[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council of the Town of Elsmere 10-9-2008 by Ord. No. 497.[1] Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Department of Finance — See Ch. 29.
[1]
Editor's Note: This ordinance also repealed former Ch. 27, Finance Committee, adopted 1-24-2002 by Ord. No. 398, as amended.
Council may at any time create a committee to be known as the "Town of Elsmere Finance Committee."
The primary purpose of the Finance Committee shall be to play an advisory role to the Mayor and Council concerning financial issues which the Mayor and Council have directed the Committee to examine. The Committee shall have no authority except to view and review all financial matters directly related to the issue which the Mayor and Council have directed it to examine and to make a recommendation to the Mayor and Council concerning only those specific issues.
A. 
The Committee shall consist of three members.
B. 
The three members shall consist of the following:
(1) 
The Town Treasurer, who shall serve as Chairperson of the Committee.
(2) 
Two residents of the Town who may be nominated by any member of the Council or the Mayor but must be approved by a majority vote of the Mayor and Council.
A. 
The members of the Committee collectively shall possess the expertise and experience in accounting, finance and financial reporting or the good common sense needed to understand and resolve issues raised in the review of financial matters.
B. 
However, all Committee members shall:
(1) 
Be residents of the Town and shall have been residents for at least two years.
(2) 
Submit to the Mayor and Council a written summary of their financial experience and background.
(3) 
Not be delinquent in property taxes, fees or other assessments or fines due to the Town.
(4) 
Not have been convicted of a crime, which constituted a felony, or any crime involving theft, dishonesty or financial impropriety.
[Amended 6-11-2009 by Ord. No. 508]
With the exception of the Treasurer, the Committee shall be appointed for a period of two years, and their terms shall be staggered, with one being a one-year term and the second being a two-year term.
A. 
Committee members, with the exception of the Town Treasurer, shall serve at the pleasure of the Mayor and Council and may be removed at any time by a majority vote of the Mayor and Council for any reason.
B. 
The Committee may make a recommendation to dismiss a particular member of the Committee to the Mayor and Council by a simple majority vote.
C. 
Failure of a Committee member to attend two consecutive meetings (without valid reason) shall be reported to the Mayor and Council, which shall consider dismissing that member from the Committee.
The Mayor and Council shall determine by a majority vote what issues shall be reviewed by the Committee.
A. 
Once it has been determined that the Committee will be needed, the Town Manager shall notify the Treasurer of the specific nature of the assignment by the Council. The Treasurer shall then call for meetings of the Committee to accomplish the assigned task. All pertinent records and reports will be made available to the Finance Committee, at no cost, by submitting the request through the Town Manager.
B. 
Once assigned a task, the Committee shall meet at the call of the Treasurer in order to accomplish a specific task which has been assigned. All meetings shall be open to the public. The public shall be afforded an opportunity to comment on meeting agenda items. Public comment will be the first and last items on the agenda. An official record shall be kept of all meetings.
A. 
The Committee shall give careful review and consideration to each item appearing on its agenda. All of the Committee's recommendations to the Mayor and Council shall be made pursuant to a majority vote of the Committee.
B. 
It is anticipated there could be a tie vote under some circumstances. In such a case the Committee shall submit a summation of the factual information to the Mayor and Council without a specific recommendation. The absence of a recommendation shall indicate a neutral position of the Committee and is not to be considered as an "in favor of" or an "against" the issue presented.
A. 
The Treasurer shall report the activity of and any recommendations made at the most recent meeting of the Committee. The report given to the Mayor and Council concerning any recommendation made by the Committee shall be reported simply as recommended or not recommended and the count of the actual vote, such as: "The Committee voted to recommend that the Council approve (list the particular item recommended) by a vote of two in favor and one opposed.
B. 
The Committee shall also report any conditions placed upon any recommendation of approval.
C. 
Additionally the Mayor and Council may at any time inquire into who may have cast a dissenting vote and inquire of them the reason for their dissent.
The Town Manager shall attend all meetings of the Committee and shall be permitted to take part in discussions but may not vote. Other Town officials, department heads or employees shall attend if requested or deemed necessary by the Committee and may attend of their own accord.