BUDGET OFFICER

The Chancellor shall serve as budget officer for the District.

Education Code 44.002

DUTIES

The budget officer's duties shall include:

1. Responsibility for the preparation of a budget covering estimated revenue and proposed expenditures of the District for the following year.
2. Ensuring that proper records are kept and that copies of all budget forms, and all other reports are filed with the proper authorities at the proper times.

Education Code 44.002, 44.003

DEPUTY BUDGET OFFICER

The Chancellor shall designate the Vice Chancellor of Fiscal Affairs as deputy budget officer. The deputy budget officer shall assist in professional and technical aspects of the budget preparation.

Education Code 23.43

BUDGET PLANNING

Budget planning shall be an integral part of overall program planning so that the budget effectively reflects the strategic plan and annual operating goals of the College and provides the resources to implement them. In the planning process, general educational goals, specific program goals, and alternatives for achieving program goals shall be considered. Budget planning and evaluation are continuous processes and should be a part of each month's activities.

CALENDAR

The Chancellor or designee shall supervise the development of a budget calendar and a specific plan for budget preparation that ensures appropriate input from all levels of operation within the District.

REQUIREMENTS

The budget shall conform to Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board requirements and meet the standards of the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools

PREPARATION

The budget must be itemized in detail according to classification and purpose of expenditure and shall be in the format required by the "Annual Financial Reporting Requirements for Public Community and Junior Colleges in Texas."

19 TAC 13.2

AVAILABILITY OF PROPOSED BUDGET

After it is presented to the Board and prior to adoption, a copy of the proposed budget shall be available for inspection during regular business hours.

PUBLIC MEETING ON THE BUDGET

After the proposed budget has been prepared, the Board Chair shall call a Board meeting for the purpose of adopting a budget for the succeeding fiscal year. Any taxpayer of the District may be present and participate in the hearing.

The meeting must comply with the notice requirements of the Open Meetings Act.

The annual public hearing on the proposed budget shall be conducted as follows:

1. The Board Chairman shall request at the beginning of the hearing that all persons who desire to speak should register and speak.
2. Prior to the beginning of the hearing, the Board may establish time limits for speakers and may determine the number of speakers for group presentations.
3. Speakers shall confine their remarks to the appropriation of funds as contained in the proposed budget.

4.      No officer or employee of the District shall be required to respond to questions from speakers at the hearing.

Education Code 44.004; Gov't Code 551.041, 551.043

BUDGET ADOPTION

The adopted budget provides authority to expend funds for the purposes indicated and in accordance with state law, Board policy, and the District's approved purchasing procedures. The expenditure of funds shall be under the direction of the Chancellor or designee who shall ensure that funds are expended in accordance with the adopted budget.

BUDGET AMENDMENTS

The budget may be amended at any time during the fiscal year. The District shall develop procedures for budget amendments.

AUTHORIZED EXPENDITURES

No public funds of the District may be spent in any manner other than as provided for in the budget adopted by the Board.  The District shall not lend its credit or gratuitously grant public money or things of value in aid of any individual, association, or corporation.

The District shall not grant any extra compensation, fee, or allowance to a public officer, agent, servant, or contractor after service has been rendered or a contract entered into and performed in whole or in part. Nor shall the District pay or authorize the payment of any claim against the District under any agreement or contract made without authority of law.

Education Code 44.006; Tx. Const. Art. III, Sec. 52; Brazoria County v. Perry, 537 S.W.2d 89 (Civ. App. 1976); Tx. Const. Art. III, Sec. 53;Harlingen ISD v. C.H. Page and Bro., 48 S.W.2d 983 (Comm. Appl. 1932)

COMMITMENT OF CURRENT REVENUE

A contract for the acquisition, including lease, of real or personal property is a commitment of the District's current revenue only, provided the contract contains either or both of the following provisions:

1. Retains to the Board the continuing right to terminate the contract at the expiration of each budget period during the term of the contract.
2. Is conditioned on a best efforts attempt by the Board to obtain and appropriate funds for payment of the contract.

REPORTING

The Vice Chancellor of Fiscal Affairs will provide the Board of Trustees a monthly financial report that includes balance sheets for all College operating funds as well as a status of current budgeted revenues and expenditures.