The fiscal year of the Town of Elsmere shall begin on the first
day of July of each year and shall end on the last day of June of
the following year. Such fiscal year shall also constitute the budget
and accounting year, except as otherwise provided for herein.
Annually, and not later than forty-five (45) days before the
beginning of the fiscal year, the Council shall cause to be submitted
a budget containing a financial plan for conducting the affairs of
the Town for the ensuing fiscal year.
The budget shall contain the following information:
(1)
Proposed expenditures for current operations during the ensuing fiscal
year, detailed by departments in specific line items, and the method
of financing such expenditures;
(2)
The amount of debt of the Town, together with a schedule of maturity
of bond issues.
(3)
A statement of the amount of interest on the bonded debt, the amount
necessary to pay any bond maturing during the year, and the amount
required for the sinking fund, if any.
(4)
Proposed capital expenditures during the ensuing fiscal year, detailed
by departments when practical, and the proposed method of financing
each such capital expenditure; and
(5)
An estimate of the amount of money to be received from taxes and
all other anticipated income of the town from any source or sources.
(6)
Proposed allocation to the Contingency Fund, if any.
The Council shall cause to be published in a newspaper of general
circulation in the town a notice of the time and place for a public
hearing on the budget, and a notice of the times and places where
copies of the budget are available for inspection by the public. Such
notice shall be published not less than two (2) weeks prior to such
hearing.
After the public hearing, the Council may adopt the budget with
or without amendment. The Council may insert new items of expenditure
or may increase, decrease or strike out items of expenditure, except
that no item of appropriation for debt service shall be reduced.
The budget so approved must have a total of proposed operating
expenditures that does not exceed the total of estimated revenues.
In determining what shall be included in operating expenditures, the
purchase of any capital equipment or buildings that is paid for by
a capital lease or borrowing shall not be included except to the extent
of the amount due to be paid on such lease or borrowing during the
budget year.
The budget for the ensuing year shall be adopted by the Council
no later than the last day of the fiscal year currently ending. The
tax rate for the ensuing fiscal year may be adopted prior to the time
the budget is adopted. If it fails to so adopt, the budget submitted
by the Town's departments for operations for the current fiscal year
shall be deemed adopted for the ensuing fiscal year on a month-to-month
basis with all items in it prorated accordingly, until such time as
the Council adopts a budget for the ensuing fiscal year. Also, during
such period, Council may appropriate amounts requested for specific
capital improvement projects, provided that the town manager and the
finance director certify that the necessary funds are available therefor.
(76 Del. Laws, c. 16, 5/10/07)
When the Mayor and Council determine that an emergency exists,
the Council may make emergency appropriations out of the Town's Contingency
Fund in order to address said emergency. Such appropriations must
be approved by a number of favorable votes which total one vote more
than a majority of the sitting Council. At any time during the fiscal
year, the Council may transfer part or all of any unencumbered line
item balance from one department or office to another. (76 Del. Laws,
c. 82, 7/5/07)
(A)
There shall be a fund to be known as a Contingency Fund. The purpose
of this fund shall be to allow the Mayor and Council to allocate an
amount of funds to be kept in reserve which could be used to guard
against possible losses, address emergency situations or plan for
future expenses.
(B)
The primary funding source for the Contingency Fund shall be a percentage
of funds from the accumulated surplus of any fiscal year. This shall
not however prohibit the Mayor and Council from allocating any funds
they deem appropriate to the Contingency Fund.
(C)
In accordance with Section 802(6) of this charter, the Town Council
shall designate an amount of funds to the Contingency Fund that is
equal to 50% of the total amount of any operating surplus which may
have resulted in the prior fiscal year.
(D)
While the appropriation of funds into the Contingency Fund shall
require an affirmative vote of a majority of the sitting members of
Council, any allocation of funds from the Contingency Fund shall require
an affirmative vote of one more than a majority of the then sitting
members of Council. For the purpose of this section, the term 'sitting
members of Council' shall be the number of Council members and the
Mayor who have been elected or appointed in accordance with this charter
and shall not include any vacant position. (76 Del. Laws, c. 82, 7/5/07)
(A)
At least once in any given year, the Council shall designate a certified
public accountant or firm of certified public accountants who shall
make an independent audit of accounts and other evidence of fiscal
transactions of the Town government and shall submit their report
to the Council. The said accountants shall have no personal interest
direct or indirect in the fiscal affairs of the Town government or
any of its officers. They shall not maintain any accounts of the Town
business, but shall within specified limits approved by the Council
audit the books and documents of the treasurer or other appropriate
officer or any separate or subordinate accounts kept by any other
office, department or agency of the Town government. When received,
the report of the auditors shall become part of the minutes of the
Council, and shall be available for inspection by any citizen of the
Town at such reasonable times as may be determined by the Council.
(B)
There is hereby created an "Audit Committee" which shall be comprised
of those persons serving on the Finance Committee of the Town who
are not members of the council, the Mayor and two members of the Town
Council whom the Mayor shall appoint.
(C)
The duty of the Audit Committee shall be as follows;
1.
To choose an independent auditor to conduct the annual audit.
2.
To meet with and provide the chosen auditor with any requested information.
3.
To receive and discuss the preliminary draft of the annual audit.
4.
To decide how the final audit report will be presented to the entire
Council and the public, at a public meeting. (71 Del. Laws, c. 328,
6/29/98; 76 Del. Laws, c. 82, 7/5/07)
