A. 
The fiscal year of the County shall be as prescribed in § C4.01 of Article IV of the Charter.
B. 
Rockland Community College shall be governed by and follow the procedures contained in the Education Law of the State of New York.
A. 
The County Executive, pursuant to § C4.02 of Article IV of the Charter, shall prepare the proposed budget for submission to the County Legislature.
B. 
There shall be in the office of the County Executive a Division of the Budget, headed by a budget official, whose title shall be "Budget Director" and who shall be appointed by the County Executive, subject to confirmation by the County Legislature. The Budget Director shall serve at the pleasure of the County Executive and, under the direction of the County Executive, shall:
(1) 
Assist in the preparation of the budget and budget message for submission to the County Legislature.
(2) 
Assist in the administration of the budget.
(3) 
Make such studies and prepare such reports and perform such other functions with respect to the fiscal management and operations of County government as are otherwise provided herein or as the County Executive may direct.
C. 
The proposed budget shall consist of three sections: a proposed operating budget, a proposed capital budget for the ensuing fiscal year and a proposed capital program for the next six fiscal years, or such other period as may be authorized by law, together with a budget message as provided in § C4.05 of the Charter and in § 5-41 of this code.
A. 
On or before August 1, or such earlier date as the County Executive may prescribe, the administrative heads of all County departments and/or authorized agencies receiving County funds, pursuant to contract or otherwise during the current fiscal year or any other authorized agency applying for County funds, shall furnish to the County Executive, in writing, an estimation of revenues and expenditures of his or her respective administrative unit or authorized agency for the ensuing fiscal year, exclusive of any capital projects.
B. 
The estimate of revenues shall be classified by accounts and administrative units and shall show all sources of income to be received by the County during the ensuing fiscal year.
C. 
The estimate of expenditures shall consist of proposed units of appropriation for personal service and proposed units of appropriation for other than personal service. Each requested unit of appropriation shall be supported by line items showing how the total amount of such unit is arrived at. Such estimates shall be known as "departmental estimates" and shall be in such form and contain such other information as the County Executive shall require.
D. 
Budget format. The budget shall show, in parallel columns, at least the following specific comparative information:
(1) 
Actual expenditures and revenues for the last two completed fiscal years.
(2) 
The budgeted expenditures and revenues for the current fiscal year, and also the current amended budget, as to a date not more than 45 days prior to the day of the filing of the proposed budget by the County Executive with the Clerk to the County Legislature pursuant to § 4.04 of Article IV of the Charter.
(3) 
The estimates of expenditure and revenue for the ensuing fiscal year submitted by the administrative heads and authorized agencies.
(4) 
The recommendations and estimates of the County Executive as to expenditures and revenues for the ensuing fiscal year.
(5) 
An estimate of the general contingency fund which the County Executive recommends be provided for unanticipated County purposes and charges.
(6) 
A statement of the amount required by the County to pay the interest on and amortization of the redemption of indebtedness becoming due in the ensuing fiscal year.
A. 
On or before March 1 in each year, or such earlier date as the County Executive may prescribe, and upon receipt of at least 30 days' written notice by the County Executive, each administrative head shall furnish to the County Executive and to the Commissioner of Planning:
(1) 
A list of existing projects, the source of funding, the funds expended to date, the status of the project, changes requested and increase or decrease in funding required, if any, and reasons for said changes.
(2) 
A description, justification and estimate for each project in the capital program which he or she proposes for development during one or more of the ensuing six fiscal years.
B. 
Each capital project request shall show recommended priority; development time schedule; estimated useful life in years; estimated cost for planning, site or right-of-way, construction, equipment and other features; status of plans and land acquisition; anticipated effect of a project on an annual operating budget, proposed method of paying for project; possible sources of financial aid; recommended expenditures by years, including total expenditures remaining beyond the six-year period of the capital program, if any; and such other information as the County Executive may prescribe.
C. 
The County Executive shall review the proposed capital program and capital budget, as submitted by the Capital Projects Committee, and shall prepare the proposed capital budget for the County for the ensuing fiscal year.
D. 
The proposed capital budget shall indicate proposed down payments and other expenditures for new projects and/or for any project continued from prior years, those expenditures, including debt service, if any, expected to be incurred against such projects during the next fiscal year and recommended sources of all proposed capital financing, indicating but not limited to current revenues, temporary borrowing, bond sale, federal and state grants, loans or advances.
E. 
The proposed capital budget shall include the amount for the capital program to be financed by direct budgetary appropriation during the next fiscal year.
A. 
To consider the necessity, priority, feasibility, location, cost and method of financing of all existing and proposed capital projects and to assist in the consideration of a capital program, there shall be a Capital Projects Committee[1] consisting of the County Executive as Chairperson, the Chairperson of the Legislature, the Superintendent of Highways, the Commissioner of Finance, the Commissioner of Planning and such other persons as the County Executive may designate. The County Executive shall be responsible for the capital program as submitted to the County Legislature.
[1]
Editor's Note: See § C4.11 of the Charter.
B. 
The Commissioner of Planning shall review the existing and proposed capital projects submitted by the administrative heads. His review shall include consideration of comprehensive plans for the County and for any affected municipality therein. On or before March 15, the Commissioner shall forward his or her comments and recommendations regarding each capital project to the County Executive. The County Executive shall submit these comments and recommendations, together with his or her own comments and recommendations, to the Capital Projects Committee on or before April 1. The Committee shall consider all capital projects and shall thereafter submit its recommendation to the County Executive in the manner hereinafter prescribed.
C. 
Proposed capital program. On or before June 1, the Capital Projects Committee shall prepare and submit to the County Executive a proposed capital budget for the ensuing fiscal year and a proposed capital program for the next six fiscal years, for both existing and newly proposed capital projects. They shall be arranged in such manner as to indicate the order of priority of each project and to state for each existing and newly proposed project:
(1) 
A description of the project and the estimated total cost thereof.
(2) 
The proposed method of financing, indicating the amount proposed to be financed by direct budgetary appropriation; the amount, if any, estimated to be received from the federal and/or state governments; and the amount to be financed by the issuance of obligations, showing the proposed type or types of obligations, together with the period of probable usefulness for which they are proposed to be issued.
(3) 
An estimate of the financial impact, if any, upon the operating budget of the County for each of the next three fiscal years.
(4) 
Any decreases in existing projects.
(5) 
The recommendation for the closing of completed projects.
A. 
The County Executive shall review the Budget Director's recommended proposed operating budget, capital budget and the capital program. The County Executive shall prepare the proposed budget for the County for the ensuing year for both operating and capital purposes and shall submit said budget to the Clerk to the County Legislature on or before the 23rd day of October of each year for consideration by the County Legislature, together with an accompanying budget message as prescribed by C4.05 of Article IV of the. Charter.
[Amended 5-19-1992 by L.L. No. 5-1992]
B. 
Upon their submission, the proposed operating and capital budgets, hereinafter called the "County budget," together with the budget message, shall become public records in the office of the Clerk and made available for distribution to the public.
C. 
The County Legislature will proceed to consider the same and hold such meetings and hearings as it deems necessary and requires, as well as a public hearing to adopt a budget in the manner provided by §§ C4.06, C4.07 and C4.08 of the Charter.
The County Executive shall submit with the County budget a budget message explaining the main features of the County budget, including a general summary thereof, with such supporting schedules as he or she may deem desirable or the Legislature may, by resolution, require, and information identifying and analyzing new or changed programs. Such schedules shall exhibit the aggregate figures of the proposed budget in such manner as to show a balanced relationship between the total estimated expenditures and the total estimated income for the ensuing fiscal year and shall compare these figures with the actual receipts and expenditures for the last completed fiscal year and the appropriations for such fiscal year. The budget message shall also outline the existing and any proposed financial policies of the County relating to the capital program. The budget message shall contain such additional information or comments as the County Executive may deem appropriate.
[1]
Editor's Note: See also § C4.05 of the Charter.
The Legislature and/or such committees as it designates may review and hold hearings on the proposed County budget and the budget message and may require the attendance of the heads of units and departments or their representatives to produce such records and information in explanation of their departmental estimates as the Legislature shall deem appropriate.
[1]
Editor's Note: See also § C4.06 of the Charter.
Pursuant to § C4.07 of Article IV of the Charter and not later than the 20th day of November of each year, the County Legislature shall hold a public hearing on the proposed County budget, as submitted by the County Executive, and any report submitted by the Legislature or a committee designated by such body. The Clerk to the County Legislature shall cause to be printed, or otherwise reproduced, sufficient copies of the same, as may be ordered, printed or reproduced by resolution of the County Legislature. The copies shall be made available for distribution not less than 10 days prior to the holding of said public hearing. At least 10 days shall elapse between the publication of such notice and the date so specified for the hearing. The hearing shall be held on the date so specified, at which time any person may be heard for or against the recommendations and estimates submitted by the County Executive or any item thereof and the report submitted by the County Legislature or a committee designated by the County Legislature or any item thereof. The hearing may be adjourned from day to day, but not later than the 21st day of November.
The budget shall be adopted by the County Legislature as provided by § C4.08 of Article IV of the Charter as follows:
A. 
After the conclusion of the public hearing, the Legislature may strike items of appropriation or anticipated revenue from the proposed County budget or reduce items therein, except appropriations required by law for debt service. The Legislature may add items to or increase items in the County budget, provided that such additions or increases are stated separately and distinctly.
B. 
The County budget, as changed, altered or revised, shall be adopted by resolution of the Legislature not later than the seventh day of December. If the Legislature takes no action by December 7, the budget submitted by the County Executive shall be deemed to be the adopted budget. If the County budget, as submitted by the County Executive, is adopted by resolution of the Legislature with no changes, it shall be deemed to have been adopted without any further action by the County Executive. If, however, the County budget, as adopted by the Legislature, contains any increases, additions, decreases or deletions, it shall be immediately presented by the Clerk to the Legislature to the County Executive for examination and reconsideration. If the County Executive approves all the increases or additions and the decreases or deletions, he or she shall affix his or her signature to a statement thereof and return the County budget, together with such statement, to the Clerk to the Legislature; and the County budget, including the increases or additions and the decreases or deletions as part thereof, shall then be deemed to be adopted.
[Amended 5-19-1992 by L.L. No. 5-1992]
C. 
If the County budget, with any increases or additions and decreases or deletions, is not returned by the County Executive to the Clerk to the Legislature with his or her objections within five working days after presentation by the Clerk to the Legislature, it shall be deemed adopted, as changed, altered or revised by the Legislature.
D. 
If the County Executive objects to any one or more of the increases or additions or the decreases or deletions, the County Executive shall append to the County budget a statement of the increases or additions or the decreases or deletions to which the County Executive objects, setting forth the reasons therefor and shall, not later than five working days after receipt of the adopted budget from the Clerk to the Legislature, return the County budget with such objection(s) to the Clerk to the Legislature, who shall immediately present them to the Legislature. The Legislature shall thereupon enter the objections upon its records and, not later than the 20th day of December, proceed to reconsider the increases or additions or the decreases or deletions to which objection(s) is(are) made by the County Executive. If, upon such reconsideration, the Legislature, by the affirmative vote of at least 2/3 of the total voting power of the Legislature taken to the next highest whole number, votes to approve any such increase, addition or deletion, the County budget, with the changes so approved, together with any changes not so objected to by the County Executive, shall be deemed adopted. If the Legislature by such date fails to act on or approve any such change objected to by the County Executive, then such objections shall become final, and the budget shall be deemed adopted as resubmitted by the County Executive.
E. 
If any limitation date mentioned in this article falls on a holiday, Saturday or Sunday, then any time limitations required herein shall be extended to the next business day of the County.
F. 
Copies of the County budget, as adopted, shall be certified by the County Executive and by the Clerk to the Legislature, and such copy shall be filed in the offices of the County Executive and the Clerk to the Legislature. The budget so certified shall be printed or otherwise reproduced and copies shall be made available to the public at such cost as the Legislature shall deem appropriate.
G. 
In addition to any other requirements, the budget, as adopted, shall be printed by the Clerk to the County Legislature in the Annual Journal of Proceedings of the County Legislature.
A. 
Immediately upon the final adoption of the budget, the Legislature shall adopt an appropriation resolution and provide for the raising of taxes required by such budget in the manner and within the time prescribed by law.
B. 
The net County tax requirement, determined by subtracting the total estimate revenues from the total proposed expenditures as set forth in the adopted budget, shall be levied in advance by the County Legislature on the taxable real property of the several tax districts of the County. The taxes so levied shall include an amount to be known as "allowance for uncollectable taxes" and "reserve for uncollected taxes," which shall be a County charge. The reserve for delinquent taxes shall be in an amount that is legally required to be established as a reserve for unpaid taxes.
C. 
The amount of all taxes, special ad valorem levies and special assessments levied upon any parcel of real property by the County Legislature shall, except as otherwise expressly provided by law, be and become a lien thereon as of the first day of January of the fiscal year for which levied and shall remain a lien until paid.
[1]
Editor's Note: See also § C4.09 of the Charter.
A. 
No County officer, employee, administrative unit or other authorized agency shall, during a fiscal year, expend or contract to expend any money or incur any liability or enter into any contract which, by its terms, involves the expenditure of money for any of the purposes for which provision is made in the budget in excess of the amounts appropriated for such fiscal year or for any other purpose, except as otherwise provided in this code, the Charter or the Local Finance Law. The unexpended balance of each appropriation, less the commitments outstanding at the close of such fiscal year for which it was made, shall lapse at the close of such fiscal year. Nothing herein contained shall be construed to require the lapsing of appropriations which may be, or are required to be, made for an indefinite period or which include state refunds, allocations or grants applicable to said appropriations pursuant to any other provision of law; and provided, further, that nothing herein shall be construed to prevent the making of appropriations or contracts for the construction of permanent public improvements or works not to be completed during the fiscal year, or the acquisition of property therefor or that the establishment of bond or capital accounts shall not continue in force until the purpose for which it was made shall be accomplished or it shall have been abandoned by the County Legislature. Any contract, verbal or written, made in violation of this section shall be null and void.
B. 
The County Executive shall maintain control, at all times, over the expenditures of each administrative unit, officer, employee and the financial activity of the County in accordance with the provisions of the Charter and this code.
A. 
The County Executive may, during any fiscal year, transfer part or all of any unit of appropriation within any department, office or unit to another unit of appropriation within such department, office or unit. Written notice thereof shall be given to the Legislature.
B. 
The Legislature may, during any fiscal year, transfer part or all of any unit appropriation from one department, office or unit to another or transfer part of all of any unit of appropriation for the purpose of establishing or adding to a new unit appropriation or change the terms and conditions of the budget. Any such action taken by the Legislature shall be by resolution subject to the provisions of § C2.02 of the Charter.
[1]
Editor's Note: See also § C4.10 of the Charter/
Only the County Legislature, by resolution, subject to veto by the County Executive, may, at any time, appropriate all or any part of the moneys in the general contingent fund for general County purposes.