ARTICLE 3
FINANCIAL AFFAIRS
SECTION 1. The financial year shall begin with the first day of July in each year, and end with the last day of June following.
SECTION 2. It shall be the duty of the Board of Selectmen to take charge of the bonds of the Town Treasurer and Collector of Taxes, and deposit them in a safe place.
SECTION 3. No bill, charge, or account against the town shall be paid without the approval, in writing, first obtained of the person, persons, board or committee contracting the same.
SECTION 4. Any portion of any appropriation remaining unexpended at the close of the financial year shall revert to the town treasury, unless otherwise provided by law.
SECTION 5. A. All town agencies, boards, departments and elected officials who submit budgets for appropriation to the Town's Annual Meeting be required to post at least fourteen (14) days prior to the said Annual Meeting a reasonable number of detailed copies of said budgets, said posting to be in the Sharon Public Library and additionally copies of said budgets shall be made available for the public to pick up at the Town Clerk's office.
B. Said agencies, boards, departments and officials shall also post and provide, at the same time as the posting required in "A" above copies of the detailed budgets as actually approved for the town fiscal year then (as of the town meeting) in progress along with a break down of all monies expended to a then reasonably current date and with an estimate of the expenditures required until the end of the then current fiscal year.
C. All of said budgets to be provided pursuant to "A" and "B" above shall be provided in substantially the same form so as to allow an ease of comparison for the town's citizens. Additionally, the detail required of budgets shall be at a minimum a breakdown to the level of account numbers and subdivisions thereof as maintained as independent units or sub-units on the town's or school department's computer system. If the names of individuals are included within the names of said accounting units and sub-units they shall be deleted and positions, titles or other appropriate generic identification shall be provided.
SECTION 6.
Paragraph 1. There is hereby established within the Town of Sharon a committee to be known as the Town Standing Building Committee to be made up of six (6) to ten (10) regular members and special member(s) detailed below, as follows: the six to ten regular members to be chosen by a selection committee to be made up of one member of the Sharon School Committee, one member of the Sharon Board of Selectmen, one member of the Planning Board, one member of the Capital Outlay Committee, one member of the Finance Committee, and one member chosen by the Moderator; all regular members shall be for terms of three years except that the original terms of appointments for at least two members shall be for three years; at least two other members shall be for two years and the remaining members shall
be for one year. One special member shall be appointed by each Board or Committee which has proposed a project for which the Town incurs bonded debt. Said special member shall serve for the duration of the project, and shall have duties and responsibilities with respect to that project only. The selecting committee shall designate the exact number of members of the Town Standing Building Committee.
Paragraph 2. The Standing Building Committee, as to those projects for which funds are appropriated to the committee, shall be responsible for:
a. financial estimates;
b. design, including schematic design, design development, and construction documents (or equivalent documents) developed from the project goals established by the proposing board or committee; and,
c. all aspects of construction, including whatever is necessary to implement or complete a project.
Paragraph 3. Any board or committee which intends to propose to Town Meeting a project consisting of the erection, alteration, rehabilitation, or remodeling of a Town Building shall provide information regarding the project to the Standing Building Committee. This proposal and information shall be simultaneously submitted to the Finance Committee and the Capital Outlay Committee. The Standing Building Committee shall review the proposal and information provided to determine whether the sums requested are reasonable with respect to the financial requirements of the project and shall report to Town Meeting thereon.
Paragraph 4. For projects as defined in Section 3, for which the Town proposes to incur bonded debt up to $500,000, funds for the design and construction of a project shall be appropriated to and expended under the direction of the board or committee proposing the project; however, the Standing Building Committee may supervise the construction of said projects at the request of the proposing board or committee.
Paragraph 5. For all projects as defined in Section 3, for which the Town proposes to incur bonded debt in excess of $500,000, the Standing Building Committee shall exercise its responsibilities as set forth in Section 2, above.
Paragraph 6. Any board or committee undertaking a project feasibility study shall inform the Standing Building Committee of the study.
Paragraph 7. The Standing Building Committee shall retain record drawings and specifications. These copies shall be kept on file in the Building Department's office.
Paragraph 8. Any vacancy in the regular membership of the Standing Building Committee shall be filled by the Selection Committee. Any vacancy in the Selection Committee shall be filled by the authority which appointed that member whose position has been vacated.
Paragraph 9. Any vacancy in the special membership which occurs while the project is still pending, for which the special member was appointed, shall be filled by the board or committee which has proposed said project.
SECTION 7
Paragraph 1. There is hereby established within the Town of Sharon a committee to be known as the Priorities Committee to be made up of six (6) members detailed as follows: The Chairperson and Clerk of the Board of Selectmen; the Chairperson and the Vice Chairperson of the School Committee; and the Chairperson and the Vice Chairperson of the Finance Committee. Each respective Board or Committee may designate a member other than the member indicated herein to serve on the within Committee. The above members shall serve by virtue of their original board or committee memberships and their membership on the Priorities Committee shall terminate should a member’s original board or committee membership terminates for any reason. Each respective Chairperson shall serve as
Chairperson of the Priorities Committee for a term of one year, beginning with the Chairperson of the Board of Selectmen, then the Chairperson of the School Committee and the Chairperson of the Finance Committee.
Paragraph 2. The Priorities Committee’s duties shall be as follows:
a. Inform itself with the Town’s revenue forecasts, sources of funding for the current fiscal year and estimates for the next fiscal year;
b. Inform itself of the Town’s fixed uncontrollable special expenditure items;
c. Inform itself of an estimate of available appropriations;
d. Aid and coordinate budget forecasts for the Board of Selectmen, School Committee and Finance Committee;
e. Inform itself of sources of revenue including, without limitation, state aid, excise taxation, payments in lieu of taxes and taxation revenues;
f. Inform itself of and forecast debt levels and the availability of free cash;
g. Present to the Board of Selectmen, School Committee and Finance Committee a coordinated financial forecast and projected budget allocations and/or adjustments related thereto for the ensuing fiscal year.
Amended: 2003
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