Los Gatos Municipal Code Div. 3 Finance Commission

(a) The Finance Commission shall be established to serve in an advisory capacity to the Town Council by reviewing Town finances, including but not limited to the annual budget, Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, and capital expenditures, and making recommendations about the Town's financial, budgetary and investment matters and operations related thereto to the Town Council and any other Town department, agency, committee, commission or other body as the Town Council directs.

(b) The Council Finance Committee is disbanded.

(c) The Sales Tax Oversight Committee established by section 25.60.140 of the Town Code is disbanded and all powers and duties of that Committee are transferred to the Finance Commission.

(Ord. No. 2314, § 3(§ 1), 11-3-20)

(a) The Finance Commission shall consist of five (5) voting citizen members ("Citizen Appointees") and two (2) non-voting Council Liaisons.

(b) Council Liaisons.

(1) The Town Council shall appoint two (2) Town Council members as non-voting Council Liaisons.

(2) The Council Liaisons shall serve on the Finance Commission until replaced by the Town Council but shall not serve beyond their terms on the Town Council.

(3) One Council Liaison shall be the Mayor or Vice-Mayor of the Town.

(c) Citizen Appointees.

(1) Except with respect to initial appointments as provided for in section 2.50.25(c)(5), each member of the Town Council shall appoint one Citizen Appointee, upon expiration of terms described in section 2.50.205(c)(4).

(2) Citizen Appointees must be residents and registered voters of the Town.

(3) No member of the Town Council may serve as a Citizen Appointee.

(4) Citizen Appointees shall serve four-year terms. which shall expire on a staggered basis such that every year one (1) term shall expire, except that once every four (4) years. Two (2) terms shall expire. The term of each Citizen Appointee shall commence on the first day of January (or as soon as practicable after the effective date of this Division for initial Citizen Appointees) and shall expire on the thirty-first day of the fourth successive December.

(5) As soon as practicable after the effective date of this Division, the initial appointment of the first Citizen Appointees shall be carried out as follows: Town Council members shall draw lots to determine the order of expiration for the terms of the first five (5) Citizen Appointees such that one (1) Citizen Appointee's term shall expire each year for four (4) years after the effective date of this Division, and one (1) additional Citizen Appointee's term shall expire in the fourth year after the effective date of this Division. Following the expiration of each of the first five (5) Citizen Appointees' terms. a Citizen Appointee shall be appointed to serve a four-year term.

(6) Citizen Appointees must be certified public accountants, chartered financial analysts, or have a business, finance, economics or accounting degree. and must have at least five (5) years of experience in at least one (1) of the following:

a. Financial experience in a corporate. business, or government setting;

b. Principal or officer at a financial auditing firm;

c. Investment banking; or

d. Finance or budget management.

(7) Should a Citizen Appointee resign or otherwise leave office prior to the end of the Citizen Appointee's term, the appointing Town Council member for that Citizen Appointee shall, as soon as practicable, appoint a new Citizen Appointee to serve the remainder of the term.

(d) Section 2.40.030 of the Town Code shall not apply to the Finance Commission.

(e) Administrative support for the Finance Commission shall be provided by the Town Manager, the Director of Finance and by other Town staff as necessary.

(Ord. No. 2314, § 3(§ 1), 11-3-20; Ord. No. 2320, § III, 9-7-21)

(a) The Finance Commission shall hold at least one (1) meeting per calendar quarter.

(b) Meetings shall be held as required by the business needs of the Finance Commission in the Town Council chamber in the Town Hall or such other locations as allowed by the Ralph M. Brown Act, at a time that is convenient for the Finance Commission and the public to encourage public participation.

(c) Meetings shall be subject to the Ralph M. Brown Act.

(d) Nothing in this Division shall be construed as excluding any documents from the California Public Records Act.

(Ord. No. 2314, § 3(§ 1), 11-3-20)

(a) The Finance Commission shall appoint and prescribe the term of office for its Chair.

(b) The Chair must be a Citizen Appointee.

(c) All Finance Commission meetings shall be called by the Chair.

(d) The Chair shall set all Finance Commission meeting agendas.

(Ord. No. 2314, § 3(§ 1), 11-3-20)

A majority of the Citizen Appointees of the Finance Commission shall constitute a quorum. Except as otherwise prescribed by ordinance or State law, a vote by a majority of a quorum shall be sufficient to transact business.

(Ord. No. 2314, § 3(§ 1), 11-3-20)

(a) The Finance Commission shall:

(1) Serve as an on-going. substantive and expert advisory body to the Town and Town Council so that the Town and Town Council can make informed decisions about the Town's financial, budgetary and investment matters and operations related thereto.

(2) Review the Town Manager's annual proposed budget prepared in accordance with section 2.30.295(6) of the Town Code. and provide written comments and recommendations to the Town Council.

a. The Finance Commission's comments and recommendations shall include a recommendation about whether the Town Council should approve or disapprove the proposed budget. The Finance Commission may make a recommendation of approval of the budget conditional upon the Town Council's acceptance of me or more of the Finance Commission's recommendations.

b. The Town Manager must provide a proposed budget to the Finance Commission at least twenty (20) business days before the first meeting at which the proposed budget is considered by the Town Council.

(3) Review the Town Manager's draft Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR) for the preceding fiscal year and provide written comments and recommendations to the Town Manager.

a. The Town Manager shall respond in writing to the Finance Commission providing the Town Manager's rationale for accepting or rejecting each of the Finance Commission's comments and recommendations prior to presenting the CAFR to the Town Council for formal consideration.

b. The Town Manager may not present the CAFR to the Town Council for formal consideration unless or until the Town Manager considers and responds in writing to all of the Finance Commission's comments and recommendations.

(4) Review the Director of Finance's summary of the Town's financial report required by section 53891 of the California Government Code and prepared in accordance with section 2.50.0I0(c) of the Town Code. and provide written comments and recommendations to the Director of Finance prior to the publishing of the summary of the report.

(5) Review the financial policies and procedures manual developed in accordance with section 2.50.0I0(f) of the Town Code and provide written comments and recommendations to the Director of Finance.

(6) Prior to the Town's expenditure of any revenues from the tax authorized by sections 25.60.010 et seq. of the Town Code, review the proposed expenditures and advise the Town Council on whether such expenditures meet the Town Council's objectives for that tax:

a. Maintaining and enhancing neighborhood police patrols and local crime prevention programs;

b. Improving traffic flow to reduce congestion;

c. Repairing potholes and maintaining the Town's streets, roads. and sidewalks: and

d. Maintaining the Town's long-term financial stability.

(7) Issue an annual public report of the expenditures and appropriations of sales tax revenues approved by the Town Council during each fiscal year.

(8) Make recommendations to the Town Council about policies and programs:

a. To maximize the Town's revenues consistent with existing taxation structures and inter-governmental funding opportunities;

b. To maximize fee generation consistent with market rate charges for Town- provided services and market rate fees for utilization of Town-owned assets;

c. To minimize the City's cost to provide core services and required activities. Consistent with the desired service level for residents and other internal and external customers;

d. To set funding goals for reserves. and review on-going progress related thereto:

e. To assess the risk associated with the structure and documentation of any proposed debt financing;

f. To fund the Town's long-term compensation and benefit program liabilities in the most responsible and cost-effective way; and

g. To monitor investment performance and make recommendations related to the Town's investment policy and performance.

(9) Provide written comments and recommendations regarding the selection of auditors for the CAFR.

(10) Participate in pre-audit meetings with auditors. provided that the Finance Commission shall not participate in those portions of any meetings which pertain to confidential employment or attorney­ client privileged matters.

(11) Review and monitor any events or issues which may affect the financial status of the Town.

(b) The duties of the Finance Commission shall not be altered, abridged or abrogated in any way by any body except by a vote of the majority of the voters of the Town.

(c) The Town Council shall make changes to the budgetary and all other Town processes and calendars as necessary to allow for consideration of the comments and recommendations of the Finance Commission outlined herein.

(Ord. No. 2314, § 3(§ 1), 11-3-20; Ord. No. 2320, § III, 9-7-21)

Should any provision of this Division be found to conflict with the Los Gatos Town Code, this Division shall prevail, consistent with the purposes of the Finance Commission as set forth herein.

(Ord. No. 2314, § 3(§ 1), 11-3-20)