§ 3957 — County financial plans

§ 3957. County financial plans. 1. Commencing with the county's two\nthousand six fiscal year, the county executive shall prepare and submit\nto the authority a four-year financial plan, and the county executive's\nproposed county budget, not later than the date required for submission\nof such budget to the legislature pursuant to the county charter. Such\nfinancial plan shall, in addition to the requirements for financial\nplans set forth in subdivisions two and three of this section, contain\nactions sufficient to ensure with respect to the major operating funds\nfor each fiscal year of the plan that annual aggregate operating\nexpenses for such fiscal year shall not exceed annual aggregate\noperating revenues for such fiscal year. For purposes of determining\noperating revenues in the fiscal years two thousand five through two\nthousand nine, such plan may assume receipt by the county of ECFSA\nassistance in the following collective amounts for each respective\nfiscal year:\n Amount Fiscal Year\n 2005 amount 2005\n 2006 amount 2006\n 2007 amount 2007\n 2008 amount 2008\n 2009 amount 2009\nAs used in this subdivision:\n"2005 amount" means that amount expected to be provided by the authority\nto ensure balanced major operating fund operations upon its\ndetermination that the county has taken recurring actions subsequent to\nJune first, two thousand five to close at a minimum between ten per\ncentum and fifteen per centum of the projected gap.\nProvided, however, for this purpose "projected gap" means the amount\nidentified by a report of the state comptroller in June two thousand\nfive.\n"2006 amount" means that amount expected to be provided by the authority\nto ensure balanced major operating fund operations upon its\ndetermination that the county has taken recurring actions to close at a\nminimum between thirty-five per centum and forty per centum of the\nprojected gap.\n"2007 amount" means that amount expected to be provided by the authority\nto ensure balanced major operating fund operations upon its\ndetermination that the county has taken recurring actions to close at a\nminimum between forty-five per centum and fifty per centum of the\nprojected gap.\n"2008 amount" means that amount expected to be provided by the authority\nto ensure balanced major operating fund operations upon its\ndetermination that the county has taken recurring actions to close at a\nminimum between sixty per centum and sixty-five per centum of the\nprojected gap.\n"2009 amount" means that amount expected to be provided by the authority\nto ensure balanced major operating fund operations upon its\ndetermination that the county has taken recurring actions to close at a\nminimum between eighty per centum and eighty-five per centum of the\nprojected gap.\n 2. Pursuant to the procedures contained in this subdivision, each year\nduring an advisory period or during a control period the county shall\ndevelop, and may from time to time modify, taking into account\nrecommendations of the authority, a four-year financial plan covering\nthe county and the covered organizations. Each financial plan and\nfinancial plan modification shall conform to the requirements of\nparagraph (a) of this subdivision and shall provide that the major\noperating funds of the county will be balanced in accordance with\ngenerally accepted accounting principles. The financial plan shall be\ndeveloped and approved, and may from time to time be modified, in\naccordance with the following procedures:\n (a) The county executive shall submit to the authority a certificate\nstating that the budget submitted to the authority is consistent with\nthe financial plan submitted therewith and that operation within the\nbudget is feasible.\n (b) Not more than twenty days after submission of a financial plan or\nmore than fifteen days after submission of a financial plan\nmodification, the authority shall determine whether the financial plan\nor financial plan modification is complete and complies with the\nprovisions of this section and the other requirements of this title, and\nshall submit its recommendations with respect to the financial plan or\nfinancial plan modification in accordance with the provisions of this\nsubdivision.\n (c) Upon the approval by the county of a budget in accordance with the\nprovisions of the county charter, the county executive shall submit such\napproved budget and financial plan to the authority accompanied by\nexpenditure, revenue and cash flow projections on a quarterly basis and\ncertify to the authority that such budget is consistent with the\nfinancial plan to be submitted to the authority.\n (d) If the authority determines that the financial plan or financial\nplan modification provided pursuant to paragraph (c) or (f) of this\nsubdivision is complete and complies with the standards set forth in\nthis subdivision, the authority shall make a certification to the county\nsetting forth revenue estimates agreed to by the authority in accordance\nwith such determination.\n (e) The authority shall, in the event it disagrees with elements of\nthe financial plan provided pursuant to paragraph (c) or (f) of this\nsubdivision provide notice thereof to the county, with copies to the\ndirector of the budget, the state comptroller, the chair of the state\nassembly ways and means committee and the chair of the state senate\nfinance committee, if, in the judgment of the authority, such plan: (i)\nis incomplete; (ii) fails to contain projections of revenues and\nexpenditures that are based on reasonable and appropriate assumptions\nand methods of estimations; (iii) fails to provide that operations of\nthe county and the covered organizations will be conducted within the\ncash resources available; or (iv) fails to comply with the provisions of\nthis title or other requirements of law.\n (f) After the initial adoption of an approved financial plan, the\nrevenue estimates certified by the authority and the financial plan\nshall be regularly reexamined by the authority in consultation with the\ncounty and the covered organizations and the county executive shall\nprovide a modified financial plan in such detail and within such time\nperiods as the authority may require. In the event of reductions in such\nrevenue estimates, or in the event the county or a covered organization\nshall expend funds at a rate that would exceed the aggregate expenditure\nlimitation for the county or covered organization prior to the\nexpiration of the fiscal year, the county executive shall submit a\nfinancial plan modification to effect such adjustments in revenue\nestimates and reductions in total expenditures as may be necessary to\nconform to such revised revenue estimates or aggregate expenditure\nlimitations.\n (g) If, within a time period specified by the authority, the county\nfails to make such modifications after reductions in revenue estimates,\nor to provide a modified plan in detail and within such time period\nrequired by the authority, the authority shall adopt a resolution so\nfinding.\n (h) The county shall amend its budget or shall submit a financial plan\nmodification for the approval of the authority such that the county's\nbudget and the approved financial plan shall be consistent. In no event\nshall the county operate under a budget that is inconsistent with an\napproved financial plan.\n 3. The financial plan shall be in such form and shall contain such\ninformation for each year during which the financial plan is in effect\nas the authority may specify, and shall include the county and all the\ncovered organizations, and shall, in such detail as the authority from\ntime to time may prescribe, include (a) statements of all estimated\nrevenues and of all expenditures and cash flow projections of the county\nand each covered organization, and (b) an accounting of the expenditure\nof efficiency incentive grants available to the county for each year of\nthe plan.\n 4. The financial plan shall include any information which the\nauthority may request to satisfy itself that: (a) projected employment\nlevels, collective bargaining agreements and other actions relating to\nemployee costs, capital construction and such other matters as the\nauthority may specify are consistent with the provisions made for such\nobligations in the financial plan; (b) the county and the covered\norganizations are taking whatever action is necessary with respect to\nprograms mandated by state and federal law to ensure that expenditures\nfor such programs are limited to and covered by the expenditures stated\nin the financial plan; (c) adequate reserves are provided to maintain\nessential programs in the event revenues have been overestimated or\nexpenditures underestimated for any period; and (d) the county has\nadequate cash resources to meet its obligations. In addition, except to\nthe extent such reporting requirements may be modified pursuant to\nagreement between the authority and the county, for each fiscal year\noccurring during a control period, or while bonds, notes or other\nobligations issued pursuant to this title are outstanding, the county\nexecutive shall prepare a quarterly report of summarized budget data\ndepicting overall trends, by major category within funds, of actual\nrevenues and budget expenditures for the entire budget rather than\nindividual line items, as well as updated quarterly cash flow\nprojections of receipts and disbursements. Such reports shall compare\nrevenue estimates and appropriations as set forth in such budget and in\nthe quarterly revenue and expenditure projections submitted therewith,\nwith the actual revenues and expenditures made to date. Such reports\nshall also compare actual receipts and disbursements with the estimates\ncontained in the cash flow projections, together with variances and\ntheir explanation. All quarterly reports shall be accompanied by\nrecommendations from the county executive to the legislature setting\nforth any remedial action necessary to resolve any unfavorable budget\nvariance including the overestimation of revenues and the\nunderestimation of appropriations. These reports shall be completed\nwithin thirty days after the end of each quarter and shall be submitted\nto the legislature, the authority, the director of the budget, the chair\nof the state senate finance committee, the chair of the state assembly\nways and means committee and the state comptroller. For each fiscal year\noccurring during a control or advisory period or while bonds, notes or\nother obligations issued pursuant to this title are outstanding, the\ncounty executive shall submit a proposed budget or revision thereto to\nthe authority concurrent with submission to the legislature, and shall\nsubmit the adopted budget to the authority immediately upon its\nadoption.\n 5. For each financial plan and financial plan modification to be\nprepared and submitted by the county executive to the authority pursuant\nto the provisions of this section, the covered organizations shall\nsubmit to the county such information with respect to their projected\nexpenditures, revenues and cash flows for each of the years covered by\nsuch financial plan or modification as the county executive shall\ndetermine.\n