Town of Ashland, MA Finances

All accounts due the town shall forthwith be committed by the several boards and officers of the town to the Treasurer/Collector, together with all available information in relation thereto.

If it shall seem advisable to the Treasurer/Collector that suit should be instituted on behalf of the town for the establishment or collection of any account due the town, he shall so notify the Town Manager and Selectmen and he shall report to them semiannually and at such other times as they may direct upon all uncollected accounts in his hands. The Manager shall take such action with respect to all such accounts as he deems expedient and consistent with the interest of the town.

This section shall not apply to interest on investments of trust funds.

§ 26-2 Disposition of town property.

[Amended 11-20-2019 STM, Art. 13]

Whenever any property of the town, other than real estate, shall become obsolete, disused, worn out or necessary to replace, the town official or officials having jurisdiction thereof shall so certify, in writing, to the Town Manager. The Town Manager shall reserve action to abandon, trade or sell such property at either private or public sale until such time as he has sent written notice of the proposed action to the Select Board and the Finance Committee.

§ 26-3 Contracts.

All contracts shall conform to the requirements contained in Town Charter.

(Reserved)[1]

[1]

Editor's Note: Former Subsection B, providing for advertisement requirements, was repealed 11-17-1993 STM, Art. 2.

§ 26-4 Conflicts of interest.

No officer or board of the town shall make any contract on behalf of the town in which such officer or any member of such board is directly or indirectly financially interested, except competitive contracts.

No town officer or board of town officers having power or authority to appoint any town officer or agent shall appoint himself or any member of such board to any salaried office or position, but this shall not prohibit any town officer from being Chairman or Clerk of any board of which he shall be a member.

§ 26-5 Departmental Revolving Funds.

[Added 5-3-2017 ATM, Art. 3]

Purpose.

(1)

This by-law establishes and authorizes revolving funds for use by Town departments, boards, committees, agencies or officers in connection with the operation of programs or activities that generate fees, charges or other receipts to support all or some of the expenses of those programs or activities. These revolving funds are established under and governed by General Laws Chapter 44, § 53E1/2.

Expenditure Limitations.

(1)

A department or agency head, board, committee or officer may incur liabilities against and spend monies from a revolving fund established and authorized by this by-law without appropriation subject to the following limitations:

(a)

Fringe benefits of full-time employees whose salaries or wages are paid from the fund shall also be paid from the fund [, except for those employed as school bus drivers2].

(b)

No liability shall be incurred in excess of the available balance of the fund.

(c)

The total amount spent during a fiscal year shall not exceed the amount authorized by Town meeting on or before July 1 of that fiscal year, or any increased amount of that authorization that is later approved during that fiscal year by the select board and finance committee.

Interest.

(1)

Interest earned on monies credited to a revolving fund established by this by-law shall be credited to the general fund.

Procedures and Reports.

(1)

Except as provided in General Laws Chapter 44, § 53E1/2 and this by-law, the laws, charter provisions, by-laws, rules, regulations, policies or procedures that govern the receipt and custody of Town monies and the expenditure and payment of Town funds shall apply to the use of a revolving fund established and authorized by this by-law. The Town accountant auditor shall include a statement on the collections credited to each fund, the encumbrances and expenditures charged to the fund and the balance available for expenditure in the regular report the Town accountant auditor provides the department, board, committee, agency or officer on appropriations made for its use.

A.	Authorized Revolving Funds.
	The Table establishes:
	a.	Each revolving fund authorized for use by a town department, board, committee, agency or officer,
	b.	The department or agency head, board, committee or officer authorized to spend from each fund,
	c.	The fees, charges and other monies charged and received by the department, board, committee, agency or officer in connection with the program or activity for which the fund is established that shall be credited to each fund by the town accountant,
	d.	The expenses of the program or activity for which each fund may be used,
	e.	Any restrictions or conditions on expenditures from each fund,
	f.	Any reporting or other requirements that apply to each fund, and
	g.	The fiscal years each fund shall operate under this by-law.

FUND	REVENUE SOURCE	AUTHORITY TO SPEND FUNDS	USE OF FUNDS	FISCAL YEARS
Senior Program Revolving	Monies paid by those who avail themselves of such programs for such programs	Director of Elder Affairs	The purpose of which shall be to pay for programs conducted by the Council on Aging for the benefit of Ashland senior citizens	2018 and subsequent years
Community Center Rental	Monies paid by the renter and that such monies represent the cost of providing said building	Town Manager	The purpose of which shall be to pay for expenses and maintenance incurred for the rental of said building	2018 and subsequent years
Town of Holliston Animal Control Revolving	Monies paid by the Town of Holliston and that such monies represent the cost of providing Animal Control services	Town Manager	The purpose of which shall be to pay for expenses incurred for the care and capture of animals on behalf of the Town of Holliston	2018 and subsequent years
Library Materials Replacement Fund	Monies paid by the borrowers of the lost or damaged materials and that such monies represent the replacement cost of the materials	Library Director with approval of Board of Trustees	The purpose of which shall be to acquire equivalent Public Library materials to replace items lost or damaged by those who borrow such materials	2018 and subsequent years
Hazardous Waste Revolving Fund	Drop off cost the resident will pay for the service	Town Manager	The purpose of which shall be to be able to continue to drop off programs for TV's & Computers	2018 and subsequent years
Sidewalk Construction Fund	Monies paid by those who avail themselves of such programs for such programs	Planning Board	The purpose of which shall be to pay for sidewalks	2018 and subsequent years
Guidance Revolving Fund	Fees paid by those who will be taking the PSAT and/or AP exams	High School Principal	The purpose of which shall be to pay for the institutional, per student cost for our students who take the PSAT and/or Advanced Placement (AP) tests and to pay for proctors during the exams	2018 and subsequent years
Food Inspection Program Revolving Fund	Monies paid by those who avail themselves of such inspections, investigations and reviews for such programs, including the monies collected for food establishment permit fees	Director/Agent of Board of Health	The purpose of which shall be a self-supporting program which will collect fees for the services provided to pay for food establishment programs provided by the Board of Health for the delivery of routine inspections, investigations and reviews for food establishments	2018 and subsequent years
Tobacco Program Revolving Fund	Monies paid by those who avail themselves of such programs, including the monies collected for tobacco sales permit fees	Director/Agent of Board of Health	The purpose of which shall be a self-supporting program which will collect fees for the services provided to pay for inspections and programs provided by the Board of Health for the delivery of tobacco control comprehensive inspections at tobacco sales locations and for evidence based education programs that will benefit the residents of Ashland	2018 and subsequent years
Ambulance Revolving Fund	Monies paid to the Town from ambulance receipts	Town Manager	The purpose of which shall be to pay for the costs of providing ambulance and emergency response services	2018 and subsequent years

§ 26-6 Municipal Charges Liens.

[Added 11-28-2018 STM by Art. 15]

Authority. This by-law is adopted pursuant to the authority of G.L.c. 40, § 21 and G.L.c. 40, § 58, as amended, and any other relevant statutes and regulations.

Purpose. The purpose of this section is to establish a municipal charges lien program to provide a cost-effective method of collecting a charge, fine, penalty, and/or fee assessed against an owner of real property in the Town who fails and/or refuses to pay said charge or charges, fine or fines, penalty or penalties, and/or fee or fees when due, by placing a lien upon real estate owned by the property owner.

Applicability. The municipal charges lien shall apply to the following municipal charges and/or fees:

Charges, fines, penalties, unpaid amounts due and/or fees including interest and all costs to record said lien(s) in the Middlesex South Registry of Deeds for violations of development agreements.

Charges, fines, penalties, unpaid amounts due and/or fees including interest and all costs to record said lien(s) in the Middlesex South Registry of Deeds for violations of contracts with the Town.

Charges, fines, penalties, unpaid amounts due and/or fees including interest and all costs to record said lien(s) in the Middlesex South Registry of Deeds for violations of tax agreements.

Lien Takes Effect. The Municipal Charges Lien will take effect upon the recording of a statement of unpaid municipal charges, unpaid amounts due, fines, penalties, and fees, setting forth the amount due, including recording costs, the address(es) of the land to which the lien is to apply and the name of the assessed owner.

Collection of the Lien.

The Tax Collector shall be in charge of collecting the lien.

The Treasurer who is the person responsible for collecting the unpaid municipal charges, unpaid amounts due, fines, penalties, and fees shall notify the Assessors of all unpaid municipal charges, unpaid amounts due, fines, penalties, and fees that have not been paid or appealed to the court at the end of each month.

The Assessor shall prepare a statement of Municipal Charges Lien for each person from the list(s) received from the Town Clerk or person responsible for collecting the unpaid municipal charges, unpaid amounts due, fines, penalties, and fees and shall forward said statement of lien to the Tax Collector who shall cause said statement(s) to be recorded in the Middlesex South Registry of Deeds.

Unpaid Municipal Charges Liens.

If unpaid municipal charges, unpaid amounts due, fines, penalties, and fees fine, secured by the lien is unpaid when the Assessors are preparing the real estate tax list and warrant, the Tax Collector shall certify the unpaid municipal charges, unpaid amounts due, fines, penalties, and fees to the Assessors' Department and the Assessors shall add the unpaid municipal charges, unpaid amounts due, fines, penalties, and fees to the next property tax bill to which it relates, and commit it with the warrant to the collector as part of the tax.

If the property to which the unpaid municipal charges, unpaid amounts due, fines, penalties, and/or fees relates is tax exempt, the unpaid municipal charges, unpaid amounts due, fines, penalties, and fees shall be committed as a tax on said property.

Release of the Lien. The Municipal Charges Lien may be discharged by filing a certificate from the Tax Collector that all unpaid municipal charges, unpaid amounts due, fines, penalties, and fees constituting a lien, together with any interest and costs have been paid or legally abated. All costs of recording or discharging a lien under this section shall be borne by the owner of the property.