[HISTORY: Adopted by the Borough Council of the Borough of Marcus
Hook 3-7-1983 by Ord. No. O-83-4, approved 3-7-1983.
Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Purchasing — See Ch. 40.
The purpose of this chapter is to create a form of organization wherein
Council shall be responsible primarily for legislative policy making and shall
appoint a professional Borough Manager who shall be responsible for the conduct
of the administrative affairs of the Borough in a professional, nonpartisan
manner.
The office of Borough Manager is hereby created by the Borough of Marcus
Hook. The Manager shall be appointed for an indefinite term by a majority
of all the members of Council, who shall fix his compensation on an annual
basis.
The Manager shall be chosen solely on the basis of his executive and
administrative abilities, with special reference to the duties of his office
as herein outlined.
Before entering upon his duties, the Manager shall furnish a fidelity
bond to the Borough, with a bonding company licensed to do business in the
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania as surety, to be approved by the Council, in
the sum of $10,000, conditioned upon the faithful performance of his duties,
the premium for said bond to be paid by the Borough. The amount of said bond
may be changed and determined from time to time by resolution of the Council.
Whenever the Borough Manager declines to submit his resignation at the
request of Council, he may be removed from office in accordance with the following
procedures:
A.
Council shall adopt a preliminary resolution of removal
by a majority vote of all members. Council may also, in such resolution, suspend
the Manager from duty. A copy of the resolution shall be delivered promptly
to the Manager. If suspended, the Manager shall be paid forthwith any unpaid
balance of his salary to the date of adoption of the resolution.
B.
Within 15 days after a copy of the resolution is delivered
to the Manager, he may file with Council a written request for an informal
meeting with Council in executive session. This meeting shall be held by Council
not later than 15 days after the request is filed.
C.
Council may adopt a final resolution of removal, which
may be effective immediately, by a majority vote of all the members at any
time after the 15 days from the time the preliminary resolution was delivered
to the Manager, if he has not requested a meeting, or at any time after the
meeting. After the adoption of the resolution, the only obligation of Council
to the Manager will be payment of any salary earned to the date of termination.
However, if Council has not adopted a final resolution of removal within two
calendar months from the date of adoption of the preliminary resolution of
removal, then the preliminary resolution shall be deemed null and void and
the Manager shall resume his full duties and be reimbursed for all lost salary.
A new preliminary resolution must then be adopted to begin the removal or
suspension proceedings against the same Manager.
D.
Whenever the Manager declines to submit his resignation
following his conviction of any felony or misdemeanor, then Council may remove
the Manager from office by a simple motion adopted at a public meeting. The
motion shall state the effective date of removal, and the only obligation
of Council shall be to pay the Manager any unpaid balance of his salary to
that date.
E.
Council may also suspend the Manager without salary during
an investigation, hearing or trial on any criminal charge, for the duration
of the proceedings, when suspension would be in the interest of the Borough.
If the Manager is exonerated, he will be reinstated to duty and reimbursed
for all lost salary. Should the Manager resign while under suspension, the
only obligation of Council shall be to pay the Manager any unpaid balance
of his salary to the date of suspension.
The Manager shall be the chief administrative officer of the Borough,
and he shall be responsible to the Council as a whole for the proper and efficient
administration of the affairs of the Borough. The Manager shall have and exercise
all powers and duties assigned to him by statute and such other authority
as may be granted by Borough Council. Subject to recall by ordinance enacted
by Borough Council, the powers and duties of the Borough Manager shall include
the following:
A.
General. The Manager shall be charged with the enforcement
of all laws and ordinances within the municipality insofar as their enforcement
is within the powers of the Borough. The Manager shall attend all meetings
of the Borough Council with the right to take part in discussions. He shall
keep the Council informed as to the affairs of the Borough and shall recommend
to the Council such actions as may be necessary or expedient for the benefit
of the Borough. The Manager shall prepare the agenda for each meeting of the
Council and shall supply facts pertinent thereto.
B.
Offices and departments. Every administrative department
of the Borough shall be under the supervision and control of the Manager.
The Manager shall hold such other municipal offices as the Council may from
time to time designate by resolution.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: By Resolution No. R-83-11 adopted June 6, 1983, the
Borough Council appointed the Borough Manager to serve as the Borough Secretary
and to carry out all duties of that office as prescribed by law.
C.
Personnel. All Borough employees shall perform their
duties subject to the direction of the Borough Manager or that of the superior
to whom the Manager may assign such employees. The Borough Manager may appoint
and, when he deems it necessary for the good of the Borough, suspend or remove
Borough employees and appointed officers, on the basis of merit, except as
otherwise provided by law. However, all appointments and removals must be
approved by Council prior to their taking effect. Suspensions shall be reviewed
by Council not later than 30 days following the suspension, with the resolution
of such suspension to be determined according to the applicable policy or
law. This subsection shall not apply to the Borough Solicitor or Borough Engineer.
The Borough Manager, in conjunction with the Councilman responsible for each
department, shall be responsible for the preparation of annual personnel evaluations.
D.
Budget. The Manager shall prepare and submit to Council,
before the close of each fiscal year, a budget for the next fiscal year and
an explanatory budget message. In preparing the budget, the Manager shall
obtain from the head of each department, agency or board estimates of revenues
and expenses and such supporting data as he requires. The Manager shall review
such estimates and may revise them before submitting the budget to the Council
for adoption. The Manager shall be responsible for the administration of the
budget after its adoption by Council.
E.
Appropriation and levies. It shall be the duty of the
Manager to cause to be prepared each year the annual appropriation ordinance
in time for consideration and enactment by the Council, and to prepare any
tax levy ordinances for passage and file a certified copy thereof with the
appropriate authorities within the time required by law. He shall keep current
accounts of the amounts appropriated and the amounts expended for each appropriation,
showing the unexpended appropriations at all times.
F.
Capital improvement plan. The Manager shall, in conjunction
with the preparation of the yearly budget, develop long-range fiscal and capital
improvement plans for the Borough, such plans to be presented annually to
the Council for its review and adoption.
G.
Accounts. It shall be the duty of the Manager to keep
current accounts showing at all time the fiscal condition of the Borough,
including the current and anticipated expenses, appropriations, cash on hand
and anticipated revenue of all municipal funds and accounts; and he shall
see to the collection of all moneys due the municipality. As soon as possible
after the close of the fiscal year, he shall submit to Council a complete
report on the finances of the Borough for the preceding year in the form of
an audit by a certified public accountant.
H.
Inventories and property. The Manager shall keep a current
inventory showing all real and personal property of the Borough and its location
and shall be responsible for the care and custody of all such property, including
equipment, buildings, parks and all other city property which is not by law
assigned to some other officer or body for care and control.
I.
Contracts. The Manager shall negotiate, prepare and/or
examine all proposed contracts to which the Borough may be a party excepting
where the Council directs that some other officer or officers shall do so.
It shall be the duty of the Manager to see to it that all terms of any contract
to which the Borough is a party are fully performed by all parties thereto
and that the provisions of all franchises, leases, permits and privileges
granted by the Borough are observed.
J.
Purchases. The Manager shall be the general purchasing
agent of the Borough, and except where specific provision to the contrary
is made by law or by the Council, he shall make all purchases of supplies,
materials and equipment authorized by the Council, in the manner prescribed
by and subject to the limitations imposed by law. No purchase shall be made
or obligation incurred excepting upon authorization by the Council, and no
expense shall be incurred, except for the purpose for which no prior appropriation
is required by law, if the amount thereof is not covered by an unexpended
appropriation for the purpose.
K.
Reports and publications. It shall be the duty of the
Manager to see to the publication of all notices, ordinances or other documents
required by law to be published and to prepare or cause to be prepared all
reports which the Borough or any of the officials thereof are required by
law to prepare.
L.
Records and certificates. The Manager shall prepare and
have custody of all municipal records required by law to be kept by the Borough
and not by a specific officer. Where the law makes it the duty of a specific
officer to keep or maintain records, the Manager shall make available to such
officer all necessary clerical assistance for the preparation of such records
and shall make available a place for the custody of such records. And in compliance
herewith, the Manager shall make available to the Clerk stenographic or clerical
assistance necessary for the preparation of the journal of Council proceedings
and the record of ordinances and all other documents which by law the Clerk
is required to keep; and he shall perform similar service for the Treasurer
in the maintenance of bonds, registers and all other records or documents
which by law the Treasurer is required to keep or prepare.
M.
Maps and plats. The Manager shall cause to be kept a
complete set of maps and plats showing the location of all Borough utilities
and other municipal properties, all street and other public places and lots
or parcels of land subdivided according to law.
N.
Office location and working hours. The Manager shall
maintain an office in the Borough Hall and shall spend such time in the performance
of his duties as may be required by the Council.
In the event of an extended absence or disability of the Borough Manager,
Borough Council, by majority vote, may appoint another person as Acting Borough
Manager to serve until the Manager returns or until his disability ceases
or may make some alternate arrangements for the period of absence or disability.
Except for the purpose of inquiry or under emergency circumstances,
Council and its members shall deal with employees solely through the Borough
Manager.
