There shall be a department of finance, the head of which shall be the city manager.
The director of finance shall provide a bond with such surety and in such amount as the Commission may require except that such bond shall be in an amount of not less than $10,000.00.
The director of finance shall have charge of the administration of the financial affairs of the City and to that end he shall have authority and shall be required to:
(1) 
Compile the estimates of revenues and expenditures for the budget;
(2) 
Supervise and be responsible for the disbursement of all moneys and have control over all expenditures to ensure that budget appropriations are not exceeded;
(3) 
Maintain a general accounting system for the city government and each of its offices, departments and agencies; keep books for and exercise financial budgetary control over each office, department and agency; keep separate accounts for the items of appropriation contained in the city budget, each of which accounts shall show the amount of the appropriation, the amounts paid therefrom, the unpaid obligations against it and the unencumbered balance; require reports of receipts and disbursements from each receiving and spending agency of the city government to be made daily or at such intervals as he may deem expedient;
(4) 
Submit to the Commission a monthly statement of all receipts and disbursements in a sufficient detail to show the exact financial condition of the City;
(5) 
Prepare, as of the end of each fiscal year, a complete financial statement and report;
(6) 
Supervise and be responsible for the assessment of all property within the corporate limits of the City for taxation, make all special assessments for the city government, prepare tax maps and give such notice of taxes and special assessments as may be required by law;
(7) 
Collect all taxes, special assessments, license fees and other revenues of the City or for whose collection the City is responsible and receive all money receivable by the City from the State or federal government, or from any court or from any office, department or agency of the City;
(8) 
Supervise and be responsible for the purchase, storage and distribution of all supplies, materials, equipment and other articles used by any office, department or agency of the city government;
(9) 
Approve all proposed expenditures; unless he shall certify that there is an unencumbered balance of appropriation and available funds, no appropriation shall be encumbered and no expenditures shall be made;
(10) 
May appoint a deputy officer by and with the consent of the City Commission.
The City Manager may at any time with the approval of the City Commission transfer any unencumbered appropriation balance or portion thereof between general classifications of expenditures within an office, department or agency. At the request of the City Manager and within the last three months of the budget year, the City Commission may by resolution transfer any unencumbered appropriation balance or portion thereof from one office, department or agency to another.
The director of finance shall have power and shall be required to:
(1) 
Prescribe the forms of receipts, vouchers, bills or claims to be used by all offices, departments and agencies of the city government.
(2) 
Examine and approve all contracts, orders and other documents by which the city government incurs financial obligations, having previously ascertained that moneys have been appropriated and allotted and will be available when the obligations shall become due and payable.
(3) 
Audit and approve before payment all bills, invoices, payrolls and other evidences of claims, demands or charges against the city government and with the advice of the city attorney determine the regularity, legality and correctness of such claims, demands or charges.
(4) 
Inspect and audit any accounts or records of financial transactions which may be maintained in any office, department or agency of the city government apart from or subsidiary to the accounts kept in his office.
All appropriations shall lapse at the end of the budget year to the extent that they shall not have been expended or lawfully encumbered.
All fees for city services received by any officer or employee shall belong to the city government and shall be paid to the department of finance at such times as required by the director of finance.
All purchases or contracts for supplies, materials or equipment or contractual services must be supplemented by a purchase order signed by the departmental head and if for more than $5.00 shall be approved by the Mayor or any member of the City Commission. The City Manager shall have authority to make expenditures for all items budgeted and therefor approved by the City Commission, not exceeding $1,000.00. Any expenditure for more than $1,000.00 must be approved in advance by the City Commission, whether or not it is budgeted. All contracts or purchases for more than $1,000.00 shall be let to the lowest bidder after there has been an opportunity for competitive bidding. Where an expenditure of more than $2,000.00 is involved, notice of the time and place, when and where such contract shall be let, shall be published in a newspaper in the City of Hereford once each week for two consecutive weeks prior to the time for making such purchase or letting such contract; the first publication to be at least fourteen days prior to the time of letting such contract; provided, however, the City Commission shall have the right to reject any and all bids and providing further that nothing herein shall apply to charges for professional services, nor to work done by the city and paid for by the day as such work progresses.
Editor’s note–Ordinance 1308, adopted Sept. 20, 1993, provided that the competitive bidding provisions set forth in chapter 252 of the Local Government Code, as amended, are adopted by the city, and that said Ordinance 1308 supersedes any conflicting competitive bidding provisions contained in the city charter. See section 1.07.004 of the Code of Ordinances.