised shall be adopted by resolution of the Legislature not later
than the second Thursday of December.
C.
If the Legislature takes no action by the
second Thursday of December, the budget submitted by the County Executive
shall be deemed to be the adopted budget.
D.
If the County budget, as submitted by the
County Executive, is adopted by resolution of the Legislature with
no changes, it shall be adopted.
E.
If, however, the County budget as adopted
by the Legislature contains any increases, additions, decreases or
deletions, it shall be immediately presented by the Clerk of the Legislature
to the County Executive for examination and reconsideration.
F.
If the County Executive approves all the increases,
additions, decreases or deletions, he or she shall affix his or her
signature to a statement thereof and return the County budget, together
with such statement, to the Clerk of the Legislature, and the County
budget, including the increases, additions, decreases or deletions
as part thereof, shall be adopted.
G.
If the County budget, with any increases,
additions, decreases or deletions, is not returned by the County Executive
to the Clerk of the Legislature with his or her objections within
five working days after presentation by the Clerk to the County Executive,
it shall be deemed adopted, as changed, altered or revised by the
Legislature.
H.
If the County Executive objects to any one
or more of the increases, additions, decreases or deletions, the County
Executive shall append to the County budget a statement of the increases,
additions, decreases or deletions to which the County Executive objects,
taking care that his or her proposed changes leave the County budget
in balance and setting forth the reasons therefor, and shall, no later
than five working days after receipt of the adopted budget from the
Clerk of the Legislature, return the County budget with the objections
to the Clerk of the Legislature, who shall immediately present them
to the Legislature. The Legislature shall thereupon enter the objections
upon its records and, not later than the 20th day of December, proceed
to reconsider the increases, additions, decreases or deletions to
which an objection is made by the County Executive. If upon such reconsideration
the Legislature, by affirmative vote of at least 2/3 of its elected
members, votes to approve any such increases, additions, decreases
or deletions, the County budget, with the changes so approved, together
with any changes not so objected to by the County Executive, shall
be deemed adopted as resubmitted by the County Executive so long as
balance remains between proposed expenditures and proposed revenues
in that budget. If the Legislature fails to act on or override
such objections by a two-thirds vote of all members of the Legislature,
the County budget shall be deemed conditionally adopted without the
changes objected to by the County Executive.
I.
If any limitation date mentioned in this article
falls on a holiday, Saturday or Sunday, then any time limitations
required herein shall be extended to the next business day of the
County.
J.
Copies of the County budget as adopted shall
be certified by the County Executive and by the Clerk of the Legislature
and shall be filed in the offices of the County Executive and the
Clerk of the Legislature. The budget so certified shall be posted
on the County website and, at the discretion of the Legislature, printed
or otherwise reproduced and copies made available to the public at
such cost as the Legislature shall deem appropriate. Materials posted
to the County website annually during the course of preparation of
the County budget may not be removed from public access until the
certified County budget for the year is posted in accord with the
requirements of this section.
A.
The net County tax requirement determined
by subtracting the total estimated revenues from the total proposed
expenditures as set forth in the adopted budget shall be levied in
advance by the County Legislature on the taxable real property of
the several tax districts of the County. The taxes so levied shall
include an amount to be known as "reserve for uncollected taxes,"
which shall be a County charge. The County Legislature shall fix the
amount of such a sum as it may deem sufficient to produce in cash
from the collection of taxes and other revenues during the year monies
required to meet the estimated expenditures of such year; provided,
however, that such reserve for uncollected taxes shall not be less
than the face amount of unpaid taxes for the preceding completed fiscal
year.
B.
The amount of all taxes, special ad valorem
levies and special assessments levied upon any parcel of real property
by the County Legislature shall, except as otherwise expressly provided
by law, be and become a lien thereon as of the first day of January
of the fiscal year for which levied and shall remain a lien until
paid.
A.
The County Executive shall manage the County's
resources to achieve maximum economy, efficiency and effectiveness
in County government. Pursuant to this responsibility he or she may,
during any fiscal year, transfer part or all of any revenue or expenditure
within a program or purpose of any department, agency, office or unit
to another program or purpose within that department, agency, office
or unit, except that the effect of such a transfer. unless used for
payroll-related expenses, may not be to reduce the rate of pay or
annual salary of any County employment position, regardless of whether
said employment position is vacant or filled in a given year. Written
notice of such a transfer shall be given to the Legislature.
[Amended 9-15-2020 by L.L. No. 9-2021[2]]
[2]
Editor's Note: This local law was approved at referendum by
a majority of the duly qualified voters 11-2-2021.
B.
Upon written request of the County Executive, the Legislature may, during any fiscal year, transfer part or all of any revenue or expenditure from one department, agency, office or unit to another, or transfer part or all of any revenue or expenditure for the purpose of establishing or adding to a new program or programs within or between departments, agencies, offices or units, or transfer funds from a contingency account to a department, agency, office or unit, or change the terms and conditions under which expenditures may be made by a department, agency, office or unit. Any action taken by the Legislature pursuant to this section shall be by resolution, subject to the provisions of §§ C-12 and C-14 of the Charter.
C.
If, during any fiscal year, there are available
for appropriation revenues received from sources not anticipated in
the budget for that year or revenues received from anticipated source
but in excess of the budget estimated for it, before such funds may
be expended the County Legislature must make supplemental appropriations
for the year, not in excess, however, of such additional revenues,
whatever their source.
D.
If, at any time during the fiscal year, it
appears that the revenues available will be insufficient to meet amounts
appropriated, the County Executive shall report to the County Legislature
without delay the estimated amount of the deficit, remedial action
already taken by him or her, and his or her recommendations as to
further action. The County Legislature shall take the action or actions
that it deems necessary and as authorized by the Charter or state
law to prevent or minimize any deficit. For purposes of eliminating
or minimizing a potential deficit, the Legislature may, by resolution,
reduce one or more appropriations, but no appropriation may be reduced
by more than the unencumbered balance remaining for that purpose for
the year, nor may any appropriation for debt service be reduced.