Town of Wells, ME Chapter 10 Budget Committee

[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Selectmen of the Town of Wells 5-4-1982. Amendments noted where applicable.]

§ 10-1 Membership.

[Amended 2-17-1998; 4-27-2007; 1-17-2017]

The Wells Budget Committee, appointed by the Board of Selectmen, shall consist of seven members and three alternate members, all of whom shall be Wells residents. Members and alternates shall be appointed for terms of three years.

§ 10-2 Vacancies.

[Amended 4-27-2007]

Any new member of the Budget Committee shall be appointed by the Board of Selectmen from the alternates. Vacancies which occur among the alternate members shall be advertised in local newspapers and shall be filled by appointment of the Board of Selectmen.

§ 10-3 Compensation.

Budget Committee members shall serve without compensation.

§ 10-4 Responsibilities.

A. The Budget Committee may participate in an advisory capacity with the Personnel Advisory Board in conducting the salary survey for municipal employees in even years and in the calculating of wages and salaries to be recommended for municipal employees, the mechanics of which are outlined in the Personnel Advisory Board's bylaws, rules and regulations.[1]

[1] Editor's Note: See Ch. 49, Personnel Policies.

B. The Budget Committee may inquire into and make recommendations on any article presented to an Annual or Special Town Meeting which provides for borrowing, transferring, raising or appropriating any sum of money, the only exception being recommendations on wages and salaries, which shall be determined as outlined in Subsection A. Budget Committee recommendations shall be printed on the warrant.

C. The Budget Committee will work with the Ogunquit Budget Committee and inquire into and make recommendations on the budget presented to the Wells/Ogunquit Community School District meeting for consideration.

§ 10-5 Budget study.

A. The Budget Committee shall be furnished with a complete copy of the annual budget, together with the recommendations of the Board of Selectmen, at least six weeks prior to the closing date for the Town Meeting warrant.

B. The Budget Committee will study the budget and meet with the individual department heads (or representatives) to examine the budget line by line. Prior to making a final recommendation, each department head (or representative) will be informed of any proposed revisions and given a chance of rebuttal.

§ 10-6 Preparation of articles for voters.

The Budget Committee will work with the Board of Selectmen and Town Manager in discussing financial articles to be included in the warrant to be presented to the voters. The Budget Committee report shall include a summary of expenses, by department, for informational purposes (i.e., salaries, operating expenses, capital outlay and total expenses). The format and data should be arranged in a manner to be compatible with the Town computer's capability.

§ 10-7 Duties prior to printing of report.

Prior to the printing of the Budget Committee report, the Budget Committee will meet with the Board of Selectmen and Town Manager to determine which revenue sources and amounts will be applied to which accounts. Figures will be verified at this time, and the warrant will be checked, article by article, for errors, omissions and completeness.