§ 3857. City financial plans. 1. Commencing with the city's two
thousand four--two thousand five fiscal year, the mayor shall prepare
and submit to the authority a four-year financial plan, and the mayor's
proposed city budget, not later than the date required for submission of
such budget to the council pursuant to the city charter. Such financial
plan shall, in addition to the requirements for financial plans set
forth in subdivisions two and three of this section, contain actions
sufficient to ensure with respect to the major operating funds for each
fiscal year of the plan that annual aggregate operating expenses for
such fiscal year shall not exceed annual aggregate operating revenues
for such fiscal year. For purposes of determining operating revenues in
the fiscal years ending June thirtieth, two thousand four through two
thousand seven, such plan may assume receipt by the city of BFSA
assistance in the following collective amounts for each respective
fiscal year:
Amount Fiscal Year Ending
2004 amount 2004
2005 amount 2005
2006 amount 2006
2007 amount 2007
As used in this subdivision:
"2004 amount" means that amount expected to be provided by the authority
to ensure balanced major operating fund operations upon its
determination that the city has taken recurring actions to close between
thirty-five per centum and forty per centum of the projected gap.
"2005 amount" means that amount expected to be provided by the authority
to ensure balanced major operating fund operations upon its
determination that the city has taken recurring actions to close between
forty-five per centum and fifty per centum of the projected gap.
"2006 amount" means that amount expected to be provided by the authority
to ensure balanced major operating fund operations upon its
determination that the city has taken recurring actions to close between
sixty per centum and sixty-five per centum of the projected gap.
"2007 amount" means that amount expected to be provided by the authority
to ensure balanced major operating fund operations upon its
determination that the city has taken recurring actions to close between
eighty per centum and eighty-five per centum of the projected gap.
2. Each financial plan and financial plan modification shall conform
to the requirements of paragraph (a) of this subdivision and shall
provide that the major operating funds of the city will be balanced in
accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. The financial
plan shall be developed and approved, and may from time to time be
modified, in accordance with the following procedures: (a) The mayor shall submit to the authority a certificate stating that
the budget submitted to the authority is consistent with the financial
plan submitted therewith and that operation within the budget is
feasible.
(a-1) Prior to the approval or disapproval of the financial plan of
the city by the authority, the authority shall request community,
educational or other entity or entities to seek public input and comment
relating to the city's and/or any covered organization's financial plan.
Such community, educational or other entity or entities shall report to
the authority on such public input and comment ten days after the city
has submitted the financial plan to the authority. The authority shall
evaluate any proposals submitted to the authority for cost savings
and/or service delivery enhancement in the city, and shall periodically,
at least twice a year, summarize in a public report the authority's
findings with respect to such proposals that, in the opinion of the
authority, merit further consideration based on their potential impact
on the city's budget. The authority shall provide public notice of the
dates on which it plans to make such public reports.
(b) Not more than twenty days after submission of a financial plan or
more than fifteen days after submission of a financial plan
modification, the authority shall determine whether the financial plan
or financial plan modification is complete and complies with the
provisions of this section and section thirty-eight hundred fifty-six of
this title and the other requirements of this title, and shall submit
its recommendations with respect to the financial plan or financial plan
modification in accordance with the provisions of this subdivision.
(c) Upon the approval by the city of a budget in accordance with the
provisions of the city charter, the mayor shall submit such approved
budget and financial plan to the authority accompanied by expenditure,
revenue and cash flow projections on a quarterly basis and certify to
the authority that such budget is consistent with the financial plan to
be submitted to the authority.
(d) If the authority determines that the financial plan or financial
plan modification provided pursuant to paragraph (c) or (f) of this
subdivision or section thirty-eight hundred fifty-six of this title is
complete and complies with the standards set forth in this subdivision,
the authority shall make a certification to the city setting forth
revenue estimates agreed to by the authority in accordance with such
determination.
(e) The authority shall, in the event it disagrees with elements of
the financial plan provided pursuant to paragraph (c) or (f) of this
subdivision, or section thirty-eight hundred fifty-six of this title,
provide notice thereof to the city, with copies to the director of the
budget, the state comptroller, the chair of the assembly ways and means
committee and the chair of the senate finance committee, if, in the
judgment of the authority, such plan: (i) is incomplete; (ii) fails to
contain projections of revenues and expenditures that are based on
reasonable and appropriate assumptions and methods of estimations; (iii)
fails to provide that operations of the city and the covered
organizations will be conducted within the cash resources available; or
(iv) fails to comply with the provisions of this title or other
requirements of law.
(f) After the initial adoption of an approved financial plan, the
revenue estimates certified by the authority and the financial plan
shall be regularly reexamined by the authority in consultation with the
city and the covered organizations and the mayor shall provide a
modified financial plan in such detail and within such time periods as
the authority may require. In the event of reductions in such revenue
estimates, or in the event the city or a covered organization shall
expend funds at a rate that would exceed the aggregate expenditure
limitation for the city or covered organization prior to the expiration
of the fiscal year, the mayor shall submit a financial plan modification
to effect such adjustments in revenue estimates and reductions in total
expenditures as may be necessary to conform to such revised revenue
estimates or aggregate expenditure limitations.
(g) If, within a time period specified by the authority, the city
fails to make such modifications after reductions in revenue estimates,
or to provide a modified plan in detail and within such time period
required by the authority, the authority shall adopt a resolution so
finding and shall, as soon as practicable thereafter, formulate and
adopt a financial plan to be effective until the authority approves a
financial plan submitted by the city. All budgets and operations of the
city or a covered organization shall be in conformance and compliance
with the financial plan then in effect.
(h) The city shall amend its budget or shall submit a financial plan
modification for the approval of the authority such that the city's
budget and the approved financial plan shall be consistent. In no event
shall the city operate under a budget that is inconsistent with an
approved financial plan.
3. The financial plan shall be in such form and shall contain such
information for each year during which the financial plan is in effect
as the authority may specify, and shall include the city and all the
covered organizations, and shall, in such detail as the authority from
time to time may prescribe, include (a) statements of all estimated
revenues and of all expenditures and cash flow projections of the city
and each covered organization, and (b) an accounting of the expenditure
of efficiency incentive grants available to the city for each year of
the plan.
4. The financial plan shall include any information which the
authority may request to satisfy itself that (a) projected employment
levels, collective bargaining agreements and other actions relating to
employee costs, capital construction and such other matters as the
authority may specify are consistent with the provisions made for such
obligations in the financial plan, (b) the city and the covered
organizations are taking whatever action is necessary with respect to
programs mandated by state and federal law to ensure that expenditures
for such programs are limited to and covered by the expenditures stated
in the financial plan, (c) adequate reserves are provided to maintain
essential programs in the event revenues have been overestimated or
expenditures underestimated for any period, and (d) the city has
adequate cash resources to meet its obligations. In addition, except to
the extent such reporting requirements may be modified pursuant to
agreement between the authority and the city, for each fiscal year
occurring during a control period, or while bonds, notes or other
obligations issued pursuant to this title are outstanding, the mayor
shall prepare a quarterly report of summarized budget data depicting
overall trends, by major category within funds, of actual revenues and
budget expenditures for the entire budget rather than individual line
items, as well as updated quarterly cash flow projections of receipts
and disbursements. Such reports shall compare revenue estimates and
appropriations as set forth in such budget and in the quarterly revenue
and expenditure projections submitted therewith, with the actual
revenues and expenditures made to date. Such reports shall also compare
actual receipts and disbursements with the estimates contained in the
cash flow projections, together with variances and their explanation.
All quarterly reports shall be accompanied by recommendations from the
mayor to the council setting forth any remedial action necessary to
resolve any unfavorable budget variance including the overestimation of
revenues and the underestimation of appropriations. These reports shall
be completed within thirty days after the end of each quarter and shall
be submitted to the council, the authority, the director of the budget
and the state comptroller. For each fiscal year occurring during a
control or advisory period or while bonds, notes or other obligations
issued pursuant to this title are outstanding, the mayor shall submit a
proposed budget or revision thereto to the authority concurrent with
submission to the council, and shall submit the adopted budget to the
authority immediately upon its adoption.
5. For each financial plan and financial plan modification to be
prepared and submitted by the mayor to the authority pursuant to the
provisions of this section, the covered organizations shall submit to
the city such information with respect to their projected expenditures,
revenues and cash flows for each of the years covered by such financial
plan or modification as the mayor shall determine.
