The fiscal year of the County shall begin with the first day
of January and end with the last day of December of each year.
Not later than the 20th day of November, the Clerk of the Tompkins
County Legislature shall cause to be published in the official newspaper(s)
a notice of the place and time, not later than the first day of December,
at which the Tompkins County Legislature, or a committee designated
by such Legislature, will hold a public hearing on the proposed County
Operating Budget and Capital Program as submitted by the County Administrator
and the report(s) submitted by the Capital Program Committee and any
other committee designated by such Legislature. At such hearing, any
person may be heard for or against the proposed County operating budget
and capital program submitted by the County Administrator or any item
thereof and the report or any item thereof submitted by the Tompkins
County Legislature, its Capital Program Committee, or any other committee
designated by such Legislature.
The net County tax requirement, determined by subtracting the
total estimated revenues from the total proposed appropriations as
set forth in the adopted budget, shall be levied in advance of the
start of the fiscal year by the Tompkins County Legislature on the
taxable real property of the several tax districts of the County.
If during any fiscal year there are available for appropriation
(1) revenues received from sources not anticipated in the budget for
that year, and (2) revenues received from anticipated sources but
in excess of the budget estimates therefor, the Tompkins County Legislature
may make supplemental appropriations for the year not in excess of
such additional revenues. To meet a public emergency affecting life,
health, or property, the Tompkins County Legislature may make emergency
appropriations. To the extent that there are no available unappropriated
revenues to meet such appropriations, the Tompkins County Legislature
may authorize the issuance of obligations pursuant to applicable law.
If at any time during the fiscal year it appears that the revenues
available will be insufficient to meet the amounts appropriated, the
County Administrator shall advise the Tompkins County Legislature
promptly of the amount of the anticipated deficiency and recommend
such action as is deemed necessary to prevent such deficit. For that
purpose, the Legislature may, by resolution, reduce one or more appropriations
or take such other action as it deems appropriate; but no appropriation
for debt service may be reduced, and no appropriation may be reduced
by more than the unencumbered balance thereof or below any amount
required by law to be so appropriated. The Legislature may also, if
it so determines, authorize borrowing temporarily, pursuant to applicable
law, in an amount not greater than such deficit for such purposes.
The Tompkins County Legislature may transfer part or all of
any unencumbered appropriation balance within the same unit of County
government or from one County administrative unit to another. The
Tompkins County Legislature may designate by resolution which transfers
require affirmative action by the Tompkins County Legislature, and
which may be authorized by action of the appropriate Tompkins County
Legislature committee, or by the County Administrator or Director
of Finance only. No transfer shall be made from appropriations for
debt service, and no appropriations may be reduced below an amount
required by law to be so appropriated.
The Tompkins County Legislature may at any time, by resolution,
appropriate all or any part of the moneys in the general contingent
fund for general County purposes.