[Adopted 5-4-1964 by Ord.
No. 329 (Ch. 20, Art. I, of the 1998 Township Code)]
The office of Township Manager is hereby created by the Township
of Wilkins.
[Amended 11-25-1991 by Ord. No. 818]
The Manager shall be appointed for an indefinite term by a majority
of all members of the Board of Commissioners. The Manager shall serve
at the pleasure of the Board of Commissioners and may be removed at
any time by a majority vote of all its members, subject to contractual
rights that may arise under an employment agreement that may be entered
in accordance with this section. At least 30 days before such removal
is to become effective, the Board of Commissioners shall furnish the
Manager with a written statement setting forth its intention to remove
him and the reasons therefor. The Manager shall give the Board of
Commissioners at least 30 days' notice of his intention to resign.
The Board may enter into an employment agreement with the Township
Manager. The employment agreement may set forth the terms and conditions
of employment, and the agreement may provide that it shall remain
in effect for a specified period terminating no later than two years
after the effective date of the agreement or the date of the Board
of Commissioners organizational meeting following the next municipal
election, whichever shall first occur. An employment agreement entered
into pursuant to this section may specify conditions under which a
Township Manager would be entitled to severance compensation, but
in no event shall an employment agreement guarantee employment through
the term of the agreement or confer upon the Township Manager any
legal remedy based on specific performance.
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. The Manager need not be a resident
of the Township of Wilkins or of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
at the time of his appointment, but during the tenure of his office
he may reside outside the Township of Wilkins only with the approval
of the Board of Commissioners. If the Board of Commissioners fails
within a reasonable time, not to exceed 60 days after the appointment,
to approve the Manager's residence outside the Township of Wilkins,
he must immediately become and during his tenure remain a resident
of the Township of Wilkins.
[Amended 11-25-1991 by Ord. No. 818]
The Manager shall give a bond to the Township of Wilkins with
a bonding company as surety in an amount to be approved by the Board
of Commissioners, conditioned upon the faithful performance of his
duties, the premium for said bond to be paid by the Township of Wilkins.
[Amended 12-28-1998 by Ord. No. 917]
The salary of the Township Manager shall be fixed from time
to time by ordinance.
A.
Subsequent to his appointment and after assuming office, the Manager
shall be the chief administrative officer of the Township of Wilkins.
He shall be responsible to the Board of Commissioners as a whole for
the proper and efficient administration of the affairs of the Township
of Wilkins. The powers and duties of administration of all Township
business shall be vested in the Manager, unless expressly imposed
or conferred by statute upon other Township officers.
[Amended 12-28-1998 by Ord. No. 917]
B.
Subject to recall by ordinance of the Board of Commissioners, the
powers and duties of the Township Manager shall include the following:
(2)
He shall supervise and be responsible for the activities of all municipal
departments.
(3)
He shall hire and, when necessary for the good of the service, shall suspend any employee under his supervision, provided that persons covered by Chapter 51, Personnel, and the civil service provision of the Township Code shall be hired, suspended or discharged in accordance with such provisions; and provided, further, that the Manager shall report, at the next meeting thereafter of the Board of Commissioners, any action taken by authority of this subsection.
(4)
He shall have the power to fix wages and salaries of all personnel
under his supervision within a range previously determined by the
Board of Commissioners or as mandated by collective bargaining agreements.
[Amended 11-25-1991 by Ord. No. 818]
(5)
He shall prepare and submit to the Board, before the close of each
fiscal year, an explanatory budget message. In preparing the budget,
the Manager shall obtain from the head of each department, agency
or board or any qualified officer thereof estimates of revenues and
expenditures and such other supporting data as he requires. The Manager
shall review such estimates with the Finance Committee Chairman and
may revise them before submitting the budget to the Board of Commissioners.
(6)
He shall be responsible for the administration of the budget after
its adoption by the Board of Commissioners.
(7)
He shall, with the Finance Committee and in conjunction with the
preparation of the yearly budget, develop long-range fiscal plans
for the municipality, such plans to be presented annually to the Board
of Commissioners for its review and adoption.
(8)
He shall hold such other municipal offices and head such municipal
departments as the Board of Commissioners may from time to time direct.
(9)
He shall attend meetings of the Board and, upon request, its committees
with the right to take part in the discussions, and he shall receive
notice of all special meetings of the Board and its committees.
(10)
He shall prepare the agenda for each meeting of the Board of Commissioners
and supply facts pertinent thereto.
(11)
He shall keep the Board informed as to the conduct of Township affairs,
submit periodic reports on the condition of the Township finances
and such other reports as the Board requests and make such recommendations
to the Board as he deems advisable.
(12)
He shall submit to the Board of Commissioners, as soon as possible
after the close of the fiscal year, a complete report on the finances
and the administrative activities of the Township for the preceding
year.
(13)
He shall see that the provisions of all franchises, leases, permits
and privileges granted by the Township are observed.
(14)
He may employ, by and with the approval of the Board, experts and
consultants to perform work and to advise in connection with any of
the functions of the Township.
[Amended 12-28-1998 by Ord. No. 917]
(15)
He shall attend to the letting of contracts in due form of law, and
he shall supervise the performance and faithful execution of the same,
except insofar as such duties are expressly imposed by statute upon
some other Township officer.
(16)
He shall see that all money owed the Township is promptly paid and
that proper proceedings are taken for the security and collection
of all the Township's claims.
(17)
He shall be the Purchasing Officer of the Township, and he shall
purchase in accordance with the provisions of the Township Code all
supplies and equipment for the agencies, boards, departments and other
offices of the Township. He shall keep an account of all purchases
and shall, from time to time or when directed by the Board, make a
full written report thereof. He shall also issue rules and regulations,
subject to the approval of the Board, governing the procurement of
all municipal supplies and equipment.
(18)
All complaints regarding Township services shall be referred to the
office of the Manager. He or any department head designated by him
shall investigate and dispose of such complaints, and the Manager
shall report thereon to the Board of Commissioners.
Neither the Board, its members, nor its committees shall dictate
or influence or attempt to dictate or influence the hiring of any
person to or his discharge from municipal employment by the Manager
or in any manner take part in the hiring, suspending or discharging
of employees in the administrative service of the Township, except
as required by the civil service provisions of the First Class Township
Code.[1] Other than for the purposes of inquiry, the Board of Commissioners
or any of its members or any of the Board's committees or its members
shall deal with the administrative service solely through the Township
Manager, and neither the Board nor any of its members, nor any of
the Board's committees nor its members shall give orders, publicly
or privately, to any subordinate of the Manager.[2]
