§ 181 — Annual budget and levy of taxes

New York § 181

• Jurisdiction: New York
• Law TWN: Town
• Art. 11: Fire, Fire Alarm and Fire Protection Districts

Text

§ 181. Annual budget and levy of taxes. 1. The fiscal year of each\nfire district shall begin on the first day of January and end on the\nthirty-first day of December.\n For each fiscal year, the board of fire commissioners of each fire\ndistrict shall prepare and adopt an annual budget in accordance with\nthis section.\n 2. (a) On or before the twenty-first day prior to the public hearing\nrequired by subdivision three of this section, the board of fire\ncommissioners shall prepare and adopt a proposed budget for the ensuing\nfiscal year. Within the limitations specified in this article, the\nproposed budget shall contain detailed estimates in writing of the\namount of revenues to be received and the appropriations required for\nexpenditures to be made during such fiscal year for the purposes of such\nfire district.\n (b) On or before the last date provided by law for the adoption of the\nproposed budget, the board of fire commissioners shall prepare an\nestimate of the fund balance which shall be affixed to the proposed\nbudget as an appendix thereto. The estimate of fund balance shall\ninclude a breakdown of such fund balance estimated for encumbrances,\namounts estimated to be expended for the ensuing fiscal year, amounts\nreserved for stated purposes pursuant to law, including reserve funds\nestablished pursuant to the general municipal law, and the remaining\nunappropriated unreserved fund balance as that term is defined in\nsection one hundred three of this chapter, provided that the remaining\nestimated unappropriated unreserved fund balance for each fund shall not\nexceed a reasonable amount, consistent with prudent budgeting practices,\nnecessary to ensure the orderly operation of the fire district and the\ncontinued provision of services, taking into account factors including,\nbut not limited to, the size of the fund, cash flows, the certainty with\nwhich the amounts of revenues and expenditures can be estimated, and the\nfire district's experience in prior fiscal years. For those districts\nwhich employ the cash basis of accounting, fund balance means the cash\nsurplus estimated to be on hand at the close of the current fiscal year\nless claims payable therefrom and amounts reserved pursuant to law for\nstated purposes, including reserve funds established pursuant to the\ngeneral municipal law.\n (c) Upon adoption of the proposed budget by the board of fire\ncommissioners, the proposed budget shall be filed in the office of the\nfire district secretary and maintained as a public document available\nfor inspection and copying. The fire district secretary shall also\nreproduce a sufficient number of copies of the proposed budget for\ndistribution upon request to the public and at no cost to the public. In\naddition, if the fire district maintains an internet website, the fire\ndistrict secretary shall cause the proposed budget to be posted and\nmaintained on the fire district's website until the day after the public\nhearing on the proposed budget.\n 3. (a) The board of commissioners of each fire district shall hold a\npublic hearing during the third week of October to discuss the contents\nof the proposed budget. The hearing shall be conducted and scheduled in\na manner that maximizes participation. Notice of such public hearing\nshall be published at least once in the official newspaper, or if no\nofficial newspaper has been designated, in any newspaper having general\ncirculation in the district. At least five days shall elapse between the\ndate of the first publication of the notice and the date specified for\nthe hearing. The notice of hearing shall state the date, time and the\nplace where the public hearing will be held, the purpose thereof and\nthat a copy of the proposed budget is available at the office of the\ntown clerk or clerks and fire district secretary where it may be\ninspected by any interested person during office hours. In the case of a\nfire district that maintains an internet website, the notice of hearing\nshall also state that the proposed budget is posted on the fire\ndistrict's website. The town clerk or clerks shall cause a copy of the\nnotice to be posted on the signboard of the town or towns, maintained\npursuant to subdivision six of section thirty of this chapter, not later\nthan five days before the day designated for such hearing. The notice\nshall also be posted on the municipal and/or fire district website or\nwebsites, if one exists. At such hearing, any person may be heard in\nfavor of or against the proposed budget as compiled, or for or against\nany item or items therein contained.\n (b) After the public hearing, the board of fire commissioners may\nadopt changes, alterations and revisions to the proposed budget subject\nto the requirements of paragraph (a) of subdivision two of this section,\nexcept that the board of fire commissioners shall not add or increase an\nappropriation to a capital reserve fund. On or before the fourth day of\nNovember, the board of fire commissioners shall adopt as the annual\nbudget of the fire district either the proposed budget or the proposed\nbudget as changed, altered or revised after the public hearing. In the\nevent that the board of fire commissioners fails to adopt the annual\nbudget by such date, the proposed budget with such changes, alterations\nand revisions as shall have been adopted by the board of fire\ncommissioners by that date shall constitute the annual budget of the\nfire district.\n (c) Within three days after the adoption of the annual budget of a\nfire district, the fire district secretary shall prepare and deliver to\nthe town clerk of each town in which the fire district is located two\ncertified copies of the annual budget. Neither the town board, town\nsupervisor, town clerk nor any other officer or employee of the town\nshall make any change to the annual budget of the fire district.\n 4. After the annual budget of a fire district has been affixed to the\nannual budget adopted by the town board and a certified copy presented\nto the board of supervisors of the county in which the town is situated\nas required by section one hundred fifteen of this chapter, the board of\nsupervisors shall assess and levy upon the taxable real property within\nthe several fire districts the amounts to be raised by tax for the\npurposes of the respective districts as specified in such annual fire\ndistrict budget and shall cause the amount so assessed and levied to be\ncollected, in the same manner and at the same time and by the same\nofficers as town taxes are assessed, levied and collected. When such\ntaxes are collected, the amount thereof shall be paid to the supervisor\nof the town and by him immediately paid to the treasurer of the\nrespective fire districts. If a fire district includes taxable property\nlocated in more than one town, the amount to be assessed, levied and\ncollected upon the property within each of such towns shall be\napportioned in accordance with section eight hundred six of the real\nproperty tax law.\n 5. In any case where a parcel of real property separately assessed on\nthe town assessment roll shall be divided by the line of the fire\ndistrict or of any zone established therein as provided in subdivision\ntwenty-seven of section one hundred seventy-six of this chapter, it\nshall be the duty of the town assessors, after the valuation of the\nwhole of such parcel shall have been fixed, to determine what proportion\nof such valuation is on account of that part of such parcel lying within\nthe limits of the fire district or of such zone or zones, and the\nassessors shall enter such proportion separately on the assessment roll.\nThe valuation of the real property lying within such fire district or\nwithin such zone or zones, as so fixed and determined, shall be the\nvaluation subject to taxation for the purposes of such fire district or\nof such zone or zones.\n 6. The treasurer of each fire district shall prepare and file annually\nin the office of the town clerk of each town in which any part of such\nfire district shall be located, and in the office of the state\ncomptroller, a financial statement setting forth in detail the receipts\nand expenditures of such fire district. Such statement shall be filed in\nsuch offices within sixty days after the close of the fiscal year of the\nfire district.\n