City of Westminster, MD Chapter 20 Fiscal Matters

[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Common Council of the City of Westminster 2-23-2009 by Ord. No. 796.[1] Amendments noted where applicable.]

GENERAL REFERENCES

Department of Finance — See Ch. 19.

Procurement and contracts — See Ch. 36.

Taxation — See Ch. 143.

[1] Editor's Note: This ordinance also repealed former Ch. 20, Fiscal Matters, adopted 10-28-1991 by Ord. No. 549, as amended.

§ 20-1 Annual budget; fiscal year.

The City shall operate on an annual budget. The fiscal year of the City 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 year shall constitute the tax year, the budget year and the accounting year.

§ 20-2 Preparation of budget; presentation to Common Council.

The City Administrator shall prepare the budget for the Mayor to present to the Common Council at or before the first meeting of the Mayor and Common Council in April of each year. The budget shall provide a financial plan for the budget year and shall contain estimates of anticipated revenues and proposed expenditures for the coming year. The total of the anticipated revenues and surplus shall equal or exceed the total of proposed expenditures.

§ 20-3 Budget message.

The Mayor shall present a budget message which explains the budget, both in fiscal terms and in terms of the work programs. It shall outline the proposed financial policies of the City for the ensuing fiscal year, describe the important features of the budget, indicate any major changes from the current year in financial policies, expenditure, and revenues together with the reasons for such changes, summarize the City's debt position and include such other material as deemed pertinent.

§ 20-4 Capital improvement program.

A. The City Administrator shall prepare and submit along with the budget a six-year capital improvement program.

B. The capital improvement program shall include:

(1) A clear summary of its contents;

(2) A list of all capital improvements proposed for the next six fiscal years; and

(3) Cost estimates, funding sources and recommended time schedules for each of the capital projects.

C. The capital improvement program shall be revised and extended each year as the current portion is adopted as part of the operating budget.

D. The capital improvements program will be submitted for review and comment by the Planning and Zoning Commission prior to adoption of the operating budget.

E. The Common Council shall hold a public hearing and, thereafter, adopt the capital improvement program as submitted or amended at the same time as the adoption of the operating budget.

F. The City Administrator shall include in the proposed operating budget those capital projects adopted by the Council for the ensuing fiscal year.

§ 20-5 Action on budget.

A. Notice and hearing. The City shall publish in one or more newspapers of general circulation a notice stating the times and places where copies of the message and budget are available for inspection by the public and the time and place for a public hearing on the budget.

B. Amendment before adoption. After the public hearing, the Common Council may adopt the budget with or without amendment. In amending the budget, it may add or increase programs or amounts and may delete or decrease any programs or amounts, except expenditures required by law or for debt service or for estimated cash deficit, provided that no amendment to the budget shall increase the authorized expenditures to an amount greater than the total of estimated income or applied surplus, if any.

C. Adoption. The Common Council shall adopt the budget on or before the 15th day of June of the fiscal year currently ending. As provided in § 143-2, the tax levy shall also be made no later than that date.

§ 20-6 Appropriation action.

Upon adoption of the budget, the Common Council shall appropriate funds for the ensuing fiscal year. Funds shall be appropriated to each of the various departments, offices, agencies or functions in accordance with the adopted budget. The appropriation shall include a summary of estimated income for the ensuing fiscal year in accordance with the adopted budget.

§ 20-7 Appropriations.

No public money may be expended without having been appropriated by the Common Council. From the effective date of the budget, the amounts stated as proposed expenditures shall be appropriated to the several objects and purposes stated in the budget.

§ 20-8 Transfer of funds.

Any transfer of funds between appropriations proposed by the Mayor must be approved by the Common Council before becoming effective.

§ 20-9 Expenditures in excess of appropriations forbidden.

During any budget year, no officer or employee shall expend or contract to expend any money or incur any liability or enter into any contract which involves the expenditure of money for any purpose in excess of the amounts appropriated for or transferred to that general classification of expenditure. Any contract, verbal or written, made in violation of this chapter shall be null and void. Nothing in this section, however, shall prevent the making of contracts or the spending of money for capital improvements to be financed in whole or in part by the issuance of bonds, nor does this section preclude the making contracts of lease or for services for a period exceeding the budget year in which such contract is made, when the contract is permitted by law or an emergency procurement as authorized by § 36-4 of the City Code.

§ 20-10 Lapse of unexpended appropriations.

All appropriations that have not been expended or lawfully encumbered shall lapse at the end of the budget year. Any unexpended and unencumbered funds shall be considered a surplus and shall be included among the anticipated revenues for the next succeeding budget year.