[HISTORY: Adopted by the Township Committee of the Township of Harmony 12-30-1975;
amended in its entirety 10-4-2005 by Ord. No. 05-19.
Subsequent amendments noted where applicable.]
Any person claiming payment from the Township of Harmony shall first
submit a detailed statement of the items or demand necessitating such claim
to the responsible executive agency, specifying particularly how the bill
or demand is made up, and a certification from the party claiming payment
that it is correct. No bill, claim or demand shall be considered for payment
unless the voucher has attached to it or includes a certification of a department
head or other municipal official responsible for certain functions or of his
duly designated representative having personal knowledge of the facts that
the goods have been received by or the services rendered to the Township of
Harmony and that those services and goods are consistent with any existing
contract or purchase order. The Chief Financial Officer shall have the duty
to audit, warrant and make recommendation on all claims and bills.
The bill or claim duly certified shall be presented to the Municipal
Clerk for inclusion in the agenda of the next immediate formal meeting of
the governing body, and it shall be the duty of the Chief Financial Officer
to examine all bills or claims submitted for payment in order to ascertain
if proper administrative procedures have been followed. All claims or bills
to be considered by the governing body shall be listed systematically without
preference, and said list shall be made available to every member of said
governing body prior to formal action by that body.
Claims shall be considered by the governing body, which shall approve
the same, except that said governing body may reject any claim presented to
it, stating the reason for such rejection. Any disapproved claim shall be
referred back to the Chief Financial Officer with such instructions as the
governing body may give at the time of disapproval.
It shall be the duty of the Municipal Clerk to record all claims in
the official minutes or through an appropriate claims register, indicating
that the governing body has by formal action approved the same, with appropriate
record as to any claims disapproved or rejected. All records pertaining to
approved and disapproved bills or claims shall be available for public inspection.
After the Chief Financial Officer has certified that the claims have
been approved, she shall forthwith prepare the necessary checks for the payment
thereof, which said checks shall be signed by the Mayor and thereafter be
signed by the Chief Financial Officer and Clerk. After the checks have been
prepared for the payment of claims, the Chief Financial Officer shall record
them in proper books of account, and the checks shall thereafter be mailed
to the claimants.