The fiscal year of the Town shall begin on the first day of
July and shall end on the last day of June each year. Such fiscal
year shall also constitute the budget year and accounting year. As
used in this Charter, the term "budget year" shall mean the fiscal
year for which any particular budget is adopted and in which it is
administered.
The Council shall appoint a Board of Finance comprised of five
taxpayers who are residents of the Town. In every month of September,
one member shall be appointed each year for a five-year term. At the
time of their appointment and during their term of office, members
of the Board of Finance shall not be an employee of the Town, shall
not be a member of any Town or State Central Committee of a political
party, and shall not hold any elective or appointive office of the
Town or with the State or Region, unless the Board of Finance is not
affected by the Sate or Regional Committee on which the appointee
serves.
On the third Monday in March of each year, the Town Manager
shall submit to the Finance Board, with copies to the Town Council,
the proposed budget of the Town of Westerly. For this purpose, the
Town Manager shall obtain from the head of each town office, department,
or agency an estimate of its proposed expenditures and anticipated
revenues with such supporting data as he may deem necessary. In preparing
the proposed budget, the Town Manager shall review the estimates submitted
and may revise them as he may deem advisable, except that he may not
make any revisions in the budget submitted by the School Committee
but shall present that portion to the Board of Finance and to the
Council as received from the School Committee.
(a)
After the submission of the recommended annual budget proposals by
the Town Manager, the Board of Finance shall hold its first meeting
of the recommended annual school budget as soon as practicable. The
Board of Finance is empowered to confer with the Town Manager, all
department heads, and any others deemed necessary for the understanding
and fair consideration of the requested appropriations and sundry
resolutions. The Board of Finance will have the power to recommend
revision to any of the proposed school budget items and must conduct
one public hearing after a tentative school budget has been formed.
Prior to this public hearing, the Town Clerk shall publish this tentative
school budget on the Town's publicly accessible website or future
electronic equivalent. This publication shall include the complete,
detailed school budget estimates of receipts and expenditures, being
the same as described in § 11-1-7 of this Charter and any
recommended revisions by the Finance Board.
(b)
The Board of Finance shall hold its first meeting of the recommended
municipal budget submitted by the Town Manager as soon as practicable.
The Board of Finance will have the power to revise any of the proposed
municipal budget items and must conduct one public hearing after a
tentative municipal budget has been formed. Prior to this public hearing,
the Town Clerk shall publish this tentative municipal budget on the
Town's publicly accessible web site or future electronic equivalent.
(c)
After the public hearing has been held, the Board of Finance shall
meet with the Council to transmit its recommendation(s) of the consolidated
tentative Town budget to the Council not later than the first Monday
in April. It shall present a budget message of explanation along with
the budget recommendation to the Council.
(a)
The Town Council shall review the recommendations of the Finance
Board and shall make any revisions that it may deem necessary or desirable,
in which case the Council shall make provisions for no less that two
public hearings. They are to be held on two separate days and concluded
no later than the fourth Wednesday in April. The Council shall then
file the proposed budget with the Town Clerk.
(b)
Within seven days of this filing, the Town Clerk shall publish the
proposed budget in a newspaper having general circulation in the Town
which shall indicate all items and amounts thereof that the Council
has altered, rejected, added, or deleted, in some appropriate manner
on the budget as being those items either not recommended or not having
been considered by the Board of Finance.
(c)
Within eight days of the publishing of the budget, any item or items
(the appropriation for any department, office, or purpose) may be
contested by means of a petition for change signed by 3% or more of
the qualified electors as determined at the previous general election.
Such petition may be instituted by any qualified elector, but prior
to being circulated for signatures, such petition shall be filed with
the Town Clerk who shall attest to the filing and affix the seal of
the Town. If no petition for change is presented before the expiration
of this period, the budget as proposed by the Council shall be considered
as adopted.
(d)
If one or more petitions for change are filed within the period designated
in § 3-1-5(c) and have at least the required number of signatures
thereon, the Board of Canvassers shall, within three days check the
validity of the signatures. Within 32 days of validation by the Board
of Canvassers, a referendum shall be held at such polling place or
places as may be designated by the Board of Canvassers.
(e)
Mail ballots and emergency ballots will be available by application
only to the Board of Canvassers according to regulations that may
be imposed by the Board of Canvassers necessary to implement this
adoption. The majority of the qualified electors voting at such a
referendum shall determine whether the proposed budget shall or shall
not be amended as proposed by any valid petition for change. If more
than one petition for change affects the same appropriation, a plurality
of those qualified electors voting shall determine the amount of such
appropriation that will become a part of the adopted budget.
A copy of the budget, as finally adopted by the Council, or
as amended by referendum, shall be certified by the Town Clerk and
filed in the office of the Town Treasurer. Sufficient copies shall
be made available by the Town Clerk for the use of all offices, departments
and agencies, and for the use of interested persons.
(a)
Supplemental appropriations. If during the fiscal year the Town Manager
certified that there are available for appropriation revenues in excess
of those estimated in the budget, the Council by ordinance may make
supplemental appropriations for the year up to the amount of such
excess.
(b)
Emergency appropriations. To meet a public emergency affecting life,
health, property or the public peace, the Council may make emergency
appropriations. Such appropriations may be made by emergency ordinance
in accordance with the provisions of § 15-2-4. To the extent
that there are no available unappropriated revenues to meet such appropriations,
the Council may by such emergency ordinance authorize the issuance
of emergency notes, which may be renewed from time to time, but the
emergency notes and renewals of any fiscal year shall be paid not
later than the last day of the fiscal year next succeeding that in
which the emergency appropriation was made.
(c)
Reduction of appropriations. If at any time during the fiscal year
it appears probable to the Town Manager that the revenues available
will be insufficient to meet the amount appropriated, he shall report
to the Council without delay, indicating the estimated amount of the
deficit, any remedial action taken by him and his recommendations
as to any other steps to be taken. The Council shall then take such
further action as it deems necessary to prevent or minimize any deficit
and for that purpose it may by ordinance reduce one or more appropriations.
(d)
Transfer of appropriations. At any time during the fiscal year the
Town Manager may transfer part or all of any unencumbered appropriation
balance among programs within a department, office or agency and,
upon written request by the Town Manager, the Council may by ordinance
transfer part or all of any unencumbered appropriation balance from
one department, office or agency to another.
(e)
Limitations: effective date. No appropriation for debt service may
be reduced or transferred, and no appropriation may be reduced below
any amount required by law to be appropriated or by more than the
amount of the unencumbered balance thereof.
Every appropriation, except an appropriation for a capital expenditure
or the appropriation for support of public schools, shall lapse at
the close of the fiscal year to the extent that is has not been expended
or encumbered. An appropriation for a capital expenditure shall continue
in force until the purpose for which it was made has been accomplished
or abandoned; the purpose of any such appropriation shall be deemed
abandoned if three years pass without any disbursement from or encumbrance
of the appropriation.
(a)
Work programs and allotments. At such time as the Town Manager shall
specify, each department, office or agency shall submit work programs
for the ensuing fiscal year showing the requested allotments of its
appropriation by periods within the year. The Town Manager shall review
and authorize such allotments with or without revision as early as
possible in the fiscal year. He may revise such allotments during
the year if he deems it desirable and shall revise them to accord
with any supplemental emergency reduced or transferred appropriations
made pursuant to § 3-1-7.
(b)
Payments and obligations prohibited. No payment shall be made or
obligation incurred against any allotment or appropriation except
in accordance with appropriations duly made and unless the Town Manager
or his designee first certifies that there is a sufficient unencumbered
balance in such allotment or appropriation and that sufficient funds
therefrom are or will be available to cover the claim or meet the
obligation when it becomes due and payable. Any authorization of payment
or incurring of obligation in violation of the provisions of this
Charter shall be void and any payment so made illegal; such action
shall be cause for removal of any officer who knowingly authorized
or made such payment or incurred such obligation, and he shall also
be liable to the Town for any amount so paid. However, except where
prohibited by law, nothing in this Charter shall be construed to prevent
the making or authorizing of payments or making of contracts for capital
improvements to be financed wholly or partly by the issuance of bonds
or to prevent the making of any contract or lease providing for payments
beyond the end of the fiscal year provided that such action is made
or approved by ordinance.
The Town Manager shall submit to the Board of Finance, with
a copy to the Council, not later than the first Monday in April of
each year a proposed water and sewer budget, or any other enterprise
fund budget showing in detail all anticipated revenue and all proposed
expenditures with appropriate explanations. After review of the recommended
water, sewer and any other enterprise budget by the Board of Finance,
a joint meeting shall be held with the Council. The Board of Finance
is empowered to confer with the Town Manager, all department heads,
and any others deemed necessary for the understanding and fair consideration
of the requested appropriations and sundry resolutions. The Board
of Finance shall have the power to revise any of the proposed water,
sewer and any other enterprise budget items. The Board of Finance
shall transmit its recommendations to the Council not later than the
first Monday of May.
(a)
Within 15 days of the receipt of the recommendations of the
Board of Finance, the Council shall make any revisions that it may
deem necessary or desirable; in which case a public hearing shall
be held.
A copy of the budget, as finally adopted by the Council shall
be certified by the Town Clerk and filed in the office of the Town
Treasurer. Sufficient copies shall be made available by the Town Clerk
for the use of all offices, departments and agencies, and for the
use of interested persons.
(Same as § 3-1-7)
(Same as § 3-1-8)
(Same as § 3-1-9)
(a)
The accounting of enterprise funds shall be consistent and compliant
with generally accepted accounting and auditing standards.
