PREAMBLE: The residents of Framingham deserve a highly transparent government that shall keep this commitment to transparency in executing the provisions of Article VI. The executive and legislative branches and all city departments shall work cooperatively to ensure that comprehensive financial information, as described more fully in this article below, is available to the residents of Framingham via the municipal website and other sources in an accessible, multilingual, easy to understand, and timely manner.
a) 
The fiscal year of the municipality shall begin on the first day of July and shall end on the last day of June, unless another period is required by general law.
b) 
At least 180 days before the beginning of the fiscal year, the mayor shall request a joint meeting be held of the council and school committee, to also include the superintendent of schools, and the Strategic Initiative and Financial Oversight Committee, to review the financial condition of the city, revenue and expenditure forecasts and other relevant information prepared by the mayor to develop a coordinated budget. At this meeting, the public shall be provided time to share their thoughts on potential budget priorities during the budget development process.
a) 
Public Hearing: The school committee shall hold a public hearing on the school committee budget.
b) 
Submission to Mayor: Except in the case of an emergency, as determined by the council in consultation with the school committee and the mayor, the proposed budget adopted by the school committee shall be submitted to the mayor at least twenty-one (21) days before the date the mayor is required to submit a proposed municipal budget to the council, to allow the mayor sufficient time within which to consider the effect the school department's requested appropriation will have upon the total municipal operating budget the mayor is required to submit to the council under this Article. The action of the school committee in adopting the proposed budget, following the public hearing, shall be summarized and the results of a roll call vote taken on each amendment to the proposed budget as may be offered shall be recorded.
a) 
Public Hearing: The mayor shall hold a public hearing on the proposed operating budget before it is sent to the city council.
b) 
Except in the case of an emergency, as determined by the council in consultation with the mayor, not later than one hundred twenty (120) days before the start of the municipal fiscal year, the mayor shall submit to the council a proposed operating budget for the ensuing fiscal year with an accompanying budget message and supporting documents. The mayor shall simultaneously provide that the entire document be posted on the municipal bulletin board.
a) 
Budget Message: The budget message of the mayor shall explain the budget for all municipal agencies both in fiscal terms and in terms of work programs. It shall outline proposed financial policies of the municipality for the ensuing fiscal year, describe important features of the budget, indicate any major variations from the current fiscal year in financial policies, expenditures and revenues together with the reasons for these changes, summarize the municipality's debt position, describe how the proposed budget aligns with the long range strategic blueprint, and include other material that the mayor considers desirable, or that may be required by the provisions of a municipal ordinance.
b) 
Proposed Operating Budget: The proposed operating budget shall provide a complete financial plan for all municipal funds and municipal activities for the ensuing fiscal year. Except as may otherwise be required by general law or this charter, it shall be in the form that the mayor considers desirable or that a municipal ordinance may require. In the presentation of the budget, the mayor shall use modern concepts of fiscal presentation so as to furnish an optimum level of information and the best financial control. The budget shall show in detail all estimated income from the proposed property tax levy and from all other sources and all proposed expenditures, including debt service, for the fiscal year. The budget shall be arranged to show the actual income and expenditures for the previous three fiscal years and the estimated income and expenditures for the current and ensuing fiscal years and shall indicate in separate sections:
i. 
Proposed expenditures for current operations during the ensuing fiscal year, detailed by municipal agency and position, in terms of work programs, and the method of financing such expenditures;
ii. 
Proposed capital expenditures during the ensuing fiscal year, detailed by municipal agency, and the proposed method of financing each capital expenditure;
iii. 
The relationship of each proposed capital expenditure to the capital improvement program required to be submitted under Article VI, section 8; and,
iv. 
Estimated surplus revenue and free cash at the end of the current fiscal year, including estimated balances in any special accounts established for specific purposes.
a) 
Public Hearing: Before adopting the final operating budget, the council shall hold a public hearing on the proposed operating budget, providing no less than ten (10) days' notice of such hearing.
b) 
Finance subcommittee: The council shall refer the proposed budget to the council's finance subcommittee. The finance subcommittee will thoroughly review the budget, making a presentation and recommendation to the full council within twenty-eight (28) days. The finance subcommittee of the council shall consider any or all questions which it deems appropriate for the purpose of considering the budget. It shall have authority at any time to investigate the books, accounts, and management of any department of the municipality and to require officers and employees of the municipality to appear before it and to provide information. With the approval of the full council, the Finance subcommittee may employ such expert and other assistance as it may deem advisable for the foregoing purpose. The books and accounts of all departments and officers of the municipality shall be open to the inspection of the finance subcommittee and auditor. The subcommittee may appoint working groups of its members to report findings and recommendations to the full council.
c) 
Review: The council shall consider the budget in open public meetings after the Mayor and Finance subcommittee make presentations to the full council. The council may require the mayor, or any other municipal agency, to furnish such additional information as it may consider necessary to assist in its review and consideration of the proposed operating budget.
d) 
Action by Council: The council shall adopt the budget, with or without amendments, within twenty (21) days after the day the proposed budget was reported out by its Finance subcommittee. In amending the budget, the council may delete or decrease any programs or amounts except expenditures required by law, or for debt service, but, the council shall have no authority to add programs or increase amounts except as provided by the general laws. If the council fails to take any action with respect to any item in the proposed budget within the 21-day period that amount shall, without any action by the council, become a part of the appropriations for the ensuing fiscal year and shall be available for the purposes specified. The vote to approve the budget, or any amendments thereto, shall be on a roll call vote.
e) 
Availability of the Budget and related materials: In addition to any other posting requirements under law, immediately after the submission of the proposed operating budget to the council, the mayor shall cause the entire budget document to be posted on the city's website. Said proposed budget document shall be prominently labeled "Proposed Budget FY_" and shall remain posted during the council review process contained in this article.
After the enactment of the operating budget, the complete budget (capital and operating) as adopted shall be posted on the city's website and labeled as "Final FY_ Budget" and shall remain there throughout at least the fiscal year for which it is in effect. Said budget document shall reflect any amendments made by the council and approved by the mayor and shall indicate that it is the final budget of the city.
f) 
Classification and pay schedule for municipal employees as well as copies of all voted collective bargaining contracts should also be online on the municipal website for the public to see and updated for accuracy as needed.
Except in the case of an emergency as determined by a roll call vote of the council, whenever the mayor shall submit to the council a request for a new appropriation of any sum of money, either as a supplement to some item in the annual operating budget or for an item, or items, not included in the annual operating budget as adopted, the council shall not act upon the request until it has (i) been reviewed by the Finance subcommittee, (ii) been posted on the municipal bulletin board for a minimum of ten days and (iii) the full council has held a public hearing concerning the request.
On or before August first of each year, or within ten (10) days after the approval by the council and the mayor of the annual appropriation order for the fiscal year, whichever shall occur later, the municipal officials in charge of departments or agencies including the superintendent of schools for the school department, shall submit to the director of municipal finance, with a copy to the city clerk, in a form that the director of municipal finance may prescribe, an allotment schedule of the appropriations of all personnel categories included in the budget, indicating the amounts to be expended by the department or agency for those purposes during each of the fiscal quarters of the fiscal year, or such shorter time periods as the mayor or director of municipal finance, may prescribe. Whenever the director of municipal finance determines that any department or agency including the school department, will exhaust or has exhausted its quarterly or shorter time period allotment and any amounts unexpended in previous periods, the director shall give notice in writing to this effect to the department director, the mayor, the city solicitor, and the city clerk who shall immediately transmit the notice to the council. Upon this determination and notice of it, the chief financial officer shall provide these officers with additional reports on at least a monthly basis indicating the status of these accounts.
The mayor, within seven (7) days after receiving this notice, shall determine whether to waive or enforce the allotment. If the allotment for the period is waived or is not enforced, as provided above, the department or agency head shall reduce the subsequent period allotments appropriately. If the allotment for the period is enforced or not waived, thereafter the department shall terminate all personnel expenses for the remainder of the period. All actions, notices, and decisions provided for in this section shall be transmitted to the council and the city clerk within seven (7) days. No personnel expenses earned or accrued, within any department, shall be charged to or paid for that department's or agency's allotment of a subsequent period without approval by the mayor, except for subsequently determined retroactive compensation adjustments, approval of a payroll for payment of wages, or salaried or other personnel expenses which expenditure in excess of the allotment shall be a violation of this section by the department or agency head, including the superintendent of schools and the school committee.
a) 
Stewards: The mayor and council, together with the school committee as to school property, shall be active stewards of Framingham's physical assets.
b) 
Capital Inventory: The mayor shall establish and update not less frequently than annually an inventory of significant capital assets such as buildings, infrastructure (water, sewer, storm water, and roads), moveable equipment and such other property as determined by ordinance. The council shall by ordinance establish the requirements of the inventory, such as age, condition, maintenance and repair history, remaining useful life and other features as the council may deem appropriate.
c) 
Contents of the Capital Improvement Program: The mayor shall create a capital improvement program, which shall include: (i) a clear summary of its contents; (ii) a list of all capital improvements proposed to be undertaken during the next five (5) fiscal years with supporting data and rationale; (iii) cost estimates, method of financing and recommended time schedules; and (iv) the estimated annual cost of operating and maintaining the facilities and/or equipment included. The above information shall be revised and extended each year.
d) 
Submission: The mayor shall prepare and submit to the council the inventory and the 5-year capital improvement program no later than November 1st of each year.
e) 
Public Hearing: The council shall make the proposed capital improvement program available to the public and shall hold at least one public hearing on the capital improvement program.
f) 
Adoption: After the public hearing, and no later than the end of February each year, the council may amend and shall, by resolution, adopt the capital improvement program for the next fiscal year with or without amendments.
g) 
Annual Report: The mayor shall annually report on the municipality's progress regarding the capital improvement program.
The council shall provide for an annual outside audit of the books and accounts of the municipality to be made by a certified public accountant, or a firm of certified public accountants, who have no personal interest, direct or indirect, in the fiscal affairs of the municipality or any of its officers. The mayor shall annually provide to the council a sum of money sufficient to satisfy the estimated cost of conducting the audit as presented to the mayor, in writing, by the council. The award of a contract to audit shall be made by the council, on the recommendation of its finance subcommittee on or before September fifteenth (15th) of each year. The finance subcommittee shall coordinate the work of the individual or firm selected with municipal officials. The report of the audit shall be filed in final form with the council and the finance subcommittee, and posted on the municipal bulletin board not later than March first in the year following its award.
All contracts entered into by, for or on behalf of the municipality by any officer or municipal agency shall be subject to the approval of the mayor, unless otherwise provided by law.
There shall be a strategic initiatives and financial oversight committee (SIFOC) to advise the mayor, council and school committee on the status of Framingham's long range strategic blueprint in accordance with Article III, section 11(b), the state of the municipal economy, sufficiency of municipal revenues, the capital improvement program, and other matters that may from time to time be referred to it by the mayor, council or school committee. The Committee shall be comprised of nine (9) members appointed to staggered three-year terms, three (3) chosen by the council, three (3) chosen by the school committee, and three (3) chosen by the mayor. Members shall be residents of the municipality and shall not receive any compensation and shall not hold any other elected or appointed office in the municipality, except that the SIFOC may designate members to serve as liaisons to other city multiple-member bodies or ad hoc or working groups, as requested by the mayor, the council, or the school committee. Each appointing authority shall select at least one member with expertise in finance and one member who is a member of the local business community. The SIFOC shall elect from its members a chair, vice-chair, and clerk. The city council, mayor, and school committee shall schedule a meeting to be held at least annually where SIFOC can report on its activities, examinations, and analysis and the council, mayor, and school committee can identify emerging issues that are seen as affecting the city going forward. The SIFOC will prepare an annual report to be distributed to the city council, school committee, and the mayor, and the report will be filed with the city clerk and posted on the city's website.