There shall be a Department of Finance, the director of which
shall be appointed by the Town Administrator. The Director of Finance
can be ex-officio Town Treasurer. The Director of Finance shall provide
a bond with such surety and in such amount as the Council may require
and the premiums on such bond shall be paid by the Town.
The Director of Finance shall have knowledge of municipal accounting
and taxation and shall have experience in budgeting and financial
control.
The Director of Finance shall have custody of all public monies,
funds, notes and bonds and other securities belonging to the Town.
The Director of Finance shall make payments out of Town funds upon
orders signed by the Town officers as herein provided. The Director
of Finance shall render a full and accurate statement to the Town
Administrator and the Council of receipts and payments at such times
as the Town Administrator or Council may require, such statements
to be made in such form as the Town Administrator may prescribe. The
Director of Finance shall perform such other acts and duties as the
Council may prescribe.
The fiscal year of the Town shall begin on the first day of
October and end on the following September 30th, but the fiscal year
may be changed by the Council by ordinance provided that no change
shall be effective until six (6) months after final passage of such
ordinance.
A. Preparation
of Budget:
The Department Heads of the Town shall prepare
annual departmental budget requests for the ensuing fiscal year as
directed by the Town Administrator and submit said requests to the
Town Administrator for review. It shall be the duty of the Town Administrator
to submit an annual budget not later than thirty (30) days prior to
the end of the current fiscal year to the Council for its review,
consideration and revision if desired. The Council shall call a public
hearing or hearings on the budget. The 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 plus funds available from prior years.
B. Adoption:
The budget as adopted must set forth the appropriations for
services, functions and activities of the various Town departments
and agencies, and shall meet all fund requirements provided by law
and required by bond covenants.
C. Failure
to Adopt:
If the Council fails to adopt the budget by
the 15th day of September, the amounts appropriated for the current
fiscal year shall be deemed adopted for the ensuing fiscal year on
a month to month basis with all items in it prorated accordingly until
such time as the Council adopts a budget for the ensuing fiscal year.
The levy of property tax will be set to equal the total current fiscal
year tax receipts, unless the ensuing fiscal year budget is approved
by September 15th of the current fiscal year.
Copies of the budget as adopted shall be public records and
shall be made available to the public upon request.
During the fiscal year the Council shall have the power to transfer
funds allocated by the budget to one activity, function or department,
to another activity, function or department, and to re-estimate revenues
and expenditures.
At any time in the fiscal year the Council may make emergency
appropriations to meet a pressing need for public expenditures in
order to protect the public health, safety or welfare.
The Council shall have the power, except as prohibited by law,
to borrow money by whatever method it may deem to be in the public
interest.
The Town shall have the power to borrow money on the credit
of the Town and to issue general obligation bonds and other evidence
of indebtednesses for permanent public improvements or for any other
public purpose not prohibited by the Constitution and laws of the
State of Texas, and to issue refunding bonds to refund outstanding
bonds and other evidences of indebtedness of the Town previously issued.
All such bonds shall be issued in conformity with the laws of the
State of Texas.
The Town shall have the power to borrow money for the purpose
of constructing, acquiring, improving, extending or repairing of public
utilities, recreational facilities or any other self liquidating municipal
function not prohibited by the Constitution and laws of the State
of Texas, and to issue revenue bonds to evidence the obligation created
thereby. Such bonds shall be a charge upon and payable from the properties,
or interest therein pledged, or the income therefrom, or both. The
holders of the revenue bonds shall never have the right to demand
payment thereof out of monies raised or to be raised by taxation.
All such bonds shall be issued in conformity with the laws of the
State of Texas.
All bonds and evidences of indebtedness of the Town having been
issued and sold and having been delivered to the purchaser thereof
or delivered to the claimant thereof shall thereafter be incontestable
and all bonds issued to refund outstanding bonds or other evidence
of indebtednesses previously issued shall and after said issuance
be incontestable.
Every appropriation, except an appropriation for a capital expenditure,
shall lapse at the close of the fiscal year to the extent that it
has not been expended or encumbered. An appropriation for a capital
expenditure shall continue in force until the purpose for which it
was made has been accomplished or abandoned; the purpose of any such
appropriation shall be deemed abandoned if three years pass without
any disbursement from or encumbrance of the appropriation.
Payments and Obligations Prohibited: No payment shall be made
or obligation incurred against any allotment or appropriation except
in accordance with appropriations duly made and unless the Town Administrator
or the Town Administrator’s designee first certifies that there
is a sufficient unencumbered balance in such allotment or appropriations
and that sufficient funds therefrom are or will be available to cover
the claim or meet the obligation when it becomes due and payable.
The Town Administrator shall submit to the Council each month
the financial condition of the Town by budget item, budget estimate
versus accruals for the preceding month and for the fiscal year to
date. The financial records of the Town will be maintained on an accrual
basis to support this type of financial management.
At the close of each fiscal year, and at such times as it may
be deemed necessary, the Council shall cause an independent audit
to be made of all accounts of the Town by a certified public accountant.
The certified public accountant so selected shall have no personal
interest, directly or indirectly, in the financial affairs of the
Town or any of its officers. Upon completion of the audit, the results
thereof in a summary form shall be placed on file in the Town Secretary’s
office as a public record for the public’s information.
All purchases made and contracts executed by the Town shall
be made in accordance with the requirements of the Constitution and
Statutes of the State of Texas.