[R.O. 1985 § 2-96; Ord. No. 210, § 2, 2-23-1955; Ord. No. 671, § 2, 8-1-1961; Code 1965, § 5.02; Ord. No. 1434, § 1, 3-27-1973; Ord. No. 1745, § 1, 6-26-1979; Ord. No. 4324, § 2, 11-22-2011; Ord. No. 4592, § 1, 11-24-2015; Ord. No. 4686, § 2, 9-13-2016]
(a) 
Preparation. The City Administrator shall prepare and submit to the Ways and Means Committee estimates of the requirements for expenditures and estimated revenues for the next fiscal year, compared with the corresponding figures for the last year and estimated figures for the current fiscal year. The expenditures estimate shall be classified as to funds, organization units, character and objects of expenditures.
(b) 
Committee Review. The Ways and Means Committee shall review the estimates and make recommendations altering, revising, increasing or decreasing the items as it shall deem necessary in view of the needs of the various spending agencies and the probable income for the year. The budget and the Ways and Means Committee recommendations shall be transmitted to the Board of Aldermen on or before the second regular Board of Aldermen meeting in the month of November.
(c) 
Hearings. The Board of Aldermen shall hold a public hearing on the proposed budget no later than the first regular meeting of the Board of Aldermen in December of each year, unless some other more stringent requirement is specified by State or Federal law.
[R.O. 1985 § 2-97; Ord. No. 210, § 3, 2-23-1955; Ord. No. 687, § 1, 12-12-1961; Code 1965, § 5.03; Ord. No. 1745, § 1, 6-26-1979; Ord. No. 4675, § 2, 7-26-2016]
As chief executive and Chairperson of the Ways and Means Committee, the Mayor shall be responsible for supervising the timely completion of the budget process according to the schedule outlined in this Article.
[R.O. 1985 § 2-98; Ord. No. 671, § 5, 8-1-1961; Code 1965, § 5.04]
If the commencement and termination dates of the fiscal year are changed at any time, the then current fiscal year shall be altered to terminate at the end of the day before the new fiscal year is to commence, unless the ordinance providing for the change fixes a different termination date. The budget for the new fiscal year shall be a completed document and the then current budget shall be of no force or effect after the commencement of the new fiscal year, unless due to lack of time to complete the new budget by the beginning of the new fiscal year, the Board of Aldermen by express order continues the current budget for a fixed period into the new fiscal year, in which case the new budget shall be based upon estimates and appropriations for the remainder of the new fiscal year.
[R.O. 1985 § 2-99; Ord. No. 268, § I, 1-10-1956; Code 1965, § 5.06]
The budget need not estimate the amount of fees that are to be collected and paid out to officers of the City for inspections and other specified services, nor shall it estimate the amount that may be received by the City in trust or on deposit for specified uses and purposes such as deposits for street openings and advances for street repairs or improvements, or otherwise; but all permit fees and portions of deposits which are a part of the City's general revenue shall be estimated. No provision need be made in the budget for payment of such fees or for disbursements of said deposits. The Finance Officer shall, as he/she collects or receives fees which are to be paid out to officers, and as he/she receives deposits which are to be refunded under certain circumstances or used for certain designated or contractual purposes, place such monies in a special account or fund separate from the budget accounts and shall disburse them from time to time as provided by law or ordinance. He or she shall report to the Board of Aldermen or Ways and Means Committee on the state of such accounts as required by either of them.
[R.O. 1985 § 2-100; Ord. No. 210, § 5, 2-23-1955; Code 1965, § 5.07]
Payment of any legal unpaid obligations of any fund for any prior year shall be a first charge in the budget against the income and revenue of such fund for the budget year.
[R.O. 1985 § 2-101; Ord. No. 210, § 6, 2-23-1955; Ord. No. 671, § 3, 8-1-1961; Code 1965, § 5.08; Ord. No. 1434, § 3, 3-27-1973; Ord. No. 4324, § 3, 11-22-2011]
The annual budget shall present a complete financial plan for the ensuing fiscal year. It shall be adopted not later than December 31. It shall provide for the salaries, office expense and deputy and clerical hire of all officers and agencies and all purchases and other anticipated expenses of the City. It shall set forth in detail the anticipated income and other means of financing the proposed expenditures. All receipts of the City for operation and maintenance shall be credited to the general fund. All receipts from the sale of bonds shall be credited to the bond fund created for the purpose, and all expenditures for such purpose shall be charged to such fund. All receipts for the retirement of any bond issue shall be credited to a retirement fund for such issue, and all payments to retire such issue shall be charged to such fund. All receipts for interest on outstanding bonds and all premiums and accrued interest on bonds sold shall be credited to the interest fund, and all payments of interest on such bonds shall be charged to such interest fund. The Board of Aldermen may create such other funds as may be necessary from time to time.
[R.O. 1985 § 2-102; Ord. No. 210, § 7, 2-23-1955; Ord. No. 687, § 3, 12-12-1961; Code 1965, § 5.09; Ord. No. 1745, § 1, 6-26-1979; Ord. No. 4770, § 1, 7-25-2017]
(a) 
After the public hearings, the City Administrator shall submit a completed budget document to the Board of Aldermen, including:
(1) 
A budget message submitted by the City Administrator;
(2) 
A budget report and summaries describing the important features of the budget and major changes from the preceding year;
(3) 
Estimates of revenues to be received from all sources for the budget year with a comparative statement of actual or estimated revenues for the two (2) years next preceding, itemized by year, fund and source;
(4) 
Proposed expenditures for each department, office, commission and other classification for the budget year, together with a comparative statement of actual or estimated expenditures for the two (2) years next preceding, itemized by year, fund, activity and object;
(5) 
The amount required for the payment of interest, amortization and redemption charges on the debt of the City;
(6) 
A general budget summary; and
(7) 
Complete drafts of appropriation ordinances or orders to put the budget into effect when approved by the Board of Aldermen. The appropriation ordinances or orders shall be drawn in such form as to authorize appropriations for expenditures classified only as to various activities of the City and the principal subdivisions thereof, and as to the principal items of expenditure within such subdivisions.
(b) 
In no event shall the total proposed expenditures from any fund exceed the estimated revenues to be received, plus any unencumbered balance or less any deficit estimated for the beginning of the budget year.
[R.O. 1985 § 2-103; Ord. No. 267, § I, 1-10-1956; Ord. No. 308, § I, 6-26-1956; Ord. No. 674, § 1, 8-1-1961; Code 1965, § 5.10; Ord. No. 1434, § 4, 3-27-1973; Ord. No. 1745, § 1, 6-26-1979]
The adoption of the budget may be made by order of the Board of Aldermen instead of by ordinance, and additional appropriations and changes in the appropriation may be made from time to time by order instead of ordinance. If the budget is adopted by ordinance, it can only be amended by ordinance, except that the appropriation from the reserve fund and appropriated funds may be made by order and may be added to appropriations made in the original budget from time to time. The City Clerk, for each fiscal year, shall keep the original appropriation order, together with necessary explanatory notes and also subsequent orders affecting the budget in a single volume to be available to the Board at all times.
[R.O. 1985 § 2-104; Ord. No. 268, § II, 1-10-1956; Ord. No. 308, § I, 6-26-1956; Ord. No. 671, § 4, 8-1-1961; Code 1965, § 5.11; Ord. No. 1745, § 1, 6-26-1979]
Unappropriated funds shall consist of any unencumbered balance that may be on hand at the beginning of the fiscal year; and during the fiscal year, any amounts received from anticipated revenues greater than the sum of the estimated revenues.
[R.O. 1985 § 2-105; Ord. No. 210, § 8, 2-23-1955; Ord. No. 687, § 4, 12-12-1961; Code 1965, § 5.12]
After the budget hearings, the Board of Aldermen may revise, alter, increase or decrease the items contained in the budget and may eliminate any item or add new items. If it increases the proposed expenditures from any fund it shall make provision for the necessary additional income. Any unencumbered cash surplus at the end of a fiscal year may be carried forward and merged with the revenues of the succeeding year.
[R.O. 1985 § 2-106; Ord. No. 210, § 9, 2-23-1955; Code 1965, § 5.13]
If at the termination of any fiscal year the appropriations necessary for the government for the ensuing year have not been made, the several amounts appropriated in the last annual appropriation order for the objects and purposes specified shall be deemed to be re-appropriated, and until the Board of Aldermen shall act the Finance Officer shall approve expenditures and honor warrants in payment thereof.
[R.O. 1985 § 2-107; Ord. No. 210, § 10, 2-23-1955; Ord. No. 267, §§ II – IV, 1-10-1956; Ord. No. 687, § 5, 12-12-1961; Code 1965, § 5.14; Ord. No. 1745, § 1, 6-26-1979]
The City Administrator shall have the power to authorize the transfer within the same activity, the appropriations among the various accounts within that activity except that any transfer within an activity so as to increase the salary appropriation for the purpose of employing additional personnel shall require the approval of the Board of Aldermen. No transfer in excess of five thousand dollars ($5,000) shall be made into any single account of any activity at any one (1) time. All transfers authorized shall be reported by the City Administrator to the Board of Aldermen within thirty (30) days of said transfer.
[R.O. 1985 § 2-108; Ord. No. 267, 1-10-1956; Code 1965, § 5.15]
The title of ordinances which amend appropriation ordinances shall be sufficient and the amending ordinance shall be valid if the title refers without details or particulars to the section being amended and states in general terms that the previously existing appropriation is increased or decreased, as the case may be.
[R.O. 1985 § 2-109; Ord. No. 687, § 6, 12-12-1961; Code 1965, § 5.16]
The budget or the orders, motions, resolutions or ordinances as may be required to authorize the expenditures proposed in the budget as finally approved and any orders, motions, resolutions or ordinances to increase the total amount authorized for expenditure adopted shall remain on file for three (3) years and shall be public records and open to inspection. To each copy so filed, the budget officer shall attest to the fact that preparation and adoption proceedings were conducted in the manner prescribed herein.
[1]
Editor's Note: Former § 2-110, which pertained to the non-expendable trust account and was derived from Ord. No. 355, adopted 2-26-1957, as amended, was repealed 3-23-2010 by Ord. No. 4241. Subsequently, Ord. No. 4241 was repealed 7-26-2022 by Ord. No. 5280. The 45% General Fund Reserve, as established by Ord. No. 4579, shall remain in full force and effect.
[R.O. 1985 § 2-111; Code 1965, § 5.33; Ord. No. 4991, 9-24-2019]
The City Administrator or Finance Officer may execute for and on behalf of the City, for the calendar year 1973 and thereafter, such affidavits as may from time to time be required by law with regard to the use and application by the City of funds received from the county road and bridge tax refund. Such use and application of said refund shall be in accordance with the laws of the State.